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The Community of Christ
The Community of Christ
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The Community of Christ
Sponsored link.
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Current status:
The Community of Christ was formerly known as the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints
-- the "RLDS Church". They were organized on 1860-APR-6 in Amboy, IL. Their head
office moved several times and finally settled in Independence MO in 1920. They do not
refer to themselves as "Mormons" -- a term long associated with the
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and some other LDS
Restorationist denominations and sects -- because of the term's association with polygyny
and because they believe the name was not part of the original church.
Their temple was dedicated in Independence MO in 1994. They also maintain the original
temple in Kirtland OH as a historical site. They have about 250,000 members in
congregations in almost 40 countries worldwide.
They changed their name to the "Community of Christ" in 2001-APR. Their official web site is at: http://cofchrist.org/
Comparisons between the CofC and the Church of Jesus Christ
of Latter-day Saints:
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS
Church,
Mormons) and the CofC are the two largest denominations in the "LDS Restorationist" movement.
Originally, these denominations believe that the true Christian church died out
at the start of the 2nd
Century CE. By this time, all the apostles had died and the
Christian movement allegedly abandoned many of the teachings of Jesus, Paul,
etc. The true church was restored by Joseph Smith's ordination and his subsequent founding of
the original LDS church. The CofC has since abandoned this belief.
The largest denomination is the LDS Church at about 10 million members; the
second largest is the CofC at about 1/40th of that size.
The CofC does not accept many of the beliefs and practices of the LDS:
 They do not baptize or marry by proxy their ancestors
They reject the "Eternal Progression" theory, which was
believed by some LDS membership in the 19th century: "As man now is, God once was; as
God now is, so man may become"
They criticize the practice of "blood atonement" of Brigham Young that
if persons who commit very serious sins are executed so that their blood is spilled upon the
ground, they might obtain forgiveness for their sinful act(s). The LDS
abandoned the doctrine in 1978.
They reject the sexism of the LDS. Women have been ordained since 1984.
The CofC has always rejected polygyny.
The leadership of the CofC church has been gradually moving in a more liberal and
ecumenical direction.
They do not use the term "Mormon" to refer to their group.
Sponsored link:
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History of the CofC Church:
As described in the essay on the LDS Restorationism
movement, Joseph Smith (1805-1844) was a resident of Palmyra in upstate New
York. His family of origin were
affiliated with the
"Seekers" - a movement of Christians from the Quakers, Presbyterians,
Seventh Day Adventists, and others who were not affiliated with a church, but which
respected the teachings of all denominations. Joseph was deeply troubled by
the multiplicity of Christian sects and felt called by Jesus and God to found founded
the Latter-day Saints (LDS) church in Fayette, NY on 1830-APR-6. Due to persecution, he and his followers first
moved to Kirtland, OH, then to Independence, MO, which Smith called Zion, the
center of God's earthly kingdom. Next, the church moved to Nauvoo, IL where Joseph and his
brother were killed by a vigilante mob in 1844.
The death of the original leader often triggers a crisis in the faith group.
The LDS church was no exception. No consensus could be reached within the LDS church over a successor to Joseph Smith Jr.
The prophet's widow felt that authority should transfer to their son, Joseph Smith III.
But Brigham Young (1801-1877) felt that he should become the second president/prophet of
the church. Young later led about 19,000 followers to the Great Salt Lake in Utah, where they
established Salt Lake City and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. A minority of members, totaling about 1,000
stayed behind. The son initially refused leadership of the church; he accepted it in 1859.
The "Reorganized" church was established in 1852 in Beloit WI. It became the
"Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints" in 1860 with about 300
members. Both the Missouri and Utah groups used the same name, but with
different capitalization. The CofC church added the
word "Reorganized" to their name in 1869 in order to distance them from the Utah
denomination, and to signify their effort to reorganize the Seeker movement. Successive presidents / prophets of the
Reorganized Church initially followed a type of apostolic
succession: all were been descendants of Joseph Smith Jr., until recent years.
During the 1870s the LDS church initiated suits against the RLDS church, asking the courts for title to some of its land, personal property,
and a change of the RLDS name. The courts denied the LDS Church's claim of being the
original church. In 1880, an Ohio court declared
the CofC to be the legal owner of Joseph Smith's property, including the
Kirkland Temple and the Temple Lot.
The church is administered by a three-person First Presidency and a Quorum of
Twelve Apostles. Church beliefs, policies etc are approved by delegates to their world
conference, which is held in Independence every two years. They have been actively
spreading the gospel in non-Western countries since 1960. The church publishes a
periodical called "Saints Herald". An academic journal, "Restoration Studies"
is also occasionally produced.
CofC religious texts:
They originally recognize Joseph Smith Jr's "Inspired Version" of the Hebrew and
Christian scriptures as revelations from God. Increasingly, more modern English
translations, like the NRSV are being used in its place. They also recognize to additional texts as additional
witnesses of Jesus, which are secondary to the Bible:
The Book of Mormon, allegedly translated from the original golden plates and published
in 1830.
Doctrine and Covenants, a group of over 150 revelations given to Joseph Smith by God,
supplemented by a number of additional revelations, which have been revealed to the
prophet/president of the CofC church since Smith's death.
Unlike the LDS church, they do not recognize The Pearl of Great Price
as part of
God's revelation.
CofC beliefs and practices:
The CofC church has gradually become more liberal than the main LDS organization. The
CofC does not have a formal creed that its members must accept. However, a consensus
exists on the following beliefs:
They view God as the "eternal Creator, the source of love, life, and truth."
Most view God as the first person of the Trinity
They consider Jesus Christ as the "living expression of God in the flesh."
They believe in Jesus' crucifixion and resurrection. Most consider Jesus to be the second
element of the Trinity; some view Jesus and God as two different persons.
Most perceive the Holy Spirit as a person and as the third component of the Trinity.
Some consider the Holy Spirit to be a type of force -- the "continuing presence of God in the
world."
Salvation and eternal life in heaven after death are available to all who accept the
gospel. Salvation is by belief, and works. The Book of Mormon refers
to being "Restored to Grace, according to your works." The
Doctrine & Covenants also encourages "works" for salvation. People who do not accept the gospel will be given a second opportunity after their death.
God's revelation continues to expand in the present day.
They have 8 sacraments: Blessing of Children, adult Baptism by immersion and the laying
on of hands, Confirmation of Membership, The Lord's Supper (Communion), Marriage,
Administration to the Sick, Ordination to the Priesthood, and the Evangelists' Blessing.
Both women and men are eligible for ordination and assignment to all offices within the
denomination.
Members are expected to tithe by giving 10% of their after-tax earnings (in excess of
that needed for basic living needs) to the church.
Cutbacks at the CofC:
The denomination appears to have fallen on hard economic times. They
announced on 2006-JUN-14 that they have adopted a plan for downsizing their
organization during the following six months. Staff reductions will total about 80
persons "including early retirements, voluntary separations and involuntary
separations." The new plan will maintain over 400 ministers, in churches
around the world and in their international headquarters in Independence,
MO.
Church president Steve Veazey said:
"We are sad that it has become necessary to reduce and
re-deploy staff due to changing economic circumstances. The church is
extending every type of employment transition and pastoral support
within its ability to those whose lives are being disrupted by these
changes. The Community of Christ continues to remain faithful to God in
responding to leadership challenges as we passionately pursue our
mission to proclaim Jesus Christ and to promote communities of peace
throughout the world. We are grateful for all of our employees and the
vast number of volunteer ministers who do so much to support the
world-wide ministries of the church."
References:
The CofC church home page is at:
http://cofchrist.org/
Their postal address is: The Auditorium, Box 1059, Independence, MO 64051
"New Organizational Design," at:
http://www.cofchrist.org/
Copyright 1997 to 2007 by Ontario Consultants on
Religious Tolerance.
Latest update: 2007-FEB-20
Author: B.A. Robinson
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Go to the previous page, or to Christian faith groups menu, or to the
LDS Restorationist menu, or choose:
Web
ReligiousTolerance.org
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