Religious and Ethnic Groups

Religious and Ethnic Groups

ETH 125/Cultural Diversity

November 10, 2013

Sally Kwitkowski

Religious and Ethnic Groups

I associate myself as being a white Christian female. Although there are many millions of people who consider themselves of the Christian belief, there are several branches of that belief that practice different worshipping techniques.

Latter-Day Saints (Mormons)

The Latter Day Saints (“Mormons”) are a Christian group founded by Joseph Smith in the late 1820s, and who have over 15 million members. (Wikipedia, The Latter Day Saints Movement [“Wikipedia 3”].)

The Mormon church includes four scriptural texts: the Bible (both Old and New Testaments), the Book of Mormon, the Doctrine and Covenants, and the Pearl of Great Price. Other than the Bible, the Book of Mormon is their most-used text, which includes revelations written by Joseph Smith. It includes commentary about the Bible, chapters and stories believed to be lost parts of the Bible, and other works believed to be written by ancient prophets. (Wikipedia, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints [“Wikipedia 4”].)

The Mormon religion is relatively new compared to the other Christian sects around the world, and was founded in Utah in the United States. Other groups go back millennia and are traditionally based on the Bible, the only word of God believed to be inspired by God. According to the Bible, no other books or writings exist outside the Bible as the true Word. Mormonism believes in the Bible, but also that Joseph Smith was a prophet who was guided by God to write a second book, the Book of Mormon, to further teach the Gospel. This thought usually goes against what other Christians believe.

The greater criticism of the church was its practice of plural marriage (polygamy), which it abandoned in 1890. Since then, criticism has focused mostly on homophobia, racism, sexism, and non-disclosure of its financial documents. (Wikipedia, Criticism...