According to mormonwiki.com on Mormon Ancestry:
... When The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was first founded in 1830, the original members were of Western European descent. Early on, missionary work was performed among the Indian tribes, and there were a small number of members of African descent. Early in the history of the Church, missionaries were sent to the South Pacific, where Mormons now make up a large percentage of the population in some areas. Missionaries were also sent to Western Europe, and the strongest members of the Church, when westward migration to Utah began, were from the British Isles and Scandinavia. Indeed, these members were the backbone of the Church. Once the Church was established in the U.S., missionary work bore great fruit in Latin America. Many members of the Church are Spanish-speaking. The greatest growth at this point in time is in Africa and Asia. There are more LDS members outside of the United States than in it.
The Church as Israel:
Most people who are attracted to the LDS Church are descendants from the tribes of Israel. Once in their lifetime, LDS members are priviledged to receive a Patriarchal Blessing which reveals to them their lineage in Israel. In the United States, most Latter-day Saints are descendants of Ephraim. In the Orient and among Native Americans, the most common lineage is of Manassah.
According to
... When God covenanted with Abraham that through his posterity all the families of the earth would be blessed, he promised "the blessings of the Gospel, which are the blessings of salvation, even of life eternal" (Abr. 2:11). The scope of these promises, both here and hereafter, is outlined in modern day scripture:
Abraham received promises concerning his seed, and of the fruit of his loins;which were to continue so long as they were in the world; and as touching Abraham and his seed, out of the world they should continue. This promise is yours also, because ye are of Abraham, and the promise was made unto Abraham [D&C 132:30-31].
An essential part of a patriarchal blessing is a declaration of lineage. The patriarch seeks inspiration to specify the dominant family line that leads back to Abraham. The majority of modern blessings have designated Ephraim or manasseh as the main link in this tracing, but others of every tribe of Israel have also been named. Whether this is a pronouncement of blood inheritance or of adoption does not matter (see Abr. 2:10). It is seen as the line and legacy through which one's blessings are transmitted. Thus the blessings "of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob" are conferred.
The early growth of the LDS Church in Utah in the 1800s thus became a bottle neck for funneling the seed of Indo-European genes via these first European Mormon polygamists "from the British Isles and Scandinavia ... [who] were the backbone of the Church ..."
The Guide to the Scriptures (under "Ephraim") states:
... The children of Ephraim will crown with glory those from the north countries who return in the last days (D&C 133:26–34).
Note the emphasis on crowning the people of the north countries.
The Guide to the Scriptures (under "Israel") states:
... Ephraim and Manasseh (1 Chr. 5:1; Jer. 31:9), who were counted as separate tribes of Israel (JST, Gen. 48:5–6 [Appendix]).
Members of the tribe of Judah were to be the rulers until the Messiah came (Gen. 49:10; JST, Gen. 50:24 [Appendix]). In the last days the tribe of Ephraim has the privilege of carrying the message of the Restoration of the gospel to the world and gathering scattered Israel (Deut. 33:13–17). The time will come when through the gospel of Jesus Christ, Ephraim will have a leadership role in uniting all the tribes of Israel (Isa. 11:12–13; D&C 133:26–34).
The way I see it early Mormonism gave those of European decent, who came to America, a higher self-esteem as members of the "chosen people" as Ephraimites; with a special role in being in charge of gathering the Tribes of Israel and growing the People of Zion.
In the article The Peoples of Utah, Scandinavian Saga by William Mulder we read:
... Utah looks decidedly Anglo-Scandinavian. History and the statistics confirm the impression. Utah’s Scandinavians and their descendants, as with most of the state’s other immigrants from northern Europe, are largely the fruit of over a century of Mormon proselyting abroad. During the second half of the nineteenth century, when Mormonism preached its doctrine of the “gathering” with vigor and conducted a program of organized migration to Zion, ... Zion as lodestone, however, proved strong enough to attract fresh arrivals from Scandinavia down the years. The mighty stream of the late 1800s diminished in the 1900s, reflecting changes in Mormon policy and program. ... In every census in the hundred years from 1850 to 1950, Utah residents born in Scandinavia as well as those of Scandinavian stock (those having Scandinavian or mixed parentage) appear consistently as the second largest group of foreign-born or foreign stock in the state, second only to British-born and those of British stock.1 In 1900 Scandinavians formed 34 percent of Utah’s foreign-born, and Scandinavian stock that year formed 16 percent of the total population. ...
For more details on European Mormons as Ephraimites see Of the House of Israel by Daniel H. Ludlow.
The key I think to understanding Mormonism is that it is more than just a mere belief system but a cultural tribal identity, a quasi-ethnic heritage. The Wikipedia entry for House of Joseph (LDS Church), retrieved 5/22/2025, summarizes things this way (emphasis added):
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), is the largest and best known denomination within the Latter Day Saint movement (a form of Christian Restorationism). The Church is headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah, and claims through inspired patriarchal blessings to its members throughout the world that many of these are descendants of Josephite Ephraim and Manasseh, with the tribe of Ephraim holding a responsibility of ecclesiastical leadership, but also of spearheading the Church's worldwide missionary program in what it considers to be 'the last days'.[7] The LDS Church believes that scattered descendants of Ephraim from Europe, Scandinavia, and other parts of the world have been led by the guiding hand of God to settle in the Americas, along with the descendants of the Lamanites and others, and that the Americas are a "promised land" of liberty for those who have been led there.[2][3]
All Church members, however — even if, through their 'patriarchal blessings', they are declared by a church patriarch to be of another Israelite tribe, or from a line of descent other than that of Ephraim, Manasseh, or Israel's other tribes — are yet, through faith and conversion, 'adopted' into the house of Israel and equally 'chosen'.[27] As such, members of the church often refer to themselves collectively as 'modern Israel'. All are an integral part of the restored church and kingdom of God on earth — which, Latter-day Saints profess, is the same organization of the primitive church that existed anciently, as originally established by Christ and His apostles.[7]
As descendants principally, therefore, of Joseph of Egypt, and particularly of Ephraim, they believe that theirs is a special latter-day commission from God to 'gather' into 'one fold' the remnants of the house of Israel from the nations of the earth, according to ancient prophecy (2 Ne 9:2; 3 Ne 21:1-11, 22).[3] But this 'leadership' calling with respect to the 'gathering', as they believe, extends far beyond this fundamental Ephraimite mandate to reclaim the family of Israel, for they are to seek, as commanded by the Lord in modern revelation, the conversion of all who seek salvation in the celestial kingdom of God, who will believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, repent, and accept His 'true' gospel (D&C 1:30) that was, after a long 'night' of apostasy, restored through 'the Prophet of the Restoration,' Joseph Smith, Jr.[7][28]
Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, who believe themselves predominantly to be of the Ephraimite branch of the House of Joseph, assert that revelations given of God to the Prophet Joseph Smith (JST Gen 50), and as contained in the Book of Mormon (2 Ne 3), bear witness that the Patriarch Jacob's firstborn 'double portion' of both progeny and lands with which he blessed his son, Joseph of Egypt (and his 'double portion'-inheriting grandsons Ephraim and Manasseh), included the additional 'land' portion of the whole of the American continent — to which (c. 588 BC), from the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula, a "fruitful branch" of Joseph's posterity (the 'Lehite Colony', composed of descendants of both Ephraim and Manasseh) traveled by sea.[3] The Book of Mormon professes to be the abridged history of that Josephite branch — Ezekiel's "stick of Joseph" which, in its marvelous latter-day re-pairing, or re-union, with the "stick of Judah," now rests, or can rest, as 'one' in Israelite hands (see Ezek 37:16, 19).[7]
Footnotes:
[2]: Whitehead, E. L. (1972) [1947]. The House of Israel: A Treatise on the Destiny, History and Identification of Israel in All the Five Branches. Salt Lake City, Utah: Publishers Press. Originally published by Zion's Printing and Publishing Company: Independence, Missouri.
[3]: Millet, Robert L.; McConkie, Joseph Fielding (2010) [1993]. Our Destiny: The Call and Election of the House of Israel. Salt Lake City, Utah: Deseret Book. Originally published by Bookcraft. ISBN 978-1933317632.
[7]: Brown, Matthew B. (2000). All Things Restored: Evidences and Witnesses of the Restoration. American Fork, Utah: Covenant Communications.
[27]: "This matter of lineal descent is neither myth nor metaphor. [But neither] should those who are not directly descended from Israel who join the Church feel in any way less than chosen. 'Chosenness' is a status based upon the choice to follow the Lord and associate with his people, and entrance into the true Church qualifies one for the blessings of Ephraim, as though he or she had been born a child of Abraham" (Millet & McConkie, 2010).
[28]: See Abr 2:10, 11, wherein Abraham's seed — through a great missionary labor that was begun by Abraham himself to the peoples of Canaan — would "bear this ministry" and Priesthood to the nations, thereby blessing them "with the blessings of the Gospel, which are the blessings of salvation, even of life eternal."
The above is corroborated in D&C 64: 36-43:
36 For, verily I say that the rebellious are not of the blood of Ephraim, wherefore they shall be plucked out.
37 Behold, I, the Lord, have made my church in these last days like unto a judge sitting on a hill, or in a high place, to judge the nations [ethnicities].
38 For it shall come to pass that the inhabitants of Zion shall judge all things pertaining to Zion.
39 And liars and hypocrites shall be proved by them, and they who are not apostles and prophets shall be known
40 And even the bishop, who is a judge, and his counselors, if they are not faithful in their stewardships shall be condemned, and others shall be planted in their stead.
41 For, behold, I say unto you that Zion shall flourish, and the glory of the Lord shall be upon her;
42 And she shall be an ensign unto the people, and there shall come unto her out of every nation [ethnicity] under heaven.
43 And the day shall come when the nations of the earth shall tremble because of her, and shall fear because of her terrible ones. The Lord hath spoken it. Amen.
The LDS Guide to the Scriptures states:
In the last days [Ephraim’s] privilege and responsibility is to bear the priesthood, take the message of the restored gospel to the world, and raise an ensign to gather scattered Israel. … The children of Ephraim will crown with glory those from the north countries who return in the last days. [Source: “Ephraim,” Guide to the Scriptures, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter- day Saints, accessed May 19, 2021, As quoted in this article]
Here are some excerpts from the article The blood of Israel in Europe by Wilfried Decoo:
At a multi-stake conference in Berlin in 2010, Area President Erich W. Kopischke quoted Joseph Smith as having declared that “England, Germany, Norway, Denmark, Switzerland, Holland and Belgium have a considerable amount of the blood of Israel among the people which must be gathered out.” It was surprising to be reminded of that doctrinal concept.[1]
Older members who grew up with the “doctrinal answers” of Joseph Fielding Smith and Bruce R. McConkie are no doubt well acquainted with the notion: scores of Europeans, especially in northern countries, are literal descendants of the House of Israel through the lost tribes, in particular the tribe of Ephraim. That would explain why so many British and Scandinavian citizens in the 19th century were willing to accept the gospel, for their “believing blood” recognized the truth. As these thousands of European converts heeded the call to emigrate to Zion, first to Nauvoo and then to Deseret, it became common to say these “Israelites” saved the fledgling church in America, injecting it with their sheer numbers, their goods, tools, skills, and knowledge. In 1890, two-thirds of Utah’s population consisted of such immigrants and their children.[2] Genetic studies confirm the ancestry of white Utah Mormon residents: 61% British, 31% Scandinavian, with Swiss and German for most of the remainder.[3] ...
... Joseph Smith frequently stressed universalism, but within it he could simultaneously see the literal gathering of Israel and the restoration of the Ten Tribes. In the original perspective, white Europeans and Americans were considered Gentiles who could through conversion be adopted in the House of Israel. But the recognition of literal Israelite descent, which was first applied to Joseph Smith and his family, became gradually applied to all Latter-day Saints. Such literal descendency could be explained by the mixing of “remnants” of scattered Israelites with Gentiles somewhere in their ancestry. ...
Where do we stand now on lineage issues?
I look first at lineage related to the preexistence and next at the issue of Israelite blood in Europe.
On the one hand, the notion that “the people of Israel were a distinct and noble people in the premortal existence” and that “foreordination determined, to a large extent, an individual’s placement among tribes and nations” seems to remain official doctrine, as e.g. taught though current CES Institute material, with ample quotations from Joseph Fielding Smith and Bruce R. McConkie, but leaving out the parts about the “less valiant.” The quotations further confirm that “Israel is an eternal people. Members of that chosen race first gained their inheritance with the faithful in the pre-mortal life.” And: “The great majority of those who have come into the Church are Ephraimites. It is the exception to find one of any other tribe, unless it is of Manasseh.”[7] ...
... In 2006 a clarifying Ensign article about “life before birth” strictly limits information to the Scriptures, without any mention of a premortal chosen race or lineages based on merits obtained in the first estate.[12]
At the same time, in conformity with Joseph Smith’s dynamic incorporation of both lineage and universalism, church authorities continue to use the imagery of the Abrahamic covenant and of the House of Israel, with emphasis on its all-encompassing nature. In Mormon doctrine, indeed, universalism does not exclude the continued recognition of Israel as a separate people, hence in the Book of Mormon the predicted fruitful interaction between the Gentiles and the scattered House of Israel for the salvation of both, as illustrated in Zenos’ allegory of the olive trees (Jacob 5). ...
... Just like in the days of Peter and Paul, it is not always evident to balance the advocacy of chosen lineage and the acceptance of a totally deracialized humanity. Peter identified the Church contrastively as “a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people” (1 Peter 2:9), while Paul focused on universalism: “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise” (Galatians 3:28–29). Hence the need for clarifications, such as Daniel H. Ludlow was invited to give in the Ensign.[15] Hence also the tensions when some authors, who uphold the doctrines of a preexistent House of Israel and of the subsequent chosen bloodlines based on premortal merit, feel that these insights are now being “untaught” and “ignored.”[16]
As to the notion of Israelite blood in Europe, where does it stand now after its extensive use in former decades? Its occurrence seems rather rare, but it tends to turn up at weighty conferences and meetings in Europe, raised by eminent church leaders, in order to boost the faith in church growth. In 1969, when the first British stake was organized, Spencer W. Kimball visited Malvern Hills and declared: “This is a place where the blood of Israel is richly concentrated, and there are many still to gather.”[17] In 1971 Harold B. Lee testified in a regional general conference in Manchester that a temple had been built in Great Britain “because of its great contribution to the early and continuous growth of the Church, which gave evidence to the great outpouring of the blood of Israel among the people of these great British Isles.”18 In 1987 British General Authority Derek A. Cuthbert proclaimed that “these [British] islands have a divine destiny . . . Yes, the blood of Israel is richly concentrated in these islands and the promised blessings will all be fulfilled.”[19]
Next to Britain, the presence of Israelite blood had also been recognized early on in Scandinavian and Germanic countries. As the church slowly expanded in European Latin countries (Italy, Spain, and Portugal), they too became included in Israelite descendency. In 1995, at a seminar for European stake and mission presidents held in Paris, Jeffrey R. Holland strongly reemphasized the notion:
The Church in Europe must live again. The work of the Church has run on the backs of its European saints since the beginning. Don’t think that you are just minding the shop waiting for the Savior to come. Don’t think that the great days of gathering in Europe are over. This is our time. Europe is the richest composition of the blood of Israel we’ve known. The blood of Israel out of these lands saved the Church. They left behind family members, children, grandchildren, and friends. They are still here. And we must find them. The blood of Israel is here.[20]
In 2010 in Berlin, as mentioned at the onset of this article, Elder Kopischke referred to Joseph Smith as having declared that “England, Germany, Norway, Denmark, Switzerland, Holland and Belgium have a considerable amount of the blood of Israel among the people which must be gathered out.” One should remark that this quotation comes from the White Horse prophecy, which has been identified by Church leaders and by experts as a late nineteenth-century document, of which the content cannot be verified as authored by Joseph Smith.[21] But it is telling that more than one document in the second half of the 19th century tried to foist later Mormon beliefs upon Joseph Smith. The mention of “a considerable amount of the blood of Israel” or “the richest composition of the blood of Israel” in these countries vastly amplifies the early Mormon idea of only “remnants” of scattered Israelites who had mixed with Gentiles.
Positive views on “believing blood” and “lineage”
The preceding discussion may give the impression that concepts such as “believing blood” and “lineage” are better seen as obsolete because of their position within the doctrinal perspective that later also harbored racist beliefs. That should not be the case as long as the concepts are clearly circumscribed and remain within their proper scriptural realm. Also, sometimes some critics throw the baby out with the bathwater.
The concept of “lineage” as tied to the House of Israel is deeply ingrained in Mormon doctrine and in the Scriptures. As mentioned supra, it is very possible to combine it with a universalist perspective, without referring to premortal classes. The pivotal principles of scattering and gathering can be interpreted on various levels and in various locations, including their extension to multiple Zions. “Lineage” can continue to have special significance in the patriarchal blessing which, since the dawn of Mormonism, has become a treasured once-in-a-lifetime experience for Latter-day Saints. In earlier times, when nearly all members were of North European descent (including the American-born white converts), it seemed uncomplicated to assume literal tribal descendency from Ephraim, in line with the beliefs of scattering of the lost tribes. For American Indians, as supposed descendants of Lamanites, the physical lineage was evidently traced to Manasseh. But in view of expanding the church to all countries and races, as well as of advancing insights in demography, adjustments in rationale and formulation help smooth the attribution to a certain tribe, such as through adoption, assignment to a tribe, bestowal of the blessings of a tribe upon an individual, or by simply accepting that over some three millennia, the blood of Israel, literally or figuratively, spread to all corners of the world, even to Pygmies and to Aboriginals. Whether literal or spiritual, the determination of tribal descent is meant as an emotional confirmation of belonging to the House of Israel.[24]
Both the concepts of believing blood and of lineage can fulfill a beneficial role in strengthening family bonds and in raising the expectations of children and grandchildren about their loyalty to the gospel. Conversely, it should be added, disaffection from the ancestral faith can also cause greater pain in such tight relationships. We should also be sensitive to the fact that worldwide many converts stand alone, without any or hardly any kin in the Kingdom. Assertions that stress the blessings of belonging to a first-rate pedigree of Mormon ancestors and of having scores of faithful children and grandchildren make the concept of lineage sometimes needlessly ostentatious and distressing to others.
So in conclusion, it is clear to me that what formed early Mormonism in the 1800s, was a close knit tribal identity of mostly European converts believing they were the chosen seed of Ephraim. What this means for me as a European myself with polygamous Pioneer Mormon ancestor's on both sides of my family, is that Mormonism is more than a mere "belief system" but a quasi-ethnic tribal heritage, as my European ancestors helped form early Mormonism. So as I see it, being culturally Mormon by heritage is to recognize that one's European ancestry carried with it an Indo-European ethno-linguistic and mythological heritage which I believe was funneled into early Mormonism. So that the spirit of my Indo-European ancestors was given roots to sprout anew through the Mormon mythos.
