Pure Church of Christ

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The Pure Church of Christ was the first known schismatic organization to emerge within the Latter Day Saint movement (LDS).

The Pure Church of Christ was organized in 1831 in Kirtland, Ohio by Wycam Clark, Northrop Sweet, and four others who claimed that LDS founder Joseph Smith was a false prophet. They had a few meetings and soon disbanded. According to speeches made by George A. Smith that were recorded in the LDS Journal of Discourses , this church never had more than six members. [1]

History

According to George A. Smith, Wyman Clark was baptized into The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints about the same time as Sidney Rigdon (mid or late 1830). Clark, another follower of Joseph Smith named Northrop Sweet, and four unnamed others were responsible for the creation of the Pure Church of Christ. [2]

At the time of the creation of the Pure Church of Christ in Kirtland, some latter-day saints founded a communal program inspired by the biblical Book of Acts. About 50 people located on a farm owned by Isaac Morley had been baptized, but had not yet been instructed in relation to their duties under the collectivist arrangement. These people claimed that a spirit entered into them. Some claimed to see angels and other miraculous events were reported. [3]

Upon hearing of these events, Joseph Smith came to Kirtland to teach these Saints that they were in error and how to distinguish between what he described as true and false spiritual manifestations, but Clark rejected Smith's message. Furthermore, Carlk claimed he received a revelation that he was to be a prophet [2] [4] and "the true revelator." [2] Clark organized the "Pure Church of Christ" and commenced having meetings and preaching. [5] Although little is known about the group, it has been recounted in the Journal of Discourses that they "said they could carry the whole world with them by preaching 'Mormon' principles." [2]

See also

Related Research Articles

The history of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has three main periods, described generally as:

  1. the early history during the lifetime of Joseph Smith, which is in common with most Latter Day Saint movement churches;
  2. the "pioneer era" under the leadership of Brigham Young and his 19th-century successors;
  3. the modern era beginning in the early 20th century as the practice of polygamy was discontinued and many members sought reintegration into U.S. society.
<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mormonism</span> Religious tradition and theology founded by Joseph Smith

Mormonism is the religious tradition and theology of the Latter Day Saint movement of Restorationist Christianity started by Joseph Smith in Western New York in the 1820s and 1830s. As a label, Mormonism has been applied to various aspects of the Latter Day Saint movement, although there has been a recent push from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to distance themselves from this label. A historian, Sydney E. Ahlstrom, wrote in 1982, "One cannot even be sure, whether [Mormonism] is a sect, a mystery cult, a new religion, a church, a people, a nation, or an American subculture; indeed, at different times and places it is all of these."

The King Follett discourse, or King Follett sermon, was an address delivered in Nauvoo, Illinois, by Joseph Smith, president and founder of the Latter Day Saint movement, on April 7, 1844, less than three months before he was killed by a mob. The discourse was presented to a congregation of about twenty thousand Latter Day Saints at a general conference held shortly after the funeral service of Elder King Follett, who had died on March 9, 1844, of accidental injuries. The sermon is notable for its assertion that God was once a mortal man, and that mortal men and women can become gods through salvation and exaltation. These topics were, and are, controversial, and have received varying opinions and interpretations of what Smith meant. Literary critic Harold Bloom called the sermon "one of the truly remarkable sermons ever preached in America."

Church of Christ may refer to:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Latter Day Saint movement</span> Religious movement

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Church of Christ (Latter Day Saints)</span> Original name of the Latter Day Saint church founded by Joseph Smith in the 1820s

The Church of Christ was the original name of the Latter Day Saint church founded by Joseph Smith. Organized informally in 1829 in Upstate New York and then formally on April 6, 1830, it was the first organization to implement the principles found in Smith's newly published Book of Mormon, and thus its establishment represents the formal beginning of the Latter Day Saint movement. Later names for this organization included the Church of the Latter Day Saints, the Church of Jesus Christ, the Church of God, the Church of Christ of Latter Day Saints, and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of the Latter Day Saint movement</span> History of the LDS movement

The Latter Day Saint movement is a religious movement within Christianity that arose during the Second Great Awakening in the early 19th century and that led to the set of doctrines, practices, and cultures called Mormonism, and to the existence of numerous Latter Day Saint churches. Its history is characterized by intense controversy and persecution in reaction to some of the movement's doctrines and practices and their relationship to mainstream Christianity. The purpose of this article is to give an overview of the different groups, beliefs, and denominations that began with the influence of Joseph Smith.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David Whitmer</span> Book of Mormon witness (1805–1888)

David Whitmer was a leader in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints who eventually became the most interviewed of the Three Witnesses to the Book of Mormon's golden plates.

Thomas Baldwin Marsh was an early leader in the Latter-day Saint movement and an original member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, who served as the quorum's first president in the Church of the Latter Day Saints from 1835 to 1838. He withdrew from the church in 1838, was excommunicated from it in 1839, and remained disaffected for almost 19 years. Marsh was rebaptized into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in July 1857, but never again served in church leadership positions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kirtland Temple</span> Historic Mormon temple in Ohio, United States

The Kirtland Temple is the first temple built by adherents of the Latter Day Saint movement and is located in Kirtland, Ohio, United States. Designed by Joseph Smith, the founder and original leader of the movement, the architecture mixes the Federal, Greek Revival, and Gothic Revival architectural styles. The temple is currently owned and operated by the Community of Christ, formerly the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. It has been a National Historic Landmark since 1969.

The succession crisis in the Latter Day Saint movement occurred after the murder of Joseph Smith, the movement's founder, on June 27, 1844.

Warren F. Parrish was a leader in the early Latter Day Saint movement. Parrish held a number of positions of responsibility, including that of scribe to church president Joseph Smith. Parrish and other leaders became disillusioned with Smith after the failure of the Kirtland Safety Society and left the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Upon leaving, he went to Kirtland, Ohio, with the other disaffected former church leaders and formed a short-lived church which they called the Church of Christ, after the original name of the church organized by Smith. This church disintegrated as the result of disagreement between church leaders, and Parrish later left Kirtland and became a Baptist minister.

Francis Gladden Bishop was a minor leader in the Latter Day Saint movement after the 1844 succession crisis. Bishop claimed to be the rightful successor to Joseph Smith; from the 1850s until his death, Bishop led a succession of small groups of Latter Day Saints and converts. His followings have been identified informally by later writers as the Gladdenites and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (Gladdenite), though the name of a late following is formally The Church of Jesus Christ of the New Jerusalem. In the 1850s, many of Bishop's followers abandoned him and joined the movement that would later become the Church of Christ.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Phineas Young</span> American Mormon missionary

Phineas Howe Young was a prominent early convert in the Latter Day Saint movement and was later a Mormon pioneer and a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Phineas Young was an older brother of Brigham Young, who was the president of the LDS Church and the first governor of the Territory of Utah.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Reynolds Cahoon</span>

Reynolds Cahoon was an early leader in Latter Day Saint movement and later, in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He was one of the inaugural members of the Council of Fifty, organized by Joseph Smith Jr in 1844.

The Church of Jesus Christ (Bickertonite) is part of the Latter Day Saint movement. When Joseph Smith, the founder of the movement, died there was a dispute regarding who should lead the church as his successor. The Quorum of the Twelve, led by Brigham Young, argued that they should have the right to lead the church while one of the church leaders, Sidney Rigdon, argued that he should act as protector of the church until a permanent leader was chosen. Those who followed Rigdon formed the "Church of Christ" with its center being Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. After an attempt to start a communitarian society, Church of Christ broke apart by 1847. William Bickerton associated himself for two years with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and later left them behind refusing to accept some of their beliefs, including polygamy. In the 1850s Bickerton's preaching led to the formation of a new church in Eastern Pennsylvania. Over the following years Bickerton's church faced two schisms related to doctrinal issues. Its current official name, The Church of Jesus Christ, was adopted by 1941.

Jared Carter was an early leader in the Latter Day Saint movement. He joined the Church of Christ in 1831 and soon after served a mission in the northeastern United States. He was mentioned by name in section 79 of the Doctrine and Covenants; the passage encouraged him to continue his work as a missionary. He has been described as "one of the Church's great missionaries" of the 1830s. In 1834, Carter was chosen as a member of the first Presiding High Council of Kirtland, Ohio, and then became the council's president in 1837. After being disfellowshipped from the LDS Church and briefly joining the Strangite church, Carter re-joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints while living in Chicago. He died in DeKalb County, Illinois.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Outline of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints</span> Overview of and topical guide to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

The following outline is provided as an overview of and a topical guide to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Outline of Joseph Smith</span> Overview of and topical guide to Joseph Smith

The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to the life and influence of Joseph Smith:

References

  1. ↑ Black, Susan Easton. Who's Who in the Doctrine and Covenants (Salt Lake City, Utah: Bookcraft, 1997) p. 311
  2. 1 2 3 4 Alvord, Trevor (2010). "Certainty to Distrust: Conversion in Early Mormonism". The John Whitmer Historical Association Journal. 30: 133–155. ISSN   0739-7852.
  3. ↑ Shields, Steve L., Divergent Paths of the Restoration (1982), p. 21.
  4. ↑ Jorgensen, Danny L. (1995). "Dissent and Schism in the Early Church: Explaining Mormon Fissiparousness". Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought. 28 (3): 15–39. ISSN   0012-2157.
  5. ↑ Journal of Discourses, v. 11, p. 4
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