Gordon Bitner Hinckley was an American religious leader and author who served as the 15th president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from March 1995 until his death in January 2008 at age 97. Considered a prophet, seer, and revelator by church members, Hinckley was the oldest person to preside over the church in its history until Russell M. Nelson surpassed his age in 2022.
In the Latter Day Saint movement, a temple is a building dedicated to being a house of God and is reserved for special forms of worship. A temple differs from a church meetinghouse, which is used for weekly worship services. Temples have been a significant part of the Latter Day Saint movement since early in its inception. Today, temples are operated by several Latter Day Saint denominations. The most prolific builder of temples of the Latter Day Saint movement is the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The LDS Church has 335 temples in various phases, which includes 189 dedicated temples, 52 under construction, and 94 others announced. Several others within the movement have built or attempted to build temples. The Community of Christ operates one temple in the United States, which is open to the public and used for worship services, performances, and religious education. Other denominations with temples are the Apostolic United Brethren, the Church of Christ, the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, and the Righteous Branch of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Anti-Mormonism is often used to describe people or literature that are critical of their adherents, institutions, or beliefs, or involve physical attacks against specific Mormons, or the Latter Day Saint movement as a whole. It can take the form of discrimination, persecution, hostility, or prejudice directed against the Latter Day Saint movement, particularly the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
The Church Educational System (CES) of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints consists of several institutions that provide religious and secular education for both Latter-day Saint and non–Latter-day Saint elementary, secondary, and post-secondary students and adult learners. Approximately 700,000 individuals were enrolled in CES programs in 143 countries in 2011. CES courses of study are separate and distinct from religious instruction provided through wards. Clark G. Gilbert, a general authority seventy, has been the CES commissioner since August 1, 2021.
The St. Paul Minnesota Temple is the 69th operating temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It is located in Oakdale, Minnesota, United States, a suburb of St. Paul, Minnesota, and is the first temple of the LDS Church to be built in the state.
Below is a chronological list of temples of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints with sortable columns. In the LDS Church, a temple is a building dedicated to be a House of the Lord and considered by church members to be the most sacred struct ures on earth. Upon completion, temples are usually open to the public for a short period of time, and then each is dedicated as a "House of the Lord," after which only members with a current temple recommend are permitted to enter. Thus, they are not churches or meetinghouses, but rather specialized places of worship. The LDS Church has 335 temples in various phases, which includes 189 dedicated temples, 52 under construction, and 94 others announced. Within temples, members of the LDS Church make covenants, receive instructions, and perform rituals and ordinances. Additionally, members consider the temple a place to commune with God, seek God's aid, understand God's will, and receive personal revelation.
Minerva Bernetta Kohlhepp Teichert was a 20th-century American artist who painted Western and Mormon subjects, including murals of scenes from the Book of Mormon. She received her art education from the Art Institute of Chicago and the Art Students League of New York, and was a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Religious-themed artwork by Teichert includes Christ in a Red Robe, Queen Esther, and Rescue of the Lost Lamb. She painted 42 murals related to stories in the Book of Mormon which reside in Brigham Young University's (BYU) Museum of Art. Teichert was the first woman invited to paint a mural for an LDS Church temple.
Richard Crockett Edgley has been a general authority of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints since October 1992. He was the first counselor in the church's presiding bishopric from 1995 to 2012 and was the second counselor from 1992 to 1995. He was designated as an emeritus general authority in March 2012.
The finances of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are not a matter of public record. In the absence of official statements, people interested in knowing the LDS Church's financial status and behavior, including both members of the LDS Church and others, have attempted to estimate or guess. According to the church, their funding comes from the donations of its members and the principal expense is in constructing and maintaining facilities.
Protests against Proposition 8 supporters in California took place starting in November 2008. These included prominent protests against the Roman Catholic church and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which supported California's Proposition 8. The proposition was a voter referendum that amended the state constitution to recognize marriage only as being between one man and one woman, thus banning same-sex marriage, which was legal in the state following a May 2008 California Supreme Court case.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the second-largest religious denomination in Arizona, behind the Roman Catholic Church. In 2022, the church reported 439,411 members in Arizona, about 6% of the state's population. According to the 2014 Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life survey, roughly 5% of Arizonans self-identify most closely with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Nevada refers to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and its members in Nevada. Nevada has the 7th most church members of any U.S. state, and the fifth-highest percentage of members. The LDS Church is the 2nd largest denomination in Nevada, behind the Roman Catholic Church.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Idaho refers to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and its members in Idaho. Rexburg, Idaho is home to Brigham Young University–Idaho. Idaho has the third most church members of any U.S. state, and the second-highest percentage of members. The LDS Church is the largest denomination in Idaho, with the largest presence in Eastern Idaho.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Wyoming refers to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and its members in Wyoming. The church's first congregation in Wyoming was organized in 1877. It has since grown to 67,797 members in 172 congregations.
The Fort Collins Colorado Temple is a temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Fort Collins, Colorado. Completed in 2016, the intent to construct the temple was announced by church president Thomas S. Monson on April 2, 2011, during the church's semi-annual general conference.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has had a presence in the state of Indiana since 1831. The official church membership as a percentage of general population was 0.68% in 2018. According to the 2014 Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life survey, roughly 1% of Hoosiers self-identify themselves most closely with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The LDS Church is the 13th largest denomination in Indiana.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints had a presence in Russia before the rise of the USSR, with the first baptisms occurring in 1895. Preliminary missionary efforts began before the dissolution of the Soviet Union, and the Russian government officially recognized the church in 1991. Membership increased in the 1990s and early 2000s. Missionary efforts were impacted by the 2016 Yarovaya law, which prohibited proselytizing outside of official church property. Current membership statistics are not available for Russia, but the church reported 19,946 members in 2009. As of February 2023, there were three stakes and three missions in Russia. In 2018, Russell M. Nelson announced that a temple would be constructed in a major city in Russia.
The Portland Stake Tabernacle,, is a historic church building in the Richmond neighborhood of Portland, Oregon.
A series of vandalizations, church arsons, and suspicious fires in June and July 2021 desecrated, damaged, or destroyed 68 Christian churches in Canada. Coincident with fires, vandalism and other destructive events damaged churches in Canada and the United States, primarily in British Columbia. Of these, 25 were the results of fires of all causes. Canadian government officials, church members, and Canadian First Nations leaders have speculated that the fires and other acts of vandalism have been reactions to the reported discovery of over 1,000 unmarked graves at Canadian Indian residential school sites in May 2021.
The architecture of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints includes the design and use of the church's temples, meetinghouses, historic sites, and other buildings and facilities. The LDS Church is known for its unique and often imposing architecture. The church's architecture differs based on the uses of individual buildings and varies in style throughout the world.
