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Mormonism in the 21st century

2000s

2000

2001

2002

2003

  • January 31: Release of The R.M., a comedy film.
  • July 15: Under the Banner of Heaven is published by noted author Jon Krakauer. It juxtaposes the history of LDS Church, and a modern double murder committed in the name of God by brothers Ron and Dan Lafferty, who subscribed to a fundamentalist version of Mormonism. The church issued an official statement criticizing historical errors in the book and its anti-religion tone.
  • July 9: Apia Samoa Temple burns down during renovations, and is later rebuilt.
  • August 7: The Osmond Family were honored for their achievements in the entertainment industry with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
  • September 12: Release of '. Despite being panned by critics, it made a surplus at the end of its theatrical run.
  • November 12: Mormon Tabernacle Choir receives the National Medal of Arts, presented by U.S. President George W. Bush.
  • November 19: All About Mormons episode of South Park airs.
  • Tswana, Zulu and Marshallese translations of the Book of Mormon.

2004

2005

  • January 3: Harry Reid, a Mormon convert from Nevada, becomes the top Democrat in the United States Senate.
  • April 19: The Seventh and Eighth Quorums of Seventy are created.
  • May 6–7: "The Worlds of Joseph Smith" conference at the Library of Congress hosts leading scholars on Mormonism's founding prophet.
  • July–August: First annual Nauvoo Pageant held in Nauvoo, Illinois, in honor of Joseph Smith's 200th birthday.
  • September 4: Mormon Stories Podcast is launched.
  • September 27: ' is published by Knopf.
  • December 23: The 200th anniversary of Joseph Smith's birth is celebrated, preceded by a variety of events throughout the year.
  • Tamil translation of the Book of Mormon.

2006

  • March 12: First broadcast of HBO's Big Love, a series about Mormon fundamentalists in Utah. The LDS Church criticizes the show for not differentiating clearly between mainstream and schismatic Mormonism. An LDS Church public statement cites concerns over the program's depiction of abuse, polygamy, use of stereotypes, and television's depiction of moral and civic values in general. In March 2009, the LDS Church stated that HBO displayed insensitivity to church members by depicting simulated segments of the church's Endowment ceremony in an episode of Big Love. The church also stated that the show had continued to blur the distinction between the LDS Church and "the show's fictional non-Mormon characters."
  • June 9: BYU Jerusalem Center re-opens.
  • June 29: The LDS Church announces that the Church College of New Zealand will not admit more students and eventually close.
  • August 29: Warren Jeffs, leader of the FLDS Church, is arrested after being on the FBI's Most Wanted List for nearly 4 months. He faced sexual charges in Arizona, Utah, and Texas.
  • September 3: Gordon B. Hinckley dedicates the Sacramento California Temple, the LDS Church's 123rd temple.
  • October 22: Gordon B. Hinckley dedicates the Helsinki Finland Temple, the LDS Church's 124th temple.
  • October: The Book of Mormon's introduction is modified to say the Lamanites "are among the ancestors of the American Indians," replacing the statement that "they are the principal ancestors." This is seen as a reaction to recent geography and DNA studies.

2007

2008

2009

2010s

2010

2011

2012

2013

  • January 1: New curriculum, called "Come, Follow Me", is used for youth Sunday lessons.
  • February 28: A new "2013 edition" of the LDS scriptures is released online, primarily updating study aids, with print editions in August 2013.
  • March 17: Dieter F. Uchtdorf dedicates the Tegucigalpa Honduras Temple, the LDS Church's 141st temple.
  • April 6: The first prayer given by a woman at General Conference.
  • April: The CES Letter, an online document outlining problems with LDS Church teachings, is released and goes on to gain prominence among disaffected church members.
  • June 23: LDS missionaries begin online proselyting activities through social media.
  • July–August: The British Pageant opens at the Preston England Temple grounds, commemorating LDS history in the British Isles. It is the first such LDS pageant in Europe.
  • September: Essays begin to be published to the church's website about controversial gospel topics, such as polygamy, race, violence, and scriptural translation. Following public reaction, some essays were covered in the national media.
  • October: The priesthood session of General Conference is broadcast publicly on television for the first time.
  • October 9: The Saratov Approach, a film about the kidnapping of two missionaries serving in Russia, is released.

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

  • January 2: Thomas S. Monson, the 16th president of the LDS Church, dies at the age of 90.
  • January 8: The New York Times obituary of Thomas S. Monson focuses on controversial church issues during his presidency, to the protests of Latter-day Saints, leading to a response article from the Times.
  • January 14: Russell M. Nelson is set apart as the 17th President of the Church, with counselors Dallin H. Oaks and Henry B. Eyring. In a rare move, Dieter F. Uchtdorf is not retained as a counselor.
  • January 18: An online petition with 11,000 signatures asks to remove sexual questions from youth worthiness interviews given by LDS bishops. In June, the church clarifies that parents may accompany their youth in interviews.
  • March 19: The Ensign announces the discontinuation of the monthly First Presidency Message, with the last one being in April's issue.
  • March 21: A former MTC president is accused of sexual assault by a female missionary during his term in the 1980s. In a taped interview, he makes some corroborating admissions.
  • May 30: Research into LDS Church private investments are released online by MormonLeaks, suggesting over $32 billion of holdings.
  • March 31-April 1: General Conference brings new milestones:
  • Gerrit W. Gong and Ulisses Soares are sustained as apostles, the first to be Asian-American and South American.
  • High Priest Quorums are now reserved for certain leaders, with all other High Priests transferred into their local Elders Quorums.
  • Home Teaching and Visiting Teaching are replaced with Ministering.
  • New temples will be planned for India and Russia.
  • April 12: Russell M. Nelson, still early in his presidency, undertakes a world tour to England, Israel, Kenya, Zimbabwe, India, Thailand, China and throughout the Americas.
  • May 9: The LDS Church announces that in 2020 a new youth program will replace its long-standing involvement with the Boy Scouts of America.
  • June 1: Music and preaching at the 'Be One' celebration marks 40 years since the end of the priesthood and temple ban on black Latter-day Saints.
  • June 18: The LDS Church created committees tasked with forming a unified hymnbook and children's songbook for the church. The intent of this project was to allow each language edition to have the same songs in the same order. The church allowed submissions for new hymns from the membership of the church until July 2019.
  • August: As midterm congressional elections approach, Latter-day Saint dislike of Donald Trump is reported to reduce their support for conservative candidates. A post-election survey in November confirms lower support for Trump.
  • August 18: The LDS Church asks that all refer to it by its full name, and stop using nicknames including Mormon or LDS.
  • August 23: The LDS Church campaigns against a Utah ballot initiative for medical marijuana, and urges members to vote against it. The church later backs a compromise bill, but the ballot initiative passes in November.
  • September 4: The LDS Church publishes the first volume of Saints, a narrative history that uses current scholarship and covers some historical controversies.
  • October 5: The Mormon Tabernacle Choir's name is changed to the Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square, following the new church policy to avoid the name Mormon.
  • October 6-7: General Conference brings new milestones:
  • Latter-day Saint Sunday worship meetings are changed to a 2-hour block, replacing the 3-hour block introduced in 1980.
  • The Women's Session is incorporated into the 2-day schedule for General Conferences held in October, alternating its timeslot with the Priesthood Session in April.
  • Twelve new temples are announced.
  • October 27: The LDS Church re-evaluates its pageants, later deciding to end four of them, including the Hill Cumorah Pageant, the Mormon Miracle Pageant.
  • November 6: In midterm elections Mitt Romney is elected United States Senator in Utah, but the number of Latter-day Saints in congress drops to a 30-year low.
  • December 14: LDS youth advance to their next older classes and quorums in the January before their 12, 14, or 16-year-old birthdays, instead of on their actual birthdays.

2019

See also

References

Sources