Mormon Church

Every year, Temple Square in Salt Lake City, Utah is a popular destination for tourists and locals alike, but especially so at Christmas time. It is decorated for Christmas with millions of lights, nativities, and special religious programming designed to help us remember that Christmas is a Christian holiday.

A Temple Square Christmas celebration is one that is taken seriously and prepared for many months in advance. Staff begins putting out the cables and extension cords in August, quickly followed by thousands of strands of lights. Volunteers and workers hang garland and lanterns and set up nativities throughout the grounds in November in order to be ready the Friday after Thanksgiving. For many, decorating the Square is a family tradition. (more…)

The Mormon Church in the Seattle area of Washington State in the United States is helping the Red Cross with a special project known as “Yes, We Can.” This project makes use of surplus produce that would otherwise be thrown away. The Red Cross has no way to store or preserve this food and can’t give it away quickly enough. Now, the Mormons are helping them to can it so it can be stored for up to three years.

Mormons have canneries they use for their own membership. Members can come in, and for the cost of supplies, can food to be stored for emergencies like unemployment or a natural disaster. In addition, the Mormons can foods to be given to church members who are in need of a little help in hard times. Surplus food is given to community food banks.

Mormon beliefs state that they should do whatever they can to be self-sufficient. They store food for emergencies, avoid debt, build savings, and live modestly. However, even a person’s best efforts are sometimes not enough and anyone can find himself in a position of needing help at some point in his life. To this end, Mormons have programs that allow them to help each other. Once a month they go without food or drink for twenty-four hours and donate the money saved to a special fund that goes to help those in need. In addition, they volunteer at the canneries and food banks, known as bishop’s storehouses. The storehouses, unlike most food banks, are not filled with random donated items. Instead, they have a specific inventory of purchased or church-produced food. Mormons in need meet with church leaders to determine there is a need and then select foods from the list, enough to meet their needs, not necessarily all their desires, although the list does include desserts and treats. They then take that order and fill it at the storehouse. The storehouse normally resembles a grocery store without a cash register.

Instead of paying in cash, Mormons volunteer their time, working a few hours in the storehouse or filling other church needs. In addition, when times are better, they donate to others in need. This makes it a program that is not a handout. By volunteering their time and helping others, they are preserving their self-esteem and worth, as well as their self-sufficiency. The work seldom would have paid enough to cover what they received, but it shows a desire to work for what is received and helps make members feel more comfortable accepting service.

Because Mormons provide the storehouse only for their own members, they are able to give them more than they could otherwise. A person will receive essentially everything they need to get through the two-week period, including hygiene supplies, cleaning supplies, and baby care materials. They do not need to take from any community resources, leaving those resources for those who do not have a church to assist them. Of course, the Mormons donate what is left over to the community food banks to help others. In times of crisis, such as Hurricane Katrina, the church donates storehouse supplies to help people outside the church.

Service is an integral part of the Mormon faith. They have several programs to assist people in need, both inside and outside the Church. One such program is the Humanitarian Aid program, which serves people world-wide regardless of religion or even lack of religion. This program strives to provide meaningful and sustainable assistance. For instance, clean water projects are instigated in which local residents are trained to maintain the program and shown how to afford what is needed to keep it going. This allows the village to become self-sufficient after the initial service, which means they won’t find themselves without what they need when the church moves on and it means the Mormons can then helps another village.

Another humanitarian aid program involves providing wheelchairs to those who need them and can’t afford them, usually in developing nations where they aren’t easily available through other organizations. They also provide immunization programs, microfarming instruction, Neonatal Resuscitation Training, vision treatments, and hygiene supplies. In China, they set up employment centers for women. In Bulgaria, kitchen equipment was given to a kindergarten. In Romania, washing machines were provided for street children. Shoes and backpacks were given to Chilean children after an earthquake. In Nairobi, victims of political violence were given emergency relief. In Uganda, emergency relief was provided for refugees. These types of projects go on world-wide.

In addition to formal projects, local groups provide Helping Hands assistance. Wearing the well-known yellow Helping hands vests or shirts, volunteers participate in a variety of service projects in their own communities, doing everything from painting to cleaning up. Congregations hold frequent service projects to meet the local needs of their communities.

Read about Mormon Humanitarian Aid.

Watch a video about the Yes We Can Project:

A soft-launch of the newly revised LDS.org is available for preview at NewLDS.org. Not all features are working, but you can easily see what will soon be available for you to use. It is a far more personalized and interactive site than the previous version.

To use the personalized features, you will need to register. You’ll only be asked for a username and password, and if you are LDS (Mormon) for your membership record number. The membership number allows you to access the few parts open only to members—membership lists for your own ward or stake (similar to congregations and dioceses) and to information specifically for people in certain callings or programs. Although you must register, you will not be contacted by missionaries or other church members. In the years I’ve been registered, I’ve never even received an email from them. It simply allows them to provide you with private access to any personalized materials you create and to ensure no one accesses portions of the site they are not entitled to access.

LDS.org is designed for members of the Mormon Church, although most sections are open to people who are not Mormon. A companion site, Mormon.org, is designed for people who are not Mormon, but who’d like to learn more about the Mormons from an official source.

At the top right is a brief list of choices. One says Menu. Clicking on that shows you the larger categories of information available. Click on Jesus Christ is the way, found under the first choice—Heavenly Father’s Plan. Here you’ll see some basic information about Jesus Christ. If you’re not Mormon, there is a link to Mormon.org, where you can learn more about this subject in an article written with the understanding you won’t have the background information Mormons have. Of course, you can stay on this page as well. In addition, you can click on links that take you to personal testimonies of real Mormons. There is also a video about the atonement of Jesus Christ you can view. This is an easy way to study a basic gospel principle, and since it was mostly written for church members, you’ll see what the Church wants its own members to know about the topic.

Have you heard something about the Mormons in the news? Clicking on the menu at the top of whatever page you’re on will give you an option called “The Church.” Click on Church News and Events and you’ll find what looks like a newspaper page with current stories about the Mormons. On the right  hand side is a link to Newsroom, which currently takes you to the old Mormon site. Here you can find not only news, but also a section of commentary and even a blog on current issues relating to Mormons, including some that are controversial.

If you go backwards to return to the new site, you can go back to the top menu and click on Tools. You’ll see a link to a study notebook. You’ll have to sign in for this one, because it will keep what you enter private. This section is not yet active. Once active, you’ll be able to keep notes on what you are studying. If you’re using the website to read the scriptures or to find talks by Mormon leaders or to read church magazines, you’ll be able to bring all of that together into one research notebook. You’ll set up folders to do this. Suppose, for instance, you are trying to learn what Jesus taught about serving the poor. You begin by accessing the free scriptures online and want to record what the Bible has to say on the subject. You’ll be able to put that into your journal by clicking something within the scripture and by assigning keywords for future research. Next, you wonder what Mormon prophets said about it. The gospel library will help you find those words and you can also choose to save some of those talks or articles to your notebook. What about videos? Add a link to those as well. Pretty soon you have a very complete study notebook on one topic, allowing you to study in-depth and to save your research for the future. If you’re preparing a lesson or a talk, you’ll have everything in one place when it’s time to put it all together.

LDS.org is a very comprehensive place to learn what Mormons teach their own people. It contains every lesson manual currently used in our classes—the same ones you’d find yourself using if you visited a Mormon Sunday School class. You’ll even find the teacher’s manuals online with nothing hidden. Every church magazine, every talk given in General Conference (a twice a year meeting broadcast world-wide) and every class is free on the Internet. Mormon.org lets you learn what the Mormons want outsiders to know, but LDS.org lets you see the Church the way Mormons are seeing it, using the same lesson materials they use. This is the actual site Mormons turn to for their own study and lesson preparations. Few churches are so open about what they teach or so ready to give away all their materials by putting them all online. It’s a no-pressure way to explore the Mormon faith. If you don’t sign in, no one will know you were there and you can access all the lessons, materials, and talks without signing in. It’s only the personalized aspects, like the study journal, that require a login.

Should you find yourself with questions based on what you learn, you can follow links to Mormon.org and visit a chat room staffed by missionaries who are prepared to help you. This is not a place to argue religion. It’s a place for sincere questions from respectful people who honestly want to understand what the Mormons believe. You won’t find anyone willing to debate, but you will find people happy to clarify what you’ve been studying.

You’ll find many sections of this beta site are not yet developed. If you’re looking for something that isn’t there, visit LDS.org for a more complete selection of resources. (The study journal is not on that site.)

Mormons have a long history of coping with religious intolerance. From their earliest days, they were persecuted and chased out of the places they lived. They were the only religious group with a government-issued extermination order (from the state of Missouri).

Over the years, as they have gained safety and a measure of acceptance, they have joined their voices with others to promote religious tolerance for other groups, including respect for that which a religion might consider sacred. (more…)

Many areas have canneries operated privately by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, whose members are often called Mormons. You won’t find their output on grocery store shelves, however, despite the extremely high quality of the food. The food canned in these canneries serve two purposes. The first is to allow church members to can large quantities of their own food for home storage. This allows them to be self-sufficient in the event of unemployment or illness, and to be able to buy only in season, on sale, and in bulk by having sufficient quantities tucked away. (more…)

In 1941, three Mormon teenagers decided it was time to do something about Hitler. They felt people needed to understand what he was really doing. Helmuth Hübener, age sixteen, and Karl-Heinz Schnibbe, age seventeen, listened regularly to an the BBC’s German broadcast, an act that was illegal because it wasn’t approved by the Nazis. They noted that what they learned from their newscasts was very different from what the BBC said, and decided the Nazi broadcasts were untrue.

Hübener began writing about the differences in information and handing out the articles around town. Although nervous about this activity, Schnibbe and Rudolf Wobbe, who was only fifteen, began to help him. Hübener was captured and tortured until he gave the names of his two friends, but he saved their lives by insisting he did all the work and his friends only handed out whatever he gave them. Hübener became the youngest person murdered for resisting Hitler. He was beheaded. Wobbe was sentenced to a labor camp in Poland for ten years and Schnibbe for five years. There, the two boys were beaten and starved, and worked long hours standing in freezing water as they dug. However, as the war was coming to an end, three years after their arrest, the Russians invaded the camp and took Schnibbe prisoner for four years. When Schnibbe was released, he was six foot two inches, but weighed only 95 pounds. He was sent home only because he was too weak to continue to work. (more…)

On Tuesday, April 27, 2010, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, whose members are often casually called Mormons, showed reporters around a new solar-powered meetinghouse. It is one of five environmentally friendly chapels serving as a test program to monitor effectiveness. The pilot program will eventually lead to environmentally friendly meetinghouses world-wide.

The Mormons have a long history of environmentalism, beginning with Joseph Smith’s injunctions not to kill animals unless they are needed for food, and Brigham Young’s regular warnings to members not to waste the Lord’s natural resources. He frequently reminded members everything belonged to God and we have no right to waste it. He was very careful about reusing and recycling in his personal life, and expected others to do the same. (more…)

The Duty to God program assists Mormon boys in learning to serve God and to live their religion. The program is currently undergoing a makeover that makes it more focused on achieving because the young man wants to rise to his full potential to serve God, and less on wanting to win awards. The program allows boys to fulfill goals that help him become a better priesthood holder and to prepare for fatherhood in the future. (more…)

General Conference is a meeting held twice a year for members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, whose members are often called Mormons. The meeting is held in Salt Lake City, Utah and the speakers include the president of the Church and other church leaders. It is broadcast over television, radio, and the Internet and is watched world-wide by both Mormons and interested non-Mormons. It is broadcast by satellite into church buildings for those who want to watch the conference at church. Following is a primer for curious people who might decide to watch the broadcast in order to see what the Mormons are all about. (more…)

Mormon girls ages twelve to eighteen have a special program called Personal Progress. Similar to a Scouting program, it teaches girls to prepare for life in whatever form their society requires without taking from them their femininity and their place as a daughter of God. They learn they can get a good education and prepare for a career, but still plan to become traditional wives and mothers, whose educations will either prepare them to support a family if they must, or allow them to share their knowledge with their children. They can live in a world that celebrates immorality, but hold on to virtue as a guiding principle, supported by other girls and women who share their values. Mormon girls aren’t tucked away in a sheltered community, but are part of their world, but on their own terms.

This year, the program for the Young Women has been given a modern make-over. The new book that guides them is pink, to remind them to celebrate their femininity and to help them hold onto their sacred roles as daughters of God.

“We are excited about the color of pink, because we think these young women are pink. They resonate to the softness and the femininity of that color. We want them to understand that they are soft, they are unique, they are feminine and that they don’t have to be like the boys,” explained Elaine Dalton, who leads the Young Women’s program for the entire church (Weaver, Sarah Jane. “LDS Church News – Fostering spiritual growth among Latter-day Saint young women.” LDS Church News – Authorized News Web site of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. N.p., n.d. Web. 4 Jan. 2010. http://www.ldschurchnews.com/articles/58379/Fostering-spiritual-growth-among-Latter-day-Saint-young-women.html.

The girls work throughout their teenaged years on a series of values the Church wants to them live and achieve throughout their lives. These values are faith, divine nature, individual worth, knowledge, choice and accountability, good works, integrity and virtue. Virtue was added last year, in response to the increasing lack of respect for morality in our world.

Girls develop leadership by completing several ten hour service projects, which they plan and carry out. They may invite others to join them, but they are in charge. They also assist other girls with their own projects. Through this they learn to serve others, lead, and follow responsible leaders. Adult program leaders, parents, and other mentors guide them and monitor their progress, but the girls are essentially responsible for pacing themselves, deciding how to complete the program, and making sure they set and meet their goals. This helps them learn to be responsible adults who will continually progress throughout life. It prepares them for college, careers, and parenthood as well.

Because the program is now open to women of all ages, girls may work on the program with their mothers, even approving and signing off each other’s accomplishments. This allows girls to develop a closer relationship with their mothers and to be influenced as they watch their mothers strive for improvement.

Teenage girls are divided into three classes. Twelve and thirteen year olds are known as Beehives. Their class symbol is now a beehive, representing harmony, cooperation, and hard work, all skills they need to develop as they move into a more adult life. Fourteen and fifteen year old girls are known as Mia Maids. In the past, the program for all teenagers was known as MIA, standing for Mutual Improvement Association. Today, it is generally referred to as Mutual. The symbol for this class is the rose, representing love, purity, and faith. The oldest girls are called Laurels. A laurel wreath represents this class and stands for honor and accomplishment.

Girls earn ribbons for each value they complete, which can then be used as bookmarks in their scriptures. They also receive a certificate each time they advance to a new class.

Throughout the program, girls keep a journal that is provided to them. They record what they are learning and how it impacts their testimony and personal growth.

Girls work on the goals of the program throughout their teen years. If they complete the program early, they can serve as mentors to other girls. By mentoring others, reading scriptures again, and doing additional service for others, they can earn an award called the Honor Bee.

When the program is completed, girls receive a medallion that has the class symbols and the temple on it. The rose from the Mia Maid program has a ruby in the center, taken from Proverbs 31:10 (Who can find a virtuous woman? for her price is far above rubies.)

The entire program is focused around the temple. Adult Mormons may receive permission to enter temples and the teen years are important to the preparation for that experience. The temple is an appropriate symbol for the youth program, because only worthy adults may enter. (Teens may enter only limited portions of the building after they turn fourteen.) The requirements to enter the temple are those they learn in their youth program. They must live a moral and virtuous life to qualify, upholding standards of purity, modesty, honesty, service, and obedience to the commandments of God.

Leaders remind the girls that the program isn’t an isolated part of their life—it is their life. The assignments for the program encompass the ordinary threads of daily life—schoolwork, socialization, church work, family life, and gospel living. When they sit down to work on the program, they will quickly realize they are already doing many of the things required. The goals they set are not separate from their lives. They work to improve their study habits, for instance, or investigate career possibilities. They learn to cook, to manage money, and to do other tasks they will need as adults. They read good literature and select good music. The program serves as a guide for gathering all the pieces of a teenager’s life and incorporating it into a Christ-like life that brings them closer to the Savior and helps them to live as He taught them to live.

The program also helps them to select and follow quality role models. Instead of modeling their lives after their favorite movie star, they work closely with adult women, including their mothers, who are living successful and moral lives. As they get to know these women as real people, and have glimpses into their lives and insights, they can begin to decide what type of adult they want to become, and to start making the changes and developing the skills necessary to do so.

The Young Women’s program serves as a guide for life, and the make-over is not a substantial change in content, but merely a modernizing and focusing change, to be certain girls understand the ultimate goal of becoming more like the Savior.