Religion 101 (25 page)

The Mormons were established by Joseph Smith on April 6, 1830, after revelations he received from the angel Moroni. The church grew rapidly but incurred the suspicion and dislike of many, including the U.S. government, which objected to the church’s advocacy and practice of polygamy.

The church was driven from state to state as Smith attempted to found a permanent Mormon settlement. Finally, on June 27, 1844, Smith and his brother were murdered by a mob in Carthage, Illinois. Under the new leadership of Brigham Young (1801–1877), the Mormons moved west, and in 1847 he and others established themselves on the shores of the Great Salt Lake in the Utah territory. Conflict with the government continued, but eventually Young agreed to step down in favor of a U.S.-appointed governor of the territory. After vigorous prosecution by the government, in 1890 the church abolished the institution of polygamy and thereafter grew in power and influence in Utah and surrounding states.

Way of Life

The Mormon way of life is distinguished by order and respect for authority, church activism, strong conformity with the group, and vigorous proselytizing and missionary activities. As an example of the strictness of the faith, the official pamphlet on
Dating and Courtship
calls passionate kissing prior to marriage a sin. The church advises young people not to engage in any behavior with anyone that they would not do with a brother or sister while in the presence of their parents. The church also discourages interracial dating, although its position on this has begun to change over the past decade.

As for military service, the church considers it a duty of its members. However, any member can opt for conscientious objection, but not by giving the church as a reason for it. The church discourages conscientious objection, and in fact, endorses a corps of chaplains who serve in the United States armed services.

Mormons believe that faithful members of the church will inherit eternal life as gods, and even those who had rejected God’s law would live in glory.

Secret Polygamy

There have been Mormon splinter groups that adopted polygamist marriage practices in spite of the church’s renunciation of them in 1890. Some of those groups in Utah and northern Arizona continued the practice in secret.

Divisions and Teachings

Basically, the Mormons are divided into what are called stakes, which usually have about 5,000 members and are run by a stake president. Within each stake are wards comprised of a few hundred members, under a lay clergyman. It is through this structured administration that the church regulates the lives of its members. At the high end, presiding over the entire church, is a supreme council of three high priests, called the First Presidency or the president and his counselors. Next are twelve apostles, who are equal in authority to the First Presidency. Essentially, those officers run the show.

In addition to the semiannual general conferences, stake and ward conferences are held; included in these are, of course, the usual Sabbath meetings. It is at these meetings that the consent of the people has to be obtained before any important actions are taken.

The Mormon Church is supported by tithes and offerings from its members. The money is used to support the church and its missionaries in the field.

There is an accent on teaching the philosophy of the faith in Sabbath schools and young ladies’ mutual improvement associations, which are primarily religious in nature and offer support for the unfortunate. A group called the Relief Society is a women’s organization that has a special mission for the relief of the destitute and the care of the sick.

The Church of Latter Day Saints is world famous for its genealogy repository, the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. It boasts more than 2 billion names and is considered the finest such repository in the world. The church has made available, free to church members and nonmembers alike, over 600 million names for research purposes on its FamilySearch website on the Internet. It encourages its members to trace their ancestors as a religious obligation. This service is now available to anyone.

PENTECOSTALISM

An American Christianity

Probably the most common words that come to mind when one thinks of Pentecostalism is the phrase “speaking in tongues,” as well as the names Aimee Semple McPherson and, more recently, Oral Roberts.

The origins of Pentecostalism go back to the Bible and the Jewish pilgrimage festival of Pentecost. Early Christians believed that Pentecost commemorated the day the Holy Spirit descended in fulfillment of the promise of Jesus. In Acts 2:2–13 it is written:

And suddenly a sound came from heaven like the rush of a mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared to them tongues as of fire distributed and resting on each one of them. And they were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devoted men from every nation under heaven. And at this sound the multitude came together, and they were bewildered, because each one heard them speaking in his own language. And they were amazed and wondered, saying, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans: And how is it that we hear, each of us in his own language?”

And all were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?” But others mocking, said, “They are filled with new wine.”

Pentecostalism arose out of Protestantism in the twentieth century due to dissension with the rigid manner in which the established churches preached and organized the delivery of their way of interpreting the Bible.

Pentecostalists endorse a more literal interpretation of the Bible than mainstream Christians. Many churches have adopted specific passages as their guiding force. One such passage is found in Mark 16:15–20 where it is reported that those who receive baptism and find salvation will “cast out devils, speak in strange tongues; if they handle snakes or drink deadly poison they will come to no harm; and the sick on whom they lay their hands will recover.” There are some churches that include the handling of deadly snakes and the drinking of poison as part of their worship services.

The new sect didn’t think the way of the true Christians was memorizing prayers and creeds and adhering to hard and fast rules within an unwavering structure. The Pentecostalists sought a direct experience of God that would produce a sense of ecstasy, known as the baptism of the Holy Spirit. This baptism was seen as a second blessing.

Speaking in Tongues

It was in Topeka, Kansas, in 1901 at a service being conducted at the Kansas Bible College by Charles Fox Parham (1873–1929) that the movement — it is more than a denomination — got the first demonstration of a strange happening. A female participant was praying and suddenly began speaking what seemed to be a foreign language. Apparently she was unable to speak English for three days afterward. This event had a dramatic effect not only on Parham but also the entire congregation. The demonstration was taken as a sign from God and the word quickly spread.

Coincidentally, at the same time in Los Angeles a black preacher, William Joseph Seymour (1870–1922), started preaching at a mission and it wasn’t long until he and his parishioners were speaking in unknown tongues. A church was founded on Azusa Street in Los Angeles, and it grew rapidly as services began to be held on a regular basis.

Women in Pentecostalism

Women became active members in the Pentecostal movement. One of them, Aimee Semple McPherson (1890–1944), generated a big following from her tabernacle where she produced theatrically dramatic versions of biblical stories from the stage.

The speaking in tongues, known as glossolalia, was not universally accepted; in fact, it was quite the reverse for a lot of people. As in the biblical story in Acts, many people thought the speakers were drunk. It wasn’t just the fact of speaking in an unintelligible tongue that upset listeners, it was the emotional overtones that went with the delivery. The term
holy rollers
was ascribed to practitioners who were actually rolling in the aisles of the church in their ecstasy. Adherents believed that speaking in tongues and the actions that went with it were a way of communicating directly with God. However, no reliable sources have established that an actual language was or is being uttered during glossolalia.

Expansion

Pentecostalism is now one of the fastest-growing religious movements in the world. In the United States alone it claims 9 million adherents; worldwide, the figure goes up to 400 million. It is sometimes referred to as “the third force of Christianity.”

The movement first drew members from among the poor, not the establishment; the promise of equality for all was particularly attractive to the unfortunate. Thus, the movement became associated with the Bible Belt in the Southern states among poor whites and urban blacks. It then became increasingly popular with the middle classes around the country, and once the movement spread to the mainstream of society, members of churches such as the Episcopal, Lutheran, and Presbyterian adopted it, often in addition to their own religion.

The Power of the Lord

In 1913, at a Pentecostal meeting in California, John G. Scheppe announced that he had experienced the power of Jesus. Enough people accepted his statement for them to proclaim that true baptism can come only in the name of Jesus and not the trinity. The justification for this, they said, could be found in the Bible, John 3:5 and Acts 2:38.

The controversy split the movement and led to the formation of new sects within Pentecostalism. Three main movements evolved: Pentecostalism, Fundamentalism, and Evangelicalism. Other sects, particularly throughout the rest of the world, are emerging.

Beliefs, Worship, Writings, and Rites

Pentecostals have not united into a single denomination in spite of believing in baptism of the spirit and common beliefs in selected doctrines of the Christian faiths. They have strong beliefs in the literal interpretation of the Bible and healing by the spirit.

The history of Pentecostalism shows that many adherents either added it to their original faith or left the original faith entirely. There is gathering literature from Roman Catholics who have become committed to Pentecostalism.

Catholics tend to investigate Pentecostalism with a view of trying to distinguish what is different about it today from its historical standpoint. With the growth of Pentecostalism, the charismatic experience, as it is called, has expanded its presence into many parts of the world to such an extent that it is being looked at by some as a new era of the spirit. The Pentecostalists envision the movement sweeping whole countries, cultures, and religions, including Catholicism, with a promise of changing Christianity. They have even coined a new name: Catholic Pentecostals. The Pentecostalist viewpoint is that there is confusion not only in Catholicism but also in Christianity. This opinion is not shared by the Roman Catholic Church and other Christian denominations.

Shaking for God

On Father’s Day in 1995 at the Brownsville Assembly of God in Pensacola, Florida, a revival was held. During a prayer service congregants began falling about and shaking. It was reported that one minister touched another on the forehead and that man fell to the ground struck dumb as if by the Holy Spirit. Thousands began to arrive, either to indulge or to watch.

Opponents of the movement say that Pentecostal-style religion is not easily captured in a denominational form because it stresses the impulse of the moment and behavior such as speaking in tongues. Many point out that similar evangelical outpourings that took place in the 1980s ended with the disgrace of people like Jimmy Swaggart and Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker.

Pentecostalists describe themselves as believing in exorcism, speaking in tongues, faith healing, and seeking supernatural experiences.

As with other developing religions, many schisms have occurred that resulted in the setting up of separate sects with their own variations of the basic belief. Here are some of the best-known Pentecostal sects:

• Church of God in Christ
  
• International Church of the Foursquare Gospel
  
• Church of God of Prophecy
  
• Pentecostal Holiness Church
  
• Fire-Baptized Holiness Church
  
• Pentecostal Free Will Baptist Church
  
• The Assemblies of God
  
• The United Pentecostal Church
  

WICCA

Return to the Spirit of the Great Mother

In 1692, an infamous trial was held in Salem, Massachusetts. Nine-year-old Elizabeth Parris, the daughter, and eleven-year-old Abigail Williams, the niece, of a Salem Village minister began to exhibit strange behavior, such as blasphemous screaming, convulsive seizures, and so on. Several other Salem girls began to demonstrate similar behavior. Physicians concluded that the girls were under the influence of Satan.

Pressured to identify some source of their afflictions, the girls named three women, and warrants were issued for their arrests. The women were examined and found guilty of witchcraft. This set in motion hysteria among the populace, which resulted in the death of twenty-four people accused of being witches; twenty were executed, the others died in prison. There is today the Salem Witch Museum and other local sites and documents that can be visited and studied.

Witchcraft and sorcery are frequently misunderstood; the two are separate entities. A witch, who is a female (a male witch is called a warlock), is someone who has innate magical powers. A sorcerer is someone who uses potions and spells to get his or her way.

No Witch by Choice

Witches are not always aware that they are witches, nor do they choose this role for themselves. So, you never know, you might pass someone on the street one day who touches you very lightly on your sleeve as you go by, and unbeknownst to both of you a spell has been passed on.