Mormon Cult

While the word “cult” has many definitions, including that of any system of religious beliefs and ritual, it is usually in the sense of a great devotion of a group to a person or idea. There have been many religious cults where followers were enraptured by a personality and that personality could convince his or her followers of nearly anything. This power has often been used in a destructive manner, further adding to a negative connotation associated with the word. Since the founding of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (commonly called the Mormon Church) in 1830, many of its critics and enemies have accused it of being a cult. Indeed, this feeling was so strong in the early days of the Mormon Church that vicious enemies truly believed if Joseph Smith could only be taken out of the picture, then the movement would fall apart.

However, Mormonism  has never been a cult. The idea of the Mormon cult was put forward by enemies of Joseph Smith who believed that members of the Mormon Church were enraptured by Joseph Smith. This misconception has persisted to the present day, with many people believing that Mormons worship Joseph Smith and not Jesus Christ. However, early members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints were converted on the basis of their testimonies of Jesus Christ. They knew and recognized Joseph Smith to be a remarkable man, a literal prophet called of God to lead His people and to restore the fulness of the gospel of Jesus Christ to the earth in the modern days. However, they also knew that he was a man. Thus, the Mormon cult is a fictitious label put on the Mormon Church by those who want to destroy it.

There is a modern-day scripture, recorded in the book of the Doctrine and Covenants 135:3, that “Joseph Smith, the Prophet and Seer of the Lord, has done more, save Jesus only, for the salvation of men in this world, than any other man that ever lived in it.” Mormon doctrine teaches this to be true. Mormons believe Joseph Smith to have been called of God, and that he fulfilled his calling, to restore the fulness of the gospel of Jesus Christ to this earth and then to seal his testimony with his own blood. He was murdered in cold blood by a mob in 1844, which fulfilled this part of his calling. Enemies of the Mormon Church (which they considered as the Mormon cult) really believed that once Joseph was dead, the Saints would disband and the “threat” of Mormonism would dissolve. The reason this did not happen is Mormonism has never been based on man, but on Jesus Christ. Mormons do not worship Joseph Smith; they worship Jesus Christ as their Savior and Redeemer.

More than 180 years have passed since the Mormon Church was organized and has even been recognized as the Mormon sect. There has been a steady succession of sixteen prophets in the modern day. Joseph Smith recognized his work was not his own, but was God’s work. Joseph knew he would die, but he knew the work would go on after him just as steadily as it had gone on with him, because no hand can stay or slow down the work of God and because there is no Mormon cult associated with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.