Reading the book Healing the Breach by Sr. Patrick S. McKay -- and listening to the various members/branches of the Smith-Rigdon Movement (or Smith-Rigdon Restorationist groups) discuss their faith-stance on the Gospel Tangents podcast -- led me to realize that I am very much a Joseph-Smith-Christian. In other words, I am not an Augustinian-Calvinist Christian, nor a Wesleyan Christian, etc. I am not an Atheist, nor a Buddhist or Nihilist. I realized that despite my questioning and doubts of many things "Mormon" within the Utah-based Church (Brighamite sect), I am at my core a Mormon, or what I describe as a Smith-Pratt Christian. I may not identify as one particular type of "Mormon" within the various denominations or sects of the LDS/Restorationist Movement; nevertheless, I am Mormon at my core. Thus I currently identity as an Independent Mormon or Nondenominational LDS-Christian through the Smith-Pratt Paradigm.
So what a Big Tent approach does is focus on the common beliefs in all the Restoration Movements and Sects. I like the way this guy from cjccf.org puts it in his video on the problem with Mormoninism's denominationalisms. I think this dislike for denominationalism and creedalism, rather than the message of Joseph Smith himself (who opppsed being trammlled by creeds) -- and the Book of Mormon itself teaching that the "church" is the collective body of saints and LDS Christians themselves as a People (seeking "Peoplehood") -- has led someone online to publish a Nondenominational Book of Mormon.
The Formerly named podcast Midnight Mormons (now Ward Radio) had a very positive discussion with Joshua Gehely, a Bickertonite (a member of The Church of Jesus Chr1st) in August 2023, and I especially liked Cardin Ellis' ecumenical ("Big Tent") attitude at the 39 to 47 minute mark.
Why a Branch of "Mormonism" and not just a branch of Protestantism or Eastern Orthodox, etc.?
There are other versions of Christianity that come close to LDS-Christianity: like both Rob Bell and David B. Hart's books rejecting the Catholic and Protestant dogma of hell (eternal conscious torment for thoughtcrimes); which mirror D&C 76; and the Eastern Orthodox Church's emphasis on theosis that mirrors LDS theosis; as well as the Evangelical scholar Michael Heiser whose scholarship on there being one God (Yahweh) yet many gods (Elohim/lesser gods) in the Divine Council is very compatible with Mormonism, including his own take on theosis. Yet there is still a unique philosophical theology in the Smith-Pratt Movement (I discuss on this blog) that makes me identify as LDS.
Big Tent Mormonism
Since a picture is worth a thousand words, I decided to create an image that encapsulates Big Tent Mormonism (or LDS Christianity) below:
Click on Image to Enlarge
Like Patrick McKay, I intend with this image to show just how much the Restorationist Movement is actually united under one umbrella of the restored gospel contained in the Book of Mormon and Doctrine and Covenants, etc. In the illustration above I attempted to point out extremist ideologies and philosophies that I believe are outside the "tent" of Smithian Christianity. What I mean by "wokeism" is the neomarxist cult called wokeism as described in the 2022 article, Wokeism Is a Cruel and Dangerous Cult by Victor Davis Hanson. In presenting the illustration above I intend to show just how much the "Smithian Branches" have in common; so as to unite us as a united force against certain secular forces that seek to attack the principles of the restored gospel (that provides meaning in life and family values, etc.). For more information on what unites the Restoration Branches I recommend McKay's Healing the Breach and Terryl Givens' books Doors of Faith and Wrestling the Angel, where Givens points out many doctrines and ideas that are unique to Mormonism.
My site (EmergentMormon.blogspot.com) is my point of view, after studying and absorbing several different Restoration philosophies and branches. As an Independent Mormon (or Nondenominational Mormon), I don't feel tied down to one Latter Day Saint sect or group. I like the freedom to believe as I please (as Joseph Smith himself put it). However, there are ideas and interpretations within the Restoration Movement that I agree with more than others amidst the diversity of Restorationist Ideas and Practices. For example, I tend to interpret Scripture through a Jordan Peterson and Marcus Borg point of view; so I agree with a lot of what the group Latter-day Lobsters & Sorted Saints have to say; as well as the site churchistrue.com and the author of that site's emphasis on a Sacramental/Metaphorical Paradigm. My views are also very similar to those at reformmormonism.org.
I agree with a lot of what Rock Waterman has to say on his blog Pure Mormonism. I also like the Remnant/Restoration Movement's emphasis on Fellowships: as a less formal, more organic, form of worship outside brick and mortar church-buildings and hierarchical dogmatism, as such fellowships mirror the original Christian Ecclesia (and Joseph Smith's original unique vision of "Peoplehood"). I like the unifying vision and ecumenical goals of the nondenominational group The Church of Jesus Christ in Christian Fellowship.
I agree with a lot of the views of those at the Mormon Transhumanist Association, specifically their appreciation of the Nauvoo era of the Restoration and it's physicalist philosophy. I like the fun and playful energy and humor of the Midnight Mormons Podcast. I like the more pastoral apologetics and more scholarly pursuits of The Maxwell Institute and The Joseph Smith Papers.
I could go on with more ideas, movements, sects and groups in the Restoration Movement, but this will suffice to show I believe in a Big Tent Mormonism. I consider these types of Mormons my "friends" and allies as co-believers even if I don't agree wholesale with everything they say or do. So I made the following illustration below to simplify the kinds of Mormonism I resonate with and agree a lot with:
Click Image to Enlarge
The fact that many of these groups are in deep disagreement with each other on many ideas and practices, just means that I value a diversity of opinions and points of view. Whether these groups see The Book of Mormon as literal history or metaphorical midrash, or both, doesn't matter to me as much as they all endorse the Book of Mormon's critique of "preaching for selfish profit" and its message of seeking social equality and fairness; with an inspiring theo-psychology, a fortunate fall, and a smiling Christ, etc. I am more interested in their shared vision and common cause of culturally growing the ideal of Zion.
These diverse ways of mormoning are all on my "team" so to speak, under one umbrella as fellow Restorationists, because they all endorse and promote the restored gospel; and are directly or indirectly promoting what I describe as the phase and strategy of Restored-Christianity (which I believe is distinctly different from Lutheran-Augustine Christianities and nihilistic secular philosophies).
So in the spirit of Mormonism as a big tent. One option besides Brethrenism and Scriptural-Literalism, is The Radical Orthodoxy movement. Another option is what one might call being a Maxwell Institute Mormon. When I have gone to the Deseret bookstore in my hometown and read books published by the Maxwell Institute, or those affiliated with that scholarly organization, I have found essentially what I call A New Kind of LDS-Christianity: that is a way to be an active Brighamite Chapel Mormon without "checking your brain at the door of the church" so to speak. So, I am not advocating only the Scripture Focused Movement, but basically any option that challenges Brethrenism is a good thing in my view. Because if "the Brethren" are never challenged we end up with things like the racial priesthood ban; which in my view was left mostly unchallenged because members felt they were not allowed to question or challenge the Brethren. Thus, Bretheren Worship is as problematic as the Tradition of the Elders that Jesus opposed in his day.
A key component of the Scripture Focused Movement is the avoidance of added man-made traditions. This is in fact what Jesus opposed when he was alive, he was against the Tradition of the Elders that added man-made traditions to the Scriptures of his day. This has led some to compare the Mormon Brethren to the Tradition of the Elders in Jesus' day. A common theme in the Scripture Focused Movement is to focus on the simplicity of the Doctrine of Christ as described in the Book of Mormon.
The Scripture Focused Movements are diverse as well, the Iron Rod Podcast above is just one version. One of the most popular versions is the Denver Snuffer or Remnant Movement. The Wikipedia article says this:
The [Remnant] fellowships believe Smith taught that the Last Days covenant people should forswear allegiance to any institution but to enact the same to each individual's own covenants and to Smith's open canon of scripture. (Compare these movement beliefs with some of the aspects of Sola Scriptura, which the doctrinal foundation of Protestantism especially within its Calvinistical and Lutheran variations. In this respect, movement beliefs perhaps occupy some ground between LDS-style Mormonism institutional authoritarianism and individual conscience-privileging Nonconformist Protestantism.)
"I believe that the many revelations in the D&C identifying Joseph as the spokesman for God means exactly that: Joseph was and IS the spokesman God sent. Joseph's words need to be heeded as if they came from God directly to us. No one has the right to change or ignore them. No one (and I mean NO ONE) has the right to claim they are Joseph's equal. There are no "keys" or "key holders" who can alter Joseph's teachings except at their peril. ..."—Denver Snuffer, September 25, 2013[37]
The movement is supra-denominational Christian. … Fellowships meet at homes or outdoors. (Its baptisms "in living waters" entails meetings along streams.)
(Source)
The Salt Lake Tribune writes of the movement:
The Remnant, as some began to call themselves, would be radically democratic, a “federation of fellowships” with no clear leader, no rigid rules, no prescribed offices, no formal organization — setting themselves apart from what they see as the ultracontrolled and controlling LDS administration operating out of a grand old building and a skyscraper in downtown Salt Lake City. …
… Baptism is not about joining a church. … Tithing monies remain in local fellowships, used for the poor in their midst, and are not sent to any central headquarters. …
… The 60-something Snuffer and these believers advocate “a new tide of open religious thought and worship that is highly individual,” Brent Edward writes in a news release about the Boise conference, “involving no paid clergy. … The faithful in this new school of thought believe that God is capable of revealing his word to anyone who earnestly seeks it, and when truth is discovered, it should be added to the canon of inspired writings.”
… It was the Book of Mormon that propelled Jeff Savage into the Remnant movement. … he discovered Snuffer’s [book The Second Comforter.]
“It was like finding a drink of water in the desert,” the gentle scholar says. “Denver interweaves scripture and prose together and does so masterfully.”
Savage returned to the Mormon scripture he had read maybe 25 times before. This go-around, he saw things he had never before noticed.
“It talks about the last days before Christ’s return,” Savage says. “It describes people who care about appearance and riches and churches ‘built up unto themselves.’ It says those churches have gone astray.”
Reading along with his wife, Savage says, the couple concluded such verses were “talking about us. Our [Utah-LDS] church.” …
… For [Remnant] representatives, the LDS health code known as the “Word of Wisdom,” which forbids alcohol, tobacco, coffee and tea, is just that — wisdom, counsel, advice. It is not a requirement as it has become in Mormonism.
… The notion of all fellowshippers getting their own revelations, including ones that may contradict others, is still an unsettling, new idea, Savage says. ”We are transitioning out of revering the LDS hierarchy but some still feel they can only trust Denver.”
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(Image Source)
In another article, Religion for the People: Ex-Mormons Embrace Populism in the Remnant, author Sarah Scoles describes the remnant movement thus:
... it does not proclaim to be the One True Church. It focuses on the rights, abilities, interests, power, individualism, and virtue of the common people, as opposed to those of the elite Mormon leadership. …
In theory, [Brigham as successor] Mormons are encouraged to seek out “personal revelation” — wisdom whizzed from God to them. But in practice, everyone is supposed to come to similar conclusions, and official authorities are the only ones who really really talk to God. …
… A friend, knowing his doubts, recommended a book, called The Second Comforter, by some guy named Denver Snuffer Jr., an LDS lawyer from Sandy, Utah. Snuffer had, the book claimed, met Jesus Christ, face to face. He conversed with him from time to time. Anyone can, the book continued, if they are righteous and humble and also try very hard. …
… Snuffer’s works have quietly spoken to, likely, thousands of Mormons — often the most Mormon Mormons, people like Corbridge who felt disenfranchised by the church and wanted to talk to God themselves. People who felt like they weren’t getting the spiritual fulfillment, and personal empowerment, they’d been promised. …
Corbridge remained a Latter-day Saint until he wrote his own book, a tome called 77 Truths. It uses 600 quotes from church authorities and 1,000 scriptures to shore up the hypothesis that the official church has strayed from the truth, from God. Churches don’t like to hear that kind of thing, and this one excommunicated Corbridge for it. Many other Remnant members — including, in 2013, Snuffer — have met the same fate.
The church sees Snuffer as a threat. A 2015 presentation, put together by the church’s highest authorities and distributed by MormonLeaks, lists Snuffer (along with 16 other items) in a slide titled “Issues and Ideas Leading People Away from the Gospel.” The church is perpetually concerned with the reasons its congregants leave and who’s spreading information it deems inappropriate. In fact, there is a whole outfit — called the Strengthening the Members Committee — that, a spokesperson told The New York Times, “provides local church leadership with information designed to help them counsel with members who, however well-meaning, may hinder the progress of the church through public criticism.” …
… In the Remnant, “truth” supposedly can come from anywhere, not just from the Book of Mormon or Denver Snuffer. Yet a spiritual caste system had emerged in a movement supposedly based on the opposite of that. “We just call it LDS 2.0,” David said.
… Snuffer rejects any allegation of authority, but his ideas nevertheless calcify the Remnant’s backbone. “I constantly view myself as having the obligation to persuade,” he said. “But I have no right to command anyone. I have no right to control anyone.”
Empowerment within the Remnant comes from the belief that individuals should believe whatever they feel is true. “We should let everyone come to their own conclusions and worship as they please, no matter how, what, or where they choose to worship,” Snuffer told me. “And the LDS church insists that they have a proprietary right to even my thoughts.”
In this statement, Snuffer is doing what Snuffer does best: Turning a mirror toward the church’s own doctrine. Its 11th Article of Faith reads, “We claim the privilege of worshiping Almighty God according to the dictates of our own conscience, and allow all men the same privilege, let them worship how, where, or what they may.”
Which means that Snuffer, of course, didn’t tell the Taylors’ fellowship to second-class anyone for not taking the covenant. But what people in a leaderless movement do isn’t actually up to the not-leader, and what happened in Colorado is not an unusual progression. Jan-Werner Müller, professor of politics at Princeton University, notes in his book What Is Populism? that when populist movements actually get power, they tend to start authoritarian regimes that disenfranchise anyone outside of their particular group.
Even Snuffer recognizes that rebels tend to turn into the very thing they rebelled against. Take Martin Luther, initiator of the Protestant Revolution, founder of the Lutheran Church. “Many of the things he hated about Catholicism,” Snuffer said, “became part of his conduct leading Lutheranism,” like kicking out heretics, despite being the ur-heretic himself.
The point is, once oppositional movements have some traction, it’s hard for them not to become what they once opposed. And that, in some minds, applies to Snuffer: People left the church because they didn’t want to follow the prophet. But now some of them are following Snuffer, whether he likes it or not. And he says he doesn’t. “I think that admiration is toxic,” he said. “And I think that ego is toxic.”
… [The Remnant’s logic]: Immense power at the top inherently robs agency from everybody else. And because Mormonism, in theory, holds that regular people can receive revelation, it gives those regulars the power to say, “God told me to do this,” be they a Smith, a Snuffer, or a Corbridge. …
… [After re-baptizing themselves]: Jennifer’s description of this scene, Brian began to cry.
“There was a voice that told me I didn’t fit into the church,” he said. “But I fit with Him.”
Brian also was drawn to a place the Remnant, as a whole, hopes to build: Zion, a collection of people so righteous, so faithful, so seeking, so united in purpose that they can just be taken up to heaven, and have a good life on Earth in the meantime.
… “It came to pass,” one verse begins [in the Book of Moses], as many do, “that Enoch went forth in the land, among the people, standing upon the hills and the high places, and cried with a loud voice, testifying against their works; and all men were offended because of him.”
Lohmeier saw a parallel here. “Many Mormons believe in Joseph Smith but are blinded to Denver’s message,” he said. “How often it is we’re blinded by our traditions.”
Eschewing some Mormon traditions means that Remnant adherents are generally more liberal and liberated than traditional LDS churchgoers. Some drink, some curse, some accept that their kids might have teenage sex, some are OK with same-sex relationships. Their Zion, even if it’s both hypothetical and imperfect, sounds like a lot more fun than the LDS church’s version. …
detractors started to get to him. “They were citing correct, legitimate sources,” he said — pointing out, for instance, where the church was putting its money. Like into a $2 billion City Creek mixed-use development in downtown Salt Lake City. “Did Jesus,” Pankratz said, “come down and say, Build a shopping mall, my One True Shopping Mall?”
Searching for answers, Pankratz found the Remnant through a post on Pure Mormonism, a blog The New York Times once described as attracting “Mormons so orthodox that they believe their church is not sufficiently adhering to its own doctrines.”
(Source)
The Remnant Movement led by Denver Snuffer is just one version of the Scripture Focused point of view. Reform Mormonism is another option.
As I mentioned above, for Scripture Focused LDS, the Gifts of the Spirit is available to all the saints and while there is usually only one who is a Spiritual Master of the Gifts (like Paul or Joseph), there is no "one true prophet," only leaders like Moses which is what Joseph Smith is described as being ("like unto Moses" in the Book of Mormon). This is why the Tribune article ends somewhat sarcastically with the following:
Though he maintains he is just one voice among many, Snuffer will lay out what the group’s approach to history and scripture should be going forward in his “Prayer for Covenant.”
The words of it, Snuffer writes on a recent blog, “came by revelation from the Lord to me alone.”
But don’t call him a prophet.
(Source)
I agree with most of the Scripture Focused Movement's arguments and positions, except many try to throw Joseph Smith under the bus instead of looking at any positive interpretation of the events during Nauvoo. They seem to be stuck in a rather pious and Victorian mindset, and can't see the grand scale spiritually naturalist vision that Joseph Smith was after when he said "you have to learn how to be gods yourselves." In fact, it is the 1840s Nauvoo Mormonism which I am most drawn to and believe in the most. So I do not agree with Denver's Remnant Movement and its attempt to remove the sex-positive and life-affirming scriptural productions of Joseph Smith in the 1840s.
In my view, Joseph Smith was attempting to liberate the Saints from augustinian puritanism and provide a structural hierarchy to maintain order. This is often not fully appreciated. As the Tribune article explains
Two years or so after the LDS Church booted him out, Snuffer joined forces with some followers who wanted to expunge Mormon scriptures of anything that they couldn’t trace explicitly to Smith. Gone were D&C sections that talked about church organization, priesthood offices and polygamy, replaced by a package of Snuffer revelations and tucked into a new volume known as Teachings and Commandments.
(Source)
This is what separates me from some other Scripture Focused Mormons like the Remnant Movement. I have simply formed a thesis that works for me in understanding polygamy. Although if I ever were to attend a Remnant meeting I might be included and welcomed because apparently they even allow polygamist Mormons into the group. To be clear, I am not a polygamous Mormon but I see Joseph Smith's theology of plural marriage as a stepping stone toward liberating the Saints from Victorian augustinian puritanism. I discuss this in detail in my blog series Sex, Gods and Zion.
So if I were to distinguish myself from other "Scripture Focused Saints," I would say that I am more of a philosophical Mormon as opposed to a more supernaturalist Mormon. I tend to look at the Mormon Canon of Scripture through the interpretive lens of Nietzsche's philosophy and the ideas of theologian and scholar Marcus Borg, and the interpretive lenses of mythologist Joseph Campbell and Jungian Christian Existentialist Jordan Peterson. In other words, I see within the Scriptures of Mormonism a very empowering Ethos and Life Philosophy: with the words acting as philosophically empowering psychical energy through healthy memetic contagion that can and does create greater group soladarity, civility, and social cohesion. I believe the words of Scripture are also like unto potential energy that can inspire and uplift and elevate the individual toward higher states of personal excellence and provides existential tranquility with a purpose in life.
