An Analysis of the Mormon Religion

The Mormon religion was started by a man named Joseph Smith. Joseph's family had different beliefs about what Church was the correct one, and so one day he went into the forest to ask G-d which church he should join. He then claims to have had a vision of G-d, telling him that he shouldn't join either Church. Three years later, Joseph was visited by an angel named Moroni, who told him about a record of G-d's relationship with another group of people. He was told to go and find the records. Joseph found 3 thin gold plates, and with the help of G-d, he was able to translate them into English. What he translated became known as the Book of Mormon.

The Mormon religion is also known as the Church of Latter-Day Saints. The religion is based on the writings in the Book of Mormon. The Mormons believe that everyone is a child of G-d's. They believe that G-d is really a person who was perfect, and so he became G-d, and that he does have a physical body. They believe in3 stages of life: A before-life which is spent with G-d in heaven, a time on earth, and an eternal afterlife in heaven. They also believe in baptizing dead non-Mormon ancestors, so that they can be forgiven for their sins.

Marriage is also an important part of the Mormon religion. The Mormons believe that the purpose of marriage is to have children and teach them how to live while on earth. They believe that marriage and family is forever, and that families will meet in heaven and live forever. Unmarried people can't reach the highest level of heaven. Another Mormon practice was polygamy. At first Mormons were skeptical about marrying more than once, but Brigham Young proclaimed that people who didn't have more than one marriage could not reach the highest level of heaven. The Church doesn't allow polygamy anymore now, and excommunicates anyone who does, although there are some who still practice it.

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The practice of polygamy and other Mormon beliefs weren't liked by other people. The original Mormon headquarters were in Missouri, but because of the intolerance of others, they were persecuted and caused a lot of violence. Eventually, the governor kicked them out. The Mormons moved to Nauvoo, Illinois, and got a charter that allowed them to be completely separate, with their own militia, court, and laws. Many converts came to Nauvoo, making it one of the biggest cities, which caused jealousy among the other cities.

Then one day Joseph Smith ordered the suppression of everyone who disagreed with their Church. This made people angry, and Joseph called on the militia to protect Nauvoo. Illinois officials then arrested Joseph and his brother. An angry mob broke into the prison and murdered them. The Mormon people chose Brigham Young to be their new leader. They couldn't stay in Nauvoo, so they had to find a new place to live. They picked remote place far away from anyone else, Utah.

The first trip to Utah consisted of only 148m people. One of the biggest problems they faced was disease. Canker, nosebleeds, and the Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever were the most common. But when Brigham Young saw the Salt Lake Valley, he knew it was the right place for the Mormons to go.

Slowly, the Mormons all traveled to Utah. Brigham Young did several things to encourage immigration. He set up the Perpetual Emigrating Fund, which lent money to immigrants, and were paid back after they were settled and had money. They mostly traveled by wagon trail, but the poorer people traveled by handcart migration. This was when handcarts were distributed in lowa and people pushed/pulled whatever belongings would fit. Eventually over 40,000 Mormons came.

The Mormons immediately began plowing and planting. They made an interrogation system to water the crops. They built a fort for protection from the Native Americans, and built 29 log cabins for houses. They also began planning the building of Salt Lake City. Seagulls that arrived helped them by eating the crickets that were destroying the crops.

The Mormons had problems with the Native Americans. The Utes attacked the Mormons for taking their best land and were interfering with their trade, resulting in the Walker War. Then when the Mormons settled on Shoshone land, the Shoshone attacked them. The Mormons asked Colonel Patrick Conner for help, who went with his troops and killed 250 Shoshones, which was called the Bear River Massacre. The Mormons also fought the Black Hawk War against an alliance of the Ute, Paiute, and Navajo because they didn't want to move to a reservation. Eventually all Native Americans in Utah were killed or moved to reservations.

The Mormons also had a problem with the government. Because they practiced polygamy, the government wouldn't let Utah become a state. They assigned non-Mormon judges to Utah, which made the Mormons angry. In 1857, the government decided that they were rebellious, and removed Brigham Young from his job of governor, placing a non-Mormon named Alfred Cumming there instead. The government sent troops to enforce this. The Mormons forbid them to enter Utah, but they ignored them. The Mormons raided the army several times, using guerilla warfare against them. Eventually they worked out a settlement, and Alfred Cumming was made governor.

The government still kept passing laws against polygamy. Many polygamous Mormons were jailed or fined, and many had to go into hiding. In 1890 the Mormon Church said that the Mormons should no longer practice it. In 1895, Congress met in Salt Lake City to create a constitution for Utah. The constitution outlawed polygamy, and allowed women to vote. On January 4th, 1896, Utah was made the 45th state.

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