Editing Mormonism (section)

==Historical overview==
{{See also|Mormon (word)|History of the Latter Day Saint movement|History of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints|Early life of Joseph Smith|Life of Joseph Smith from 1827 to 1830}}

[[File:First-vision-joseph-smith-mormon.jpg |upright|thumb|150 px|left|Artist's depiction of the [[First Vision]]]]

The doctrines of Mormonism began with the farmboy Joseph Smith in the 1820s in [[Western New York]] during a period of religious excitement known as the [[Second Great Awakening]].<ref>{{Harvtxt|Bushman|2008|p=1}}; {{Harvtxt|Shipps|1985|p=36}}; {{Harvtxt|Remini|2002|p=1}}.</ref> Smith, at 14 years old, was determined to find out which [[Christian denomination|church]] taught the "true" [[doctrine]] of [[God]]. He believed that God existed, but was confused by what he believed to be contradictions in the beliefs of churches available to him. In ''Joseph Smith-History'', he wrote: "While I was laboring under the extreme difficulties caused by the contests of these parties of religionists, I was one day reading the [[Epistle of James]], first chapter and fifth verse, which reads: 'If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.'" After praying about which [[Christian denomination|denomination]] he should join, Smith said he received a vision in the spring of 1820.<ref>{{Harvtxt|Bushman|2008|p=16}}</ref> Called the "[[First Vision]]", Smith said that [[God the Father]] and his son, [[Jesus Christ]], appeared to him and instructed him to join none of the existing churches because they were all wrong.<ref>Smith's 1838 written account of this vision was later canonized in a book called ''[[Pearl of Great Price (Mormonism)|The Pearl of Great Price]]''. (See: ''[[Joseph Smith–History]]'' 1:19)</ref> During the 1820s, Smith chronicled several angelic visitations, and was eventually told (by the angels) that God would use him to re-establish the "true Christian church."<ref>{{Cite web|date=April 5, 2020|title=The Restoration of the Fulness of the Gospel of Jesus Christ: A Bicentennial Proclamation to the World|url=https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/scriptures/the-restoration-of-the-fulness-of-the-gospel-of-jesus-christ/a-bicentennial-proclamation-to-the-world?lang=eng|access-date=October 20, 2021|website=ChurchOfJesusChrist.org|archive-date=October 20, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211020145355/https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/scriptures/the-restoration-of-the-fulness-of-the-gospel-of-jesus-christ/a-bicentennial-proclamation-to-the-world?lang=eng|url-status=live}}</ref>

In 1830 Smith published the [[Book of Mormon]] which he claimed to have translated from ancient writings found on [[golden plates]]. He said [[Angel Moroni|an angel]] first showed him the location of the plates in 1823, buried in [[Cumorah|a nearby hill]]. After obtaining the plates in 1827, Smith began dictating the text of the Book of Mormon in April 1828 with the assistance of [[Martin Harris (Latter Day Saints)|Martin Harris]] and later [[Oliver Cowdery]]. After several interruptions, Smith completed the manuscript in June 1829.<ref>{{Harvtxt|Bushman|2008|p=22}}</ref> Smith said the plates were returned to the angel after he finished the translation. 

The Book of Mormon claims to be [[Book of Mormon chronology|a chronicle]] of early [[Israelites]] who left the [[Near East]] and traveled to the [[Americas]]. The book begins {{circa|600|lk=no}} BC with the departure from [[Jerusalem]] of the family of a prophet named [[Lehi (Book of Mormon prophet)|Lehi]], and their sailing to the Americas. It tells of people in the Americas (presumably [[Native Americans in the United States|Native Americans]]) with a belief in [[Jesus]] hundreds of years before [[Nativity of Jesus|his birth]]; their witnessing Jesus's personal visitation to them after [[Resurrection of Jesus|his resurrection]]; and of their eventually losing Christianity after generations of wars and [[Apostasy in Christianity|apostasy]]. According to Smith, the ''Book of Mormon'' and [[Revelation in Mormonism|other revelations]] would be the means of establishing correct doctrine for a [[Restorationism|restored church]]. Smith began [[Baptism in Mormonism|baptizing]] new converts in 1829, and formally organized the [[Church of Christ (Latter Day Saints)|Church of Christ]] in 1830.<ref>{{Harvtxt|Remini|2002|pp=63, 79}}</ref> Smith was seen by his followers as a modern-day [[prophet]].<ref>{{Harvtxt|Bushman|2008|p=8}}</ref>

The early church encountered criticism and persecution from residents of [[Palmyra (town), New York|Palmyra, New York]] and surrounding several towns when they began to organize.<ref name=":0" /> To avoid confrontation, Smith and the early church members, known as [[Mormons]], moved West to [[Kirtland, Ohio]], and [[Jackson County, Missouri]] where they hoped to establish a permanent [[New Jerusalem]] or [[Zion (Latter Day Saints)|City of Zion]].<ref>{{Harvtxt|Bushman|2008|p=10}}</ref> However, they were expelled from Jackson County in 1833 and fled to other parts of Missouri. In 1838, fighting [[Mormon War (1838)|between the Missourians and Mormons]] resulted in the governor of Missouri issuing [[Mormon Extermination Order|an "extermination order"]] against the Mormons, forcing them to flee the state.<ref>{{Harvtxt|Remini|2002|p=135}}</ref> The displaced church relocated to Illinois where under Smith's direction, the church bought a small town, renamed it [[Nauvoo, Illinois|Nauvoo]], and lived with a degree of peace and prosperity for a few years.<ref>{{Harvtxt|Bushman|2008|p=11}}</ref> However, tensions between Mormons and their neighbors again escalated. In 1844 [[death of Joseph Smith|Smith was killed]] by a mob, precipitating [[Succession crisis (Latter Day Saints)|a succession crisis]].<ref>{{Harvtxt|Bushman|2008|pp=12–14}}</ref>

The largest group of Mormons, now called the [[Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints]], followed [[Brigham Young]] as the new prophet and, under his direction, emigrated to what became the [[Utah Territory]].<ref>{{Harvtxt|Bushman|2008|p=13}}</ref> There, the church began the open practice of [[plural marriage]], a form of religious [[polygamy]] which Smith had instituted in Nauvoo. Polygamy became the faith's most sensational characteristic during the 19th century, and vigorous opposition by the [[United States Congress]] threatened the church's existence as a legal institution. Further, polygamy was also a major cause for the opposition to Mormonism in the states of Idaho and Arizona.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Groberg|first=Joseph|date=Spring 1976|title=The Mormon Disfranchisements of 1882 to 1892|journal=Brigham Young University Studies|volume= 16| issue = 3|page=400}}</ref> In the [[1890 Manifesto]], church president [[Wilford Woodruff]] announced the official end of plural marriage.<ref>{{Harvtxt|Bushman|2008|p=2}}; {{cite web |url=https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/scriptures/dc-testament/od/1?lang=eng |title=Official Declaration 1 |publisher=churchofjesuschrist.org |access-date=July 17, 2019 |archive-date=November 15, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201115012641/https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/scriptures/dc-testament/od/1?lang=eng |url-status=live }}</ref>

Due to this formal abolition of plural marriage, several small groups broke from the LDS Church forming many smaller [[Mormon fundamentalist]] denominations.<ref>{{Harvtxt|Bushman|2008|p=14}}</ref> During the latter half of the 20th century the [[Membership history of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints|LDS Church grew rapidly]], going from about 1.7 million members in 1960 to around 7.7 million members in 1990. Growth since then has slowed, and the church claimed a membership of 16&nbsp;million in 2020.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/facts-and-statistics|title=LDS Statistics and Church Facts &#124; Total Church Membership|website=mormonnewsroom.org|access-date=May 14, 2019|archive-date=March 25, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200325004047/https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/facts-and-statistics|url-status=live}}</ref>