Editing Mormons (section)

== History ==
{{Main|History of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints}}

The history of the Mormons has shaped them into a people with a strong sense of unity and commonality.<ref>{{Harvtxt|O'Dea|1957|pp=75,119}}.</ref> From the start, Mormons have tried to establish what they call "[[Zion (Latter Day Saints)|Zion]]", a utopian society of the righteous.<ref>A Mormon scripture describing the ancient city of [[Enoch (ancestor of Noah)|Enoch]] became a model for the Saints. Enoch's city was a Zion "because they were of one heart and one mind, and dwelt in righteousness; and there were no poor among them" {{Harvtxt|Bushman|2008|pp=36–38}}; ([http://churchofjesuschrist.org/scriptures/pgp/moses/7.18?lang=eng#17 {{nowrap|Book of Moses 7:18}}]).</ref>
Mormon history can be divided into three broad periods: (1) the early history during the lifetime of [[Joseph Smith]], (2) a "pioneer era" under the leadership of [[Brigham Young]] and his successors, and (3) a modern era beginning around the turn of the 20th century. In the first period, Smith attempted to build a city called Zion, where converts could gather. Zion became a "landscape of villages" in Utah during the pioneer era. In modern times, Zion is still an ideal, though Mormons gather together in their individual congregations rather than in a central geographic location.<ref>"In Missouri and Illinois, Zion had been a city; in Utah, it was a landscape of villages; in the urban diaspora, it was the ward with its extensive programs." {{Harvtxt|Bushman|2008|p=107}}.</ref>

=== Beginnings ===
{{See also|History of the Latter Day Saint movement}}

[[File:Joseph Smith first vision stained glass.jpg|left|thumb|upright|A stained glass window of [[Joseph Smith|Joseph Smith's]] 1820 [[First Vision]]]]

The Mormon movement began with the publishing of the Book of Mormon in March 1830, which Smith claimed was a translation of [[golden plates]] containing the religious history of an ancient American civilization that the ancient prophet-historian [[Mormon (Book of Mormon)|Mormon]] had compiled. Smith stated that [[Angel Moroni|an angel]] had directed him to the [[golden plates]] buried in the [[Cumorah|Hill Cumorah]].<ref>{{Harvtxt|Bushman|2008|p=19}}.</ref> On April 6, 1830, Smith founded the [[Church of Christ (Latter Day Saints)|Church of Christ]].<ref>Scholars and eye-witnesses disagree as to whether the church was organized in [[Manchester (town), New York|Manchester, New York]] at the Smith log home, or in [[Fayette, New York|Fayette]] at the home of [[Peter Whitmer Sr.]] {{Harvtxt|Bushman|2005|p=109}}; {{Harvtxt|Marquardt|2005|pp=223–23}} (arguing that organization in Manchester is most consistent with eye-witness statements).</ref> In 1832, Smith added an account of [[First Vision|a vision]] he had sometime in the early 1820s while living in Upstate New York.<ref>{{Harvtxt|Bushman|2008|pp=1, 9}}; {{Harvtxt|O'Dea|1957|p=9}}; {{cite book |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=5Zx9qOay304C&pg=PA30 |title = Joseph Smith and the Origins of the Book of Mormon |first = David |last = Persuitte |page = 30 |publisher = McFarland |date = October 2000 |access-date = January 25, 2012 |isbn = 9780786484034 }}.</ref> Some Mormons regarded this vision as the most important event in human history after the birth, ministry, and [[resurrection of Jesus]] Christ.<ref name="LDS Church 2010">{{cite web |author = LDS Church |title = Joseph Smith Home Page/Mission of the Prophet/First Vision: This Is My Beloved Son. Hear Him! |year = 2010 |url = http://josephsmith.net/article/the-first-vision |access-date = April 29, 2010 }}; {{Harvtxt|Allen|1966|p=29}} (belief in the First Vision now considered second in importance only to belief in the divinity of Jesus.); {{Cite journal |title = What Are People Asking about Us? |last = Hinkley |first = Gordon B. |journal = [[Ensign (LDS magazine)|Ensign]] |issue = November |year = 1998 |url = http://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/ensign/1998/11/what-are-people-asking-about-us |access-date = May 30, 2019 |archive-date = July 5, 2020 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200705085517/http://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/ensign/1998/11/what-are-people-asking-about-us |url-status = live }} ("[N]othing we teach, nothing we live by is of greater importance than this initial declaration.").</ref>

The early church grew westward as Smith sent missionaries to proselytize.<ref>{{Harvtxt|O'Dea|1957|p=41}} (by the next spring the church had 1,000 members).</ref> In 1831, the church moved to [[Kirtland, Ohio]], where missionaries had made a large number of converts<ref>{{Harvtxt|Brodie|1971|p=97}} (citing letter by Smith to Kirtland converts, quoted in {{Harvtxt|Howe|1834|p=111}});  {{Harvtxt|O'Dea|1957|p=41}}.</ref> and Smith began establishing an outpost in [[Jackson County, Missouri]],<ref>{{Harvtxt|Smith|Cowdery|Rigdon|Williams|1835|p=154}}; {{Harvtxt|Bushman|2005|p=162}}; {{Harvtxt|Brodie|1971|p=109}}.</ref> where he planned to eventually build the city of [[Zion (Latter Day Saints)|Zion]] (or the [[New Jerusalem]]).<ref>Smith said in 1831 that God intended the Mormons to "retain a strong hold in the land of Kirtland, for the space of five years." ([[Doctrine and Covenants]] 64:21); {{Harvtxt|Bushman|2005|p=122}}.</ref> In 1833, Missouri settlers, alarmed by the rapid influx of Mormons, expelled them from Jackson County into the nearby [[Clay County, Missouri|Clay County]], where local residents were more welcoming.<ref>{{Harvtxt|Bushman|2005|pp=222–27}}; {{Harvtxt|Brodie|1971|p=137}} (noting that the brutality of the Jackson Countians aroused sympathy for the Mormons and was almost universally deplored by the media); {{Harvtxt|O'Dea|1957|pp=43–45}} (The Mormons were forced out in a November gale, and were taken in by Clay County residents, who earned from non-Mormons the derogative title of "Jack Mormons").</ref>
After Smith led a mission, known as [[Zion's Camp]], to recover the land,<ref>{{Harvtxt|Brodie|1971|pp=141, 146–59}}; {{Harvtxt|Bushman|2005|p=322}}.</ref> he began building [[Kirtland Temple]] in [[Lake County, Ohio]], where the church flourished.<ref>{{Harvtxt|Brodie|1971|p=101}}; {{Harvtxt|Arrington|1992|p=21}} (by summer of 1835, there were 1500 to 2000 Saints in Kirtland); Desert Morning News ''2008 Church Almanac'' p. 655 (from 1831 to 1838, church membership grew from 680 to 17,881); {{Harv|Bushman|2005|pp=310–19}} (The Kirtland Temple was viewed as the site of a new [[Pentecost]]); {{Harv|Brodie|1971|p=178}}. Smith also published several new [[revelation (Latter Day Saints)|revelations]] during the Kirtland era.</ref> When the Missouri Mormons were later asked to leave Clay County in 1836, they secured land in what would become [[Caldwell County, Missouri|Caldwell County]].<ref>{{Harvtxt|O'Dea|1957|p=45}} (In December 1836, the Missouri legislature granted the Mormons the right to organize Caldwell County).</ref>

The Kirtland era ended in 1838 after the failure of a [[Kirtland Safety Society|church-sponsored anti-bank]] caused widespread defections,<ref>{{Harvtxt|Bushman|2005|pp=328–38}}; {{Harvtxt|Brooke|1994|p=221}} ("Ultimately, the rituals and visions dedicating the Kirtland temple were not sufficient to hold the church together in the face of a mounting series of internal disputes.")</ref> and Smith regrouped with the remaining church in [[Far West, Missouri]].<ref>{{Harvtxt|Roberts|1905|p=24}} (referring to the Far West church as the "church in Zion"); {{Harv|Bushman|2005|p=345}} (The revelation calling Far West "Zion" had the effect of "implying that Far West was to take the place of Independence.")</ref> During the fall of 1838, tensions escalated into the [[1838 Mormon War|Mormon War]] with the old Missouri settlers.<ref>{{Harvtxt|Bushman|2005|pp=357–64}}; {{Harvtxt|Brodie|1971|pp=227–30}}; {{Harvtxt|Remini|2002|p=134}}; {{Harvtxt|Quinn|1994|pp=97–98}}.</ref> On October 27, the [[Lilburn Boggs|governor]] of Missouri [[Missouri Executive Order 44|ordered]] that the Mormons "must be treated as enemies" and be exterminated or driven from the state.<ref>{{Harv|Bushman|2005|p=367}} (Boggs' executive order stated that the Mormon community had "made war upon the people of this State" and that "the Mormons must be treated as enemies, and must be exterminated or driven from the State if necessary for the public peace").  {{Harv|Bushman|2005|p=398}} (In 1976, [[Missouri]] issued a formal apology for this order) {{Harvtxt|O'Dea|1957|p=47}}.</ref> Between November and April, some eight thousand displaced Mormons migrated east into [[Illinois]].<ref>{{Harvtxt|O'Dea|1957|p=47}} ("the Saints, after being ravaged by troops, robbed by neighbors, and insulted by public officials from February to April, crossed over into Illinois").</ref>

[[File:Joseph Smith Preaching to the Indians by William Armitage.png|thumb|Joseph Smith preaching to the [[Sac and Fox Nation|Sac and Fox Indians]] who visited Nauvoo on August 12, 1841]]

In 1839, the Mormons purchased the small town of Commerce, converted swampland on the banks of the Mississippi River, renamed the area [[Nauvoo, Illinois]],<ref>{{Harvtxt|Bushman|2005|pp=383–84}}.</ref> and began constructing the [[Nauvoo Temple]]. The city became the church's new headquarters and gathering place, and it grew rapidly, fueled in part by converts immigrating from Europe.<ref>{{Harvtxt|Bushman|2005|p=409}}; {{Harvtxt|Brodie|1971|pp=258, 264–65}}; {{Harvtxt|O'Dea|1957|p=51}} (noting the city growth and missionary success in England).</ref> Meanwhile, Smith introduced temple ceremonies meant to [[Sealing (Mormonism)|seal]] families together for eternity, as well as the doctrines of eternal progression or [[Exaltation (Mormonism)|exaltation]]<ref>{{Harvtxt|Widmer|2000|p=119}} (Smith taught that faithful Mormons may progress until they become co-equal with God); {{Harvtxt|Roberts|1909|pp=502–03}}; {{Harvtxt|Bushman|2005|pp=497–98}} (the [[second anointing]] provided a guarantee that participants would be exalted even if they sinned).</ref> and plural marriage.<ref>Initially, Smith introduced plural marriage only to his closest associates.{{Harvtxt|Brodie|1971|pp=334–36}}; {{Harvtxt|Bushman|2005|pp=437, 644}} The practice was acknowledged publicly in 1852 by [[Brigham Young]].</ref>
Smith created a service organization for women called the [[Relief Society]] and the [[Council of Fifty]], representing a future [[theodemocracy|theodemocratic]] "Kingdom of God" on the earth.<ref>{{Harvnb|Quinn|1980|pp=120–122, 165}}; {{Harvtxt|Bushman|2005|pp=519–21}} (describing the Council of Fifty).</ref> Smith also published the story of his [[First Vision]], in which the [[God the Father|Father]] and the [[Jesus|Son]] appeared to him when he was about 14 years old.<ref>{{Harvtxt|Shipps|1985|p=30}} The first extant account of the First Vision is the manuscript account in Joseph Smith, "[[Manuscript History of the Church]]" (1839); the first published account is [[Orson Pratt]], ''An Interesting Account of Several Remarkable Visions and of the Late Discovery of Ancient American Records'' (Edinburgh: Ballantyne and Hughes, 1840); and the first American publication is Smith's [[Wentworth letter|letter to John Wentworth]] in ''[[Times and Seasons]]'', '''3''' (March 1842), 706–08. (These accounts are available in {{Cite book |title=Early Mormon Documents |publisher=Signature Books |year=1996 |isbn=978-1-56085-072-4 |editor-last=Vogel |editor-first=Dan |editor-link=Dan Vogel |volume=1 |place=Salt Lake City}}.) As the LDS historian [[Richard Bushman]] wrote in his biography of Smith, "At first, Joseph was reluctant to talk about his vision. Most early converts probably never heard about the 1820 vision." {{Harvtxt|Bushman|2005|p=39}}.</ref> This vision would come to be regarded by some Mormons as the most important event in human history after the birth, ministry, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.<ref name="LDS Church 2010"/>

In 1844, local prejudices and political tensions, fueled by Mormon peculiarity, internal dissent, and reports of polygamy, escalated into conflicts between Mormons and "anti-Mormons" in Illinois and Missouri.<ref>{{Harvtxt|O'Dea|1957|pp=64–67}}</ref> Smith was arrested, and on June 27, 1844, he and his brother [[Hyrum Smith|Hyrum]] were [[Death of Joseph Smith|killed by a mob]] in [[Carthage, Illinois]].<ref>''Encyclopedia of Latter-Day Saint History'', p. 824; {{Harvtxt|Brodie|1971|pp=393–94}}; {{Harvtxt|Bushman|2005|pp=539–50}}; Many local Illinoisans were uneasy with Mormon power, and their unease was fanned by the local media after Smith suppressed a newspaper containing an exposé regarding plural marriage, theocracy, and other sensitive and oft misinterpreted issues. The suppression resulted in Smith being arrested, tried, and acquitted for "inciting a riot". On June 25, Smith let himself be arrested and tried for the riot charges again, this time in Carthage, the county seat, where he was incarcerated without bail on a new charge of treason. {{citation |contribution-url = http://contentdm.lib.byu.edu/cdm/ref/collection/EoM/id/4208 |contribution = Smith, Joseph: Legal Trials of Joseph Smith |first = Joseph I. |last = Bentley |pages = 1346–1348 |editor1-last = Ludlow |editor1-first = Daniel H |editor1-link = Daniel H. Ludlow |title = Encyclopedia of Mormonism |location = New York |publisher = [[Macmillan Publishing]] |year = 1992 |isbn = 978-0-02-879602-4 |oclc = 24502140 |title-link = Encyclopedia of Mormonism |access-date = July 10, 2014 |archive-date = November 15, 2014 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20141115202830/http://contentdm.lib.byu.edu/cdm/ref/collection/EoM/id/4208 |url-status = live }}.</ref> Because Hyrum was Smith's logical successor,<ref>Brigham Young later said of Hyrum, "Did Joseph Smith ordain any man to take his place. He did. Who was it? It was Hyrum, but Hyrum fell a martyr before Joseph did. If Hyrum had lived he would have acted for Joseph." ''[[Times and Seasons]]'', '''5''' [October 15, 1844]: 683.</ref> their deaths caused a [[Succession crisis (Latter Day Saints)|succession crisis]],<ref>{{Harvtxt|Quinn|1994|p=143}}; {{Harvtxt|Brodie|1971|p=398}}.</ref> and [[Brigham Young]] assumed leadership over most Latter Day Saints.<ref>{{Harvtxt|Bushman|2005|pp=556–57}}.</ref> Young had been a close associate of Smith's and was the senior [[Apostle (Latter Day Saints)|apostle]] of the [[Quorum of the Twelve]].<ref>Smith's position as [[President of the Church]] was originally left vacant, based on the sentiment that nobody could succeed Smith's office. Years later, the church established the principle that Young, and any other senior [[Apostle (LDS Church)|apostle]] of the [[Quorum of the Twelve]], would be ordained [[President of the Church (LDS Church)|President of the Church]] as a matter of course upon the death of the former President, subject to unanimous agreement of the Quorum of the Twelve.</ref> Smaller groups of Latter-Day Saints followed other leaders to form other denominations of the Latter Day Saint movement.<ref>{{Harvtxt|Quinn|1994|pp=198–211}}.</ref>

=== Pioneer era ===

For two years after Joseph Smith's death, conflicts escalated between Mormons and other Illinois residents. To prevent war, Brigham Young led the [[Mormon pioneers]] (constituting most of the Latter Day Saints) to a temporary [[Winter Quarters (North Omaha, Nebraska)|winter quarters]] in Nebraska and then, eventually (beginning in 1847), to what became the [[Utah Territory]].<ref name="emigration-religious-freedom">In 2004, the State of Illinois recognized the expulsion of the Latter-day Saints as the "largest forced migration in American history" and stated in the adopted resolution that, "WHEREAS, The biases and prejudices of a less enlightened age in the history of the State of Illinois caused unmeasurable hardship and trauma for the community of Latter-day Saints by the distrust, violence, and inhospitable actions of a dark time in our past; therefore, be it RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-THIRD GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we acknowledge the disparity of those past actions and suspicions, regretting the expulsion of the community of Latter-day Saints, a people of faith and hard work." {{cite web |url = http://www.ilga.gov/legislation/fulltext.asp?GAID=3&SessionID=3&GA=93&DocTypeID=HR&DocNum=0793&LegID=12984&SpecSess=&Session= |title = Official House Resolution HR0793 (LRB093 21726 KEF 49525 r) |author = Illinois General Assembly |date = April 1, 2004 |access-date = April 4, 2011 |archive-date = June 20, 2022 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20220620015748/http://www.ilga.gov/legislation/fulltext.asp?GAID=3 |url-status = live }}; "The great Mormon migration of 1846–1847 was but one step in the Mormons' quest for religious freedom and growth." {{citation |url = http://www.nps.gov/mopi/historyculture/index.htm |title = Mormon Pioneer National Historic Trail: History & Culture |work = NPS.gov |publisher = [[National Park Service]] |access-date = July 9, 2014 |archive-date = December 8, 2014 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20141208215457/http://www.nps.gov/mopi/historyculture/index.htm |url-status = live }}.</ref> Having failed to build Zion within the confines of American society, the Mormons began to construct a society in isolation based on their beliefs and values.<ref>{{Harvtxt|O'Dea|1957|p=86}} ("Having failed to build Zion within the confines of American society, the Latter-day Saints found in the Great Basin the isolation that would enable them to establish a distinctive community based upon their own beliefs and values").</ref> The cooperative ethic that Mormons had developed over the last decade and a half became important as settlers branched out and colonized a large desert region now known as the [[Mormon Corridor]].<ref>{{Harvtxt|O'Dea|1957|p=84}} (From 1847 to 1857 ninety-five Mormon communities were established, most of them clustering around Salt Lake City); {{Cite journal |journal = Pacific Historical Review |volume = 8 |issue = 2 |title = The Mormon Corridor |last = Hunter |first = Milton |date = June 1939 |jstor = 3633392 |pages = 179–200 |doi = 10.2307/3633392 }}.</ref> Colonizing efforts were seen as religious duties, and the new villages were governed by the Mormon [[bishop (Latter Day Saints)|bishops]] (local lay religious leaders).<ref>{{Harvtxt|O'Dea|1957|pp=86–89}}.</ref> The Mormons viewed land as a commonwealth, devising and maintaining a cooperative system of irrigation that allowed them to build a farming community in the desert.<ref>{{Harvtxt|O'Dea|1957|pp=87–91}}.</ref>

From 1849 to 1852, the Mormons greatly expanded their missionary efforts, establishing several [[Mission (LDS Church)|missions]] in Europe, Latin America, and the South Pacific.<ref name="ODea91">{{Harvtxt|O'Dea|1957|p=91}}.</ref> Converts were expected to "gather" to Zion, and during Young's presidency (1847–77), over seventy thousand Mormon converts immigrated to America.<ref name=ODea91 /> Many of the converts came from England and [[Scandinavia]] and were quickly assimilated into the Mormon community.<ref>{{Harvtxt|O'Dea|1957|pp=91–92}}; {{citation |url = http://welshmormon.byu.edu/ |title = Welsh Mormon History |work = WelshMormon.BYU.edu |publisher = [[BYU Research Institutes|Center for Family History and Genealogy]], [[Brigham Young University]] |access-date = July 10, 2014 |archive-date = July 14, 2014 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140714202310/http://welshmormon.byu.edu/ |url-status = live }} During the 1840s and 1850s many thousands of Welsh Mormon converts immigrated to America, and today, it is estimated that around 20 percent of the population of [[Utah]] is of Welsh descent.</ref> Many of these immigrants crossed the [[Great Plains]] in wagons drawn by oxen, while some later groups pulled their possessions in small handcarts. During the 1860s, newcomers began using the new [[First transcontinental railroad|railroad]] that was under construction.<ref>{{Harvtxt|O'Dea|1957|pp=95–96}}.</ref>

In 1852, church leaders publicized the previously secret practice of [[plural marriage]], a form of [[polygamy]].<ref>{{Harvtxt|Bushman|2008|p=88}} (Plural marriage originated in a revelation that Joseph Smith apparently received in 1831 and wrote down in 1843. It was first publicly announced in a general conference in 1852); {{citation |first = Jessie L. |last = Embry |contribution = Polygamy |contribution-url = http://www.uen.org/utah_history_encyclopedia/p/POLYGAMY.html |editor-last = Powell |editor-first = Allan Kent |year = 1994 |title = Utah History Encyclopedia |location = Salt Lake City, Utah |publisher = [[University of Utah Press]] |isbn = 978-0-87480-425-6 |oclc = 30473917 |access-date = October 31, 2013 |archive-date = April 17, 2017 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170417163937/http://www.uen.org/utah_history_encyclopedia/p/POLYGAMY.html |url-status = dead }} The Mormon doctrine of plural wives was officially announced by one of the [[Quorum of the Twelve Apostles (LDS Church)|Twelve Apostles]], [[Orson Pratt]], and Young in a special conference of the elders of the LDS Church assembled in the [[Mormon Tabernacle]] on August 28, 1852, and reprinted in an extra edition of the ''[[Deseret News]]''
{{cite news |title = Minutes of conference: a special conference of the elders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints assembled in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, August 28, 1852, 10 o'clock, a.m., pursuant to public notice |publisher = [[Deseret News]] Extra |date = September 14, 1852 |page = 14 }}.  See also [[Origin of Latter Day Saint polygamy#The 1850s: Official sanction in the LDS Church|The 1850s: Official sanction in the LDS Church]]</ref> Over the next 50 years, many Mormons (between 20 and 30 percent of Mormon families)<ref>{{cite book |last = Flake |first = Kathleen |title = The Politics of American Religious Identity |year = 2004 |publisher = University of North Carolina Press |isbn = 978-0-8078-5501-0 |pages = 65, 192 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=GLLCAB5vmMQC }}.</ref> entered into plural marriages as a religious duty, with the number of plural marriages reaching a peak around 1860 and then declining through the rest of the century.<ref>{{Harvtxt|Bushman|2008|p=88}} (If asked why they entered these relationships, both plural wives and husbands emphasized spiritual blessings of being sealed eternally and of submitting to God's will. According to the federal censuses, the highest percentage of the population in polygamous families was in 1860 (43.6 percent) and it declined to 25 percent in 1880 and to 7 percent in 1890).</ref> Besides the doctrinal reasons for plural marriage, the practice made some economic sense, as many of the plural wives were single women who arrived in Utah without brothers or fathers to offer them societal support.<ref>{{Harvtxt|Bushman|2008|p=88}} ("The close study of the marriages in one nineteenth-century Utah community revealed that a disproportionate number of plural wives were women who arrived in Utah without fathers or brothers to care for them...Since better-off men more frequently married plurally, the practice distributed wealth to the poor and disconnected").</ref>

[[File:Crossing the Mississippi on the Ice by C.C.A. Christensen.png|thumb|Mormon pioneers crossing the [[Mississippi]] on the ice]]

By 1857, tensions had again escalated between Mormons and other Americans, primarily due to accusations involving polygamy and the [[theocratic]] rule of the Utah Territory by Brigham Young.<ref>{{citation |last = Tullidge |first = Edward |author-link = Edward Tullidge |title = History of Salt Lake City |url = https://archive.org/details/historyofsaltlak00tull |contribution-url = https://archive.org/stream/historyofsaltlak00tull#page/n155/mode/2up |contribution = Resignation of Judge Drummond |pages = 132–35 |place = Salt Lake City |publisher = Star Printing Company |year = 1886 |oclc = 13941646 }}</ref> In 1857, U.S. President [[James Buchanan]] sent an army to Utah, which Mormons interpreted as open aggression against them. Fearing a repeat of Missouri and Illinois, the Mormons prepared to defend themselves, determined to torch their own homes if they were invaded.<ref>{{Harvtxt|O'Dea|1957|pp=101–02}}; {{Harvtxt|Bushman|2008|p=95}}.</ref> The [[Utah War]] ensued from 1857 to 1858, in which the most notable instance of violence was the [[Mountain Meadows massacre]] when leaders of a local Mormon militia ordered the killing of a civilian emigrant party that was traveling through Utah during the escalating tensions.<ref>{{Harvtxt|Bushman|2008|pp=96–97}} (calling the Mountain Meadows massacre the greatest tragedy in Mormon history).</ref> In 1858, Young agreed to step down from his position as governor and was replaced by a non-Mormon, [[Alfred Cumming (governor)|Alfred Cumming]].<ref>To combat the notion that rank-and-file Mormons were unhappy under Young's leadership, Cumming noted that he had offered to help any to leave the territory if they desired. Of the 50,000 inhabitants of the state of Utah, the underwhelming response—56 men, 33 women, and 71 children, most of whom stated they left for economic reasons—impressed Cumming, as did the fact that Mormon leaders contributed supplies to the emigrants. Cumming to [Secretary of State Lewis Cass], written by Thomas Kane, May 2, 1858, BYU Special Collections.</ref> Nevertheless, the LDS Church still wielded significant political power in the Utah Territory.<ref>{{Cite book |last1 = Firmage |first1 = Edwin Brown |last2 = Mangrum |first2 = Richard Collin |title = Zion in the Courts: A Legal History of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. 1830–1900 |page = 140 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=9AimifP2a-4C&pg=PR7 |isbn = 978-0-252-06980-2 |publisher = U. of Illinois Press |year = 2002 }}.</ref>

At Young's death in 1877, he was followed by other [[List of presidents of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints|LDS Church presidents]], who resisted efforts by the [[United States Congress]] to outlaw Mormon polygamous marriages.<ref name="Bushman97">{{Harvtxt|Bushman|2008|p=97}}.</ref> In 1878, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in ''[[Reynolds v. United States]]'' that religious duty was not a suitable defense for practicing polygamy. Many Mormon polygamists went into hiding; later, Congress began seizing church assets.<ref name=Bushman97 /> In September 1890, church president [[Wilford Woodruff]] issued a [[1890 Manifesto|Manifesto]] that officially suspended the practice of polygamy.<ref>{{LDS|Official Declaration|od|1}}</ref> Although this Manifesto did not dissolve existing plural marriages, relations with the United States markedly improved after 1890, such that Utah was admitted as a U.S. state in 1896. After the Manifesto, some Mormons continued to enter into polygamous marriages, but these eventually stopped in 1904 when church president [[Joseph F. Smith]] [[Reed Smoot hearings|disavowed polygamy]] before Congress and issued a "[[Second Manifesto]]" calling for all plural marriages in the church to cease. Eventually, the church adopted a policy of [[excommunication|excommunicating]] members found practicing polygamy, and today actively seeks to distance itself from "[[Mormon fundamentalism|fundamentalist]]" groups that continue the practice.<ref>{{citation |url = https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/style-guide |title = Style Guide – The Name of the Church: Topics and Background |work = MormonNewsroom.org |date = April 9, 2010 |publisher = LDS Church |access-date = July 9, 2014 |quote = When referring to people or organizations that practice polygamy, it should be stated that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is not affiliated with polygamous groups. |archive-date = June 13, 2019 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190613210818/https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/style-guide |url-status = live }}. The church repudiates polygamist groups and excommunicates their members if discovered: {{Harvtxt|Bushman|2008|p=91}}; {{cite news |url = https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna25396937 |title = Mormons seek distance from polygamous sects |date = June 26, 2008 |agency = [[Associated Press|AP]] |publisher = NBCNews.com |access-date = July 10, 2014 |archive-date = October 21, 2014 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20141021221253/http://www.nbcnews.com/id/25396937/ns/us_news-faith/t/mormons-seek-distance-polygamist-sects |url-status = live }}.</ref>

=== Modern times ===
{{Further|Mormonism as a world religion}}

During the early 20th century, Mormons began reintegrating into the American mainstream. In 1929, the [[Mormon Tabernacle Choir]] began broadcasting a weekly performance on national radio, becoming an asset for public relations.<ref>{{Harvtxt|Bushman|2008|p=103}}.</ref> Mormons emphasized patriotism and industry, rising in socioeconomic status from the bottom among American religious denominations to the middle class.<ref>{{Harvtxt|Mauss|1994|p=22}}. "With the consistent encouragement of church leaders, Mormons became models of patriotic, law-abiding citizenship, sometimes seeming to "out-American" all other Americans. Their participation in the full spectrum of national, social, political, economic, and cultural life has been thorough and sincere".</ref>
In the 1920s and 1930s, Mormons began migrating out of Utah, a trend hurried by the [[Great Depression]], as Mormons looked for work wherever they could find it.<ref>{{Harvtxt|Bushman|2008|p=105}}.</ref> As Mormons spread out, church leaders created programs to help preserve the tight-knit community feel of Mormon culture.<ref>{{Harvtxt|Bushman|2008|p=106}}.</ref> In addition to weekly worship services, Mormons began participating in numerous programs such as [[Scouts BSA (Boy Scouts of America)|Boy Scouting]], a [[Young Women (organization)|Young Women organization]], church-sponsored dances, ward basketball, camping trips, plays, and [[LDS Seminaries|religious education programs]] for youth and college students.<ref>{{Harvtxt|Bushman|2008|p=53}}.</ref> During the Great Depression, the church started a [[LDS Humanitarian Services|welfare program]] to meet the needs of poor members, which has since grown to include a humanitarian branch that provides relief to disaster victims.<ref>{{Harvtxt|Bushman|2008|pp=40–41}}.</ref>

[[File:Mtchoirandorchestra ConferenceCenter.jpg|left|thumb|The 360-member [[Tabernacle Choir|Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square]]]]

During the later half of the 20th century, there was a retrenchment movement in Mormonism in which Mormons became more conservative, attempting to regain their status as a "peculiar people".<ref>The term ''peculiar people'' is consciously borrowed from [http://churchofjesuschrist.org/scriptures/nt/1-pet/2.9?lang=eng#8 1 Peter 2:9], and can be interpreted as "special" or "different", though Mormons have certainly been viewed as "peculiar" in the modern sense as well. {{Harvtxt|Mauss|1994|p=60}}.</ref>
Though the 1960s and 1970s brought changes such as [[Women's Liberation]] and the [[civil rights movement]], Mormon leaders were alarmed by the erosion of traditional values, the [[sexual revolution]], the widespread use of recreational drugs, [[moral relativism]], and other forces they saw as damaging to the family.<ref>"Developments mitigating traditional racial, ethnic, and gender inequality and bigotry were regarded in hindsight by most Americans (and most Mormons) as desirable &nbsp;.... On the other hand, Mormons (and many others) have watched with increasing alarm the spread throughout society of 'liberating' innovations such as the normalization of non-marital sexual behavior, the rise in abortion, illegitimacy, divorce, and child neglect or abuse, recreational drugs, crime, etc." {{Harvtxt|Mauss|1994|p=124}}.</ref>
Partly to counter this, Mormons put an even greater emphasis on family life, religious education, and missionary work, becoming more conservative in the process. As a result, Mormons today are probably less integrated with mainstream society than they were in the early 1960s.<ref>"[T]he church appears to have arrested, if not reversed, the erosion of distinctive Mormon ways that might have been anticipated in the 60s." {{Harvtxt|Mauss|1994|p=140}}. "However, in partial contradiction to their public image, Mormons stand mostly on the liberal side of the continuum on certain other social and political issues, notably on civil rights, and even on women's rights, except where these seem to conflict with child-rearing roles." {{Harvtxt|Mauss|1994|p=156}}.</ref>

Although [[black people]] have been members of Mormon congregations since Joseph Smith's time, before 1978, black membership was small. From 1852 to 1978, the LDS Church enforced [[black people and Mormonism|a policy]] restricting men of black African descent from being ordained to the church's lay [[Priesthood (LDS Church)|priesthood]].<ref>{{Cite book |title = All Abraham's Children: Changing Mormon Conceptions of Race and Lineage |first = Armand L. |last = Mauss |pages = 213–215 |publisher = University of Illinois Press |year = 2003 |isbn = 978-0-252-02803-8 }}; {{Harvtxt|Bushman|2008|pp=111–12}} ("The origins of this policy are not altogether clear. "Passages in Joseph Smith's translations indicate that a lineage associated with Ham and the Egyptian pharaohs was forbidden the priesthood. Connecting the ancient pharaohs with modern Africans and African Americans required a speculative leap, but by the time of Brigham Young, the leap was made.")</ref> The church was sharply criticized for its policy during the [[civil rights movement]], but the policy remained in force until [[1978 Revelation on Priesthood|a 1978 reversal]] that was prompted in part by questions about mixed-race converts in Brazil.<ref name="Bushman111">{{Harvtxt|Bushman|2008|pp=111–12}}.</ref> In general, Mormons greeted the change with joy and relief.<ref name=Bushman111 /> Since 1978, black membership has grown, and in 1997 there were approximately 500,000 black church members (about 5 percent of the total membership), mostly in Africa, Brazil, and the Caribbean.<ref>{{Cite journal |url = http://www.adherents.com/Na/Na_218.html |title = 1999–2000 Church Almanac |year = 1998 |website = Adherents.com |page = 119 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110604023854/http://www.adherents.com/Na/Na_218.html |access-date = November 11, 2011 |url-status = usurped |archive-date = June 4, 2011 }} "A rough estimate would place the number of Church members with African roots at year-end 1997 at half a million, with about 100,000 each in Africa and the Caribbean, and another 300,000 in Brazil."</ref> Black membership has continued to grow substantially, especially in West Africa, where two [[Temple (LDS Church)|temples]] have been built.<ref name="LDS-Africa">{{cite web |url = http://www.ldsgenesisgroup.org/africagrowth.html |title = The Church Continues to Grow in Africa |publisher = Genesis Group |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20121105130157/http://www.ldsgenesisgroup.org/africagrowth.html |archive-date = November 5, 2012 |df = mdy-all }}</ref> Some [[black Mormons]] are members of the [[Genesis Group]], an organization of black members that predates the priesthood ban and is endorsed by the church.<ref>{{Cite book |title = Black and Mormon |author = Newell G. Bringhurst, Darron T. Smith |date = December 13, 2005 |publisher = University of Illinois Press |pages = 102–104 }}</ref>

[[File:LDS Global Distribution (2009).svg|thumb|right|upright=1.5|Global distribution of LDS Church members in 2009]]

The LDS Church grew rapidly after World War II and became a worldwide organization as [[Mormon missionary|missionaries]] were sent across the globe. The church doubled in size every 15 to 20 years,<ref>{{citation |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=wTBUCGwdG8MC&q=doubled+twice+since+then&pg=PA92 |title = The angel and the beehive: the Mormon struggle with assimilation |author = Armand L. Mauss |year = 1994 |page = 92 |publisher = University of Illinois Press |isbn = 9780252020711 }}; {{citation |title = Building a bigger tent: Does Mormonism have a Mitt Romney problem? |url = http://www.economist.com/node/21548247 |date = February 25, 2012 |newspaper = [[The Economist]] |access-date = February 27, 2012 |archive-date = February 27, 2012 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120227161709/http://www.economist.com/node/21548247 |url-status = live }} (In 2010 alone the church grew by 400,000 new members, including converts and newborns).</ref> and by 1996, there were more Mormons outside the United States than inside.<ref name="Todd 1996">{{cite web |last = Todd |first = Jay M. |title = More Members Now outside U.S. Than in U.S |url = http://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/ensign/1996/03/news-of-the-church/more-members-now-outside-us-than-in-us |website = [[Ensign (LDS magazine)|Ensign]] |date = March 1996 |access-date = April 29, 2018 }}</ref> In 2012, there were an estimated 14.8&nbsp;million Mormons,<ref>{{cite web |url = https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/2012-statistical-report-2013-april-general-conference |title = 2012 Statistical Report for 2013 April General Conference |date = April 6, 2013 |access-date = July 18, 2019 |archive-date = June 28, 2019 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190628143049/https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/2012-statistical-report-2013-april-general-conference |url-status = live }}</ref> with roughly 57 percent living outside the United States.<ref>In 2011, approximately 6.2&nbsp;million of the church's 14.4&nbsp;million members lived in the U.S. {{cite web |url = https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/facts-and-statistics/country/united-states |title = Facts and Statistics: United States |date = December 2011 |publisher = LDS Newsroom |access-date = April 29, 2018 |archive-date = June 28, 2019 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190628015016/https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/facts-and-statistics/country/united-states |url-status = live }}.</ref> It is estimated that approximately 4.5&nbsp;million Mormons – approximately 30% of the total membership – regularly attend services.<ref>{{citation |url = http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/lifestyle/57369318-80/church-percent-lds-growth.html.csp |title = New almanac offers look at the world of Mormon membership |first = Peggy Fletcher |last = Stack |author-link = Peggy Fletcher Stack |date = January 10, 2014 |newspaper = [[The Salt Lake Tribune]] |access-date = September 24, 2014 |archive-date = October 21, 2014 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20141021204834/http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/lifestyle/57369318-80/church-percent-lds-growth.html.csp |url-status = live }}.</ref> A majority of U.S. Mormons are white and non-Hispanic (84 percent).<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.pewforum.org/Christian/Mormon/mormons-in-america-methodology.aspx |title = Mormons in America |publisher = Pew Research Center |date = January 12, 2012 |access-date = May 13, 2012 |archive-date = May 19, 2012 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120519042958/http://www.pewforum.org/Christian/Mormon/mormons-in-america-methodology.aspx |url-status = dead }}.</ref> Most Mormons are distributed in North and South America, the South Pacific, and Western Europe. The global distribution of Mormons resembles a contact diffusion model, radiating out from the organization's headquarters in Utah.<ref>{{cite web |url = http://web.natur.cuni.cz/ksgrrsek/acta/2009/2009_reeves.pdf |title = The Global Distribution of Adventists and Mormons in 2007 |author = Daniel Reeves |year = 2009 |access-date = November 11, 2011 |archive-date = December 12, 2011 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20111212033045/http://web.natur.cuni.cz/ksgrrsek/acta/2009/2009_reeves.pdf |url-status = live }}.</ref> The church enforces general doctrinal uniformity, congregations on all continents teach the same doctrines, and international Mormons tend to absorb a good deal of Mormon culture, possibly because of the church's top-down hierarchy and missionary presence. However, international Mormons often bring pieces of their own heritage into the church, adapting church practices to local cultures.<ref name="Thomas W. Murphy 1996">{{cite web |url = https://dialoguejournal.com/wp-content/uploads/sbi/articles/Dialogue_V29N01_183.pdf |title = Reinventing Mormonism: Guatemala as Harbinger of the Future? |author = Thomas W. Murphy |year = 1996 |website = [[Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought]] |access-date = November 11, 2011 |archive-date = September 27, 2011 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110927044542/https://dialoguejournal.com/wp-content/uploads/sbi/articles/Dialogue_V29N01_183.pdf |url-status = live }}</ref>

As of December 2019, the LDS Church reported having 16,565,036 members worldwide.<ref name="Statistics 2019">[https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/2019-statistical-report "2019 Statistical Report for April 2020 Conference"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190629203050/https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/2017-statistical-report-april-2018-general-conference |date=June 29, 2019 }}, ''Church Newsroom'', April 4, 2020.</ref> [[Chile]], [[Uruguay]], and several areas in the South Pacific have a higher percentage of Mormons than the United States (which is at about 2 percent).<ref>{{cite web |url = https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/facts-and-statistics/ |title = LDS Statistics and Church Facts – Total Church Membership |website = www.mormonnewsroom.org |access-date = September 13, 2015 |archive-date = June 6, 2019 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190606222321/https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/facts-and-statistics |url-status = live }}</ref> South Pacific countries and dependencies that are more than 10 percent Mormon include [[American Samoa]], the [[Cook Islands]], [[Kiribati]], [[Niue]], [[Samoa]], and [[Tonga]].