#I am jesus christ church of christ full#

“The Stone-Campbell movement wanted to be known as ‘Disciples (of Christ)’ because they saw themselves,” Mouw says, “as initiating a movement that was lifting the yoke of a lot of structures and creeds that had accumulated in Christianity.”

So Latter-day Saint authorities, says the religious scholar, author of “Talking With Mormons: An Invitation to Evangelicals,” “are not doing anything particularly offensive simply by employing this label.”Īll of those other churches, though, purposely send signals with their nomenclatures.Īn Angel Moroni statue sits atop an LDS temple. “Catholic” is a good term, Mouw says, for “anyone who sees herself/himself as a member of the universal church.” Many churches, Mouw explains, “‘own’ labels expressing identities that the rest of us also claim.”įor example, he says, “I consider myself ‘orthodox.’” “It’s an attempt to assert the church’s claims.”įor his part, Richard Mouw, president emeritus of the Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, Calif., finds it hard “to get worked up over this.” “It accentuates that the rest of us are not the church of Jesus Christ,” the Presbyterian says.

#I am jesus christ church of christ full#

Silliman was OK with Latter-day Saints using the full name of their church more often, he says, to help others recognize their connection to Christ.īut the new domain name, Silliman says, “offends me.” Silliman, a lifelong Utahn and former pastor at Mount Olympus Presbyterian Church in Millcreek. In recent years, the church has not “honked about that so much,” says the Rev. Joseph Smith and his fledgling followers founded their church in 1830, asserting it to be the restored gospel of Jesus Christ indeed, calling it the only true church with divine authority to act for God. The Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, a polygamous sect, has followers in many locales, including Hildale and Colorado City along the border of Utah and Arizona.īesides mistaking one group for another, there is the question of priestly authority. The Church of Christ (Temple Lot), left, owns the 2.5-acre field, with the Community of Christ Temple in the background.

Church of Christ is also based in Independence, Mo.Īn LDS youth group from Lenexa, Kan., tours the Temple Lot in Independence, Mo., on June 23, 2017.

Community of Christ (formerly the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints) is headquartered in Independence, Mo.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (Strangite) is based in Wisconsin.

It began with former Latter-day Saint authority Sidney Rigdon.

The Church of Jesus Christ (Bickertonite) is a Christian Restorationist church headquartered in Monongahela, Pa.

Several are even offshoots of the mainstream LDS church and track their origins to Mormonism’s founder, Joseph Smith. There are small congregations such as the Church of Jesus Christ in Washington, D.C., the Church of Jesus Christ in Kingsport, Tenn., the Church of Jesus Christ in Peridot, Ariz., the Church of Jesus Christ in Dyersburg, Tenn. Recently, though, the Utah-based church replaced its official website, lds.org, with a new domain name, simply, without the “Latter-day Saints” ending - a move some Christians find confusing, curious or downright offensive.Īfter all, scores of churches have “Christ” in their names, and many online domains are similar as well.Ĭonsider the national and international denominations United Church of Christ, Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) and Church of God in Christ.

Outsiders, researchers and reporters respected the religion’s right to self-identity, and many strived to follow its preferred style guide, some even eschewing the popular term “Mormon” to describe the 16 million members. Last August, Latter-day Saints embraced their prophet’s mandate to use the faith’s official name - The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints - as a public and private push to recognize the savior who they believe leads their church. SALT LAKE CITY - The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints just amped up the religious rivalry around who owns the name Jesus Christ.