'Anti-Mormon' became, on the lips of the church's critics, a proud and politically charged self-designation. The Latter Day Saints initially labeled such publications 'anti-Christian', but the publication of the Almanac and the subsequent formation of an ' Anti-Mormon Party' in Illinois heralded a shift in terminology. Mormonism had been criticized strongly by dozens of publications since its inception, most notably by Eber D.

On August 16 of that year, the Latter Day Saint Times and Seasons reported the Mormons' confidence that although the Anti-Mormon Almanac was designed by 'Satan and his emissaries' to flood the world with 'lies and evil reports', still 'we are assured that in the providence of God they will ultimately tend to the glory of God-the spread of truth and the good of the church'. In 1841, it was revealed that an Anti-Mormon Almanac would be published. The term, 'anti-Mormon' first appears in the historical record in 1833 by the Louisville ( Kentucky) Daily Herald in an article, 'The Mormons and the Anti-Mormons' (the article was also the first known to label believers in the Book of Mormon as 'Mormons'). The FBI began tracking anti-Mormon hate crimes in the United States in 2015 and have noted an increase in incidents over time. Opponents generally believe that the church's claims to divine origin are false, that it is non-Christian, or that it is a religion based on fraud or deceit on the part of its past and present leaders. Modern-day opposition generally takes the form of websites, podcasts, videos or other media promoting negative or hateful views about Mormonism or protest at large Latter-day Saint gatherings such as the church's semiannual General Conference, outside of Latter-day Saint pageants, or at events surrounding the construction of new LDS temples. Republican Party as one of the 'twin relics of barbarism' along with slavery. The most vocal and strident opposition occurred during the 19th century, particularly the forceful expulsion from Missouri and Illinois in the 1830s and 1840s, during the Utah War of the 1850s, and in the second half of the century when the practice of polygamy in Utah Territory was widely considered by the U.S. Opposition to Mormonism began before the first Latter Day Saint church was established in 1830 and continues to the present day. The term is often used to describe people or literature that are critical of their adherents, institutions, or beliefs, or physical attacks against specific Saints or the Latter Day Saint movement as a whole. Female genital mutilation laws by countryĪn anti-Mormon political cartoon from the late 19th century.Īnti-Mormonism is discrimination, persecution, hostility or prejudice directed against the Latter Day Saint movement, particularly The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church).

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