While the structure of the LDS Church, which relies on volunteer leadership at the local level, requires an active membership, there is an upside to the obligations of religious community. In an era marked by unprecedented religious decline, Mormons appear to be holding their own.
One-quarter of Americans are religiously unaffiliated today, a roughly fourfold increase from a couple of decades earlier. Christian denominations around the country are contending with massive defections.
White Christian groups have experienced the most dramatic losses over the past decade. Today, white evangelical Protestants account for 15 percent of the adult population, down from nearly one-quarter a decade earlier.
By contrast, Mormons have held steady at roughly 2 percent of the US population for the past several years. And perhaps as importantly, Mormons are far younger than members of white Christian traditions. At one time, sociologists and religion scholars argued that theologically conservative churches, which demanded more of their members, were successful because they ultimately provided more rewarding religious and spiritual experiences.
This theory has since fallen out of favor as the tide of disaffiliation appears to be washing over conservative and liberal denominations alike. The Southern Baptist Convention, the heart of conservative Protestantism, has sustained 12 straight years of membership loses. Since , the denomination has shed 1. But more than the rules, rituals, and rigorous theology, the success of the Mormon Church may have to do with their unrelenting focus on the family.
Few religious communities have made the development and maintenance of traditional family structures such a central priority. Eighty-one percent of Mormons say being a good parent is one of their central life goals. Nearly three-quarters say having a good marriage is one of their most important priorities in life, and a majority of Mormons — including nearly equal numbers of men and women — believe that the most satisfying type of marriage is one in which the husband provides and the wife stays home.
The church introduced this officially sanctioned weekly event in with the goal of strengthening family ties and engaging children in religious and spiritual activities, such as prayer, singing hymns, and reading Scripture. A Pew Research report shows that Mormons are more likely to be married and to have larger families than other Christians.
Roughly two-thirds of Mormons are married, compared to only about half 52 percent of Christians overall. Even more importantly, Mormons are more likely to marry within their faith than members of most other religious traditions: 82 percent of married Mormons report that their spouse is also Mormon.
And Mormon families are large even compared to other Christian traditions, averaging 3. Like this article? Sign up to receive updates about our latest analyses. Morning Buzz. New Research. Research Roundup. To be of good standing, all Mormons must tithe, or give 10 percent of their gross income to the church.
Not all Mormons tithe, but tithing is a requirement of keeping a temple recommend allowing Mormons to enter the temple, and the percentage of members who pay tithing is very high, probably well over 60 percent. The church also manages a large amount of commercial investments, mostly through its Deseret Management Corporation.
The church's more than farms and ranches, including America's largest cattle ranch, make it one of the largest landowners in the nation.
The farms and ranches encompass somewhere in the neighborhood of 1 million acres, roughly equal to the size of the state of Delaware.
The church's religious buildings and property, while included in the asset estimates, are considered expenses and not sources of revenue. The church also channels significant funds into humanitarian work; it claims annual donations in the tens of millions of dollars and activities in countries.
Are Mormons Christians? Why is the temple so central? What happens there? Is it a secretive religion? Living a Mormon Life What are some rituals and restrictions of the faith? Why is family key? Why the interest in genealogy? Are Mormon marriages different? Can they divorce? Is excommunication common? How has the church dealt with dissenters? The church's stance on polygamy Are polygamists Mormon? Why the long refusal to ordain blacks? In recent years, the church acknowledged that Joseph Smith wed as many as 40 wives, some as young as age Today, Mormons frown upon polygamy and choose to marry just one spouse.
Still, a small number of fundamentalists, who broke from the church, continue to practice plural marriage. Mormon presidential candidate Mitt Romney brought the religion to the forefront of American politics in According to a Pew Research poll, about 62 percent of Mormons say Americans are uninformed about their religion. Nearly half said that Mormons face a lot of discrimination. Mormonism is thought to be a fast-growing religion. Some experts believe that if present trends continue, there could be million Mormons worldwide by But if you see something that doesn't look right, click here to contact us!
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