The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, often informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a nontrinitarian, Christian church that considers itself to be the restoration of the original church founded by Jesus Christ. The church is headquartered in the United States in Salt Lake City, Utah, and has established congregations and built temples worldwide. According to the church, it has over 16.8 million members and 54,539 full-time volunteer missionaries. The church is the fourth-largest Christian denomination in the United States, with over 6.7 million US members as of 2021. It is the largest denomination in the Latter Day Saint movement founded by Joseph Smith during the early 19th-century period of religious revival known as the Second Great Awakening.
The Deseret alphabet is a phonemic English-language spelling reform developed between 1847 and 1854 by the board of regents of the University of Deseret under the leadership of Brigham Young, the second president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. George D. Watt is reported to have been the most actively involved in the development of the script, as well as being its first serious user.
The Latter Day Saint movement is the collection of independent church groups that trace their origins to a Christian Restorationist movement founded by Joseph Smith in the late 1820s.
The Mormon Trail is the 1,300-mile (2,100 km) long route from Illinois to Utah that members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints traveled for 3 months. Today, the Mormon Trail is a part of the United States National Trails System, known as the Mormon Pioneer National Historic Trail.
The 1890 Manifesto is a statement which officially advised against any future plural marriage in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Issued by church president Wilford Woodruff in September 1890, the Manifesto was a response to mounting anti-polygamy pressure from the United States Congress, which by 1890 had disincorporated the church, escheated its assets to the U.S. federal government, and imprisoned many prominent polygamist Mormons. Upon its issuance, the LDS Church in conference accepted Woodruff's Manifesto as "authoritative and binding."
The Provo Utah Temple is the 17th constructed and 15th operating temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Located in the city of Provo, Utah, it was built with a modern single-spire design, similar to the original design of the Ogden Utah Temple.
Below is a chronological list of temples of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints with sortable columns. In the LDS Church, a temple is a building dedicated to be a House of the Lord, and considered by church members to be the most sacred structures on earth. Upon completion, temples are usually open to the public for a short period of time, and then each is dedicated as a "House of the Lord," after which only members in good standing are permitted to enter. Thus, they are not churches or meetinghouses, but rather specialized places of worship. There are 173 dedicated temples, 51 under construction, and 58 announced, for a total of 282. Within temples, members of the church make covenants, receive instructions, and perform rituals and ordinances. Additionally, members consider the temple a place to commune with God, seek God's aid, understand God's will, and receive personal revelation.
Mormons have both used and been subjected to significant violence throughout much of the religion's history. In the early history of the United States, violence was used as a form of control. Mormons were violently persecuted and pushed from Ohio to Missouri, from Missouri to Illinois and from Illinois, they were pushed west to the Utah Territory. There were incidents of massacre, home burning and pillaging, followed by the death of their prophet, Joseph Smith. Smith died from multiple gunshot wounds from a lynch mob at a jail in Carthage, Illinois; Smith had defended himself with a small pistol smuggled to him by church leader Cyrus Wheelock and he was then shot while trying to flee from a window. There were also notable incidents in which Mormons perpetrated violence. Under the direction of Mormon prophets and apostles, the Mormon burned and looted Davies County, attacked and killed a member of the Missouri state militia, and carried out an extermination order on the Timpanogos. Other Mormon leaders led the Mountain Meadows Massacre, Battle Creek massacre, and Circleville Massacre. Mormons have also been a major part in several wars, including the 1838 Mormon War, Walker War and Black Hawk War.
Since its organization in New York in 1830, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has had a presence in Canada. The church's first missionaries to preach outside of the United States preached in Upper Canada; the first stake to be established outside of the U.S. was the Alberta Stake; and the Cardston Alberta Temple was the first church temple built outside of the boundaries of the United States.
Joseph Toronto was the first Italian convert to the Latter Day Saint movement and was one of the first missionaries of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Italy.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in California refers to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and its members in California. California has the 2nd most members of the LDS Church in the United States, behind Utah. The LDS Church is the 2nd largest denomination in California, behind the Roman Catholic Church.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Colorado refers to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and its members in Colorado. The first congregation of the Church in Colorado was organized in 1897. It has since grown to 150,509 members in 311 congregations.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Utah refers to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and its members in Utah. Utah has more church members than any other U.S. state or country. The LDS Church is also the largest denomination in Utah.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Wales refers to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and its members in Wales.
The name of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is derived from an 1838 revelation church founder Joseph Smith said he received. Church leaders have long emphasized the church's full name, and have resisted the application of informal or shortened names, especially those which omit "Jesus Christ". These informal and shortened names include the "Mormon Church", the "LDS Church", and the "Church of the Latter-day Saints".
