Why do you claim to be Mormon? Mormon is the name of a dead prophet! Do you tell everyone you're Moses too?

Answer 1

Mormon is a nickname given to Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints by others initially, and informally adopted by members of the church later.

I'm glad that you acknowledge that Mormon and Moses were both prophets of God.

.....And no, we don't tell people we're Moses.

Answer 2

It is a nickname given by people that are not members of the " Mormon Church". The real name is " The Church Of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints."
The nickname Mormon didn't really come from the dead prophet because most the people who used the term Mormon back then didn't read the book to know that Mormon was a prophet.
They used Mormon because of the Book of Mormon.

Answer 3

For me, I use the term "Mormon" to identify my religious beliefs when I'm in a conversation with someone outside of the Church, because that's the term most people are familiar with; not as many people would understand what church I was talking about if I were to, right off the bat, say that I'm LDS (the "proper" designation for a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints); though, for the record, I do try to work that in somehow when talking about the Church (after all, you're correct - really, to say I'm "Mormon" would be like calling members of the Catholic Church "Peters").

Answer 4

Where did all the good questions go?

You can see that the official name of the church is quite long, but at one time it was simply called "The Church of Jesus Christ".

Latter Day Saints was added later to distinguish it from the hundreds of other "Church of Jesus Christs" that popped up in the early American West. "LDS" became an alternate acronym.

Recently, the word "Mormon" was being discouraged mainly because the press was having a field day with the association of 'mormon = polygamy', and Salt Lake really wanted the Olympics.

So Officially, one who states they they are a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, or Community of Christ (Formerly the Reorganized Church of...), are formerly known as Mormon. The latter rolls off the tongue easier.

FYI: There are still dozens of polygamous Mormon sects, most of them very small. Warren Jeffs' church is officially "The Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints," or FLDS. A group in Manti is "The True and Living Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints." and another group is "The Church of the Lamb of God." Some don't even ave official names, but refer to their Prophet's name: the Kingston Group, the Allred Group, etc.

Answer 5

Mormon is actually a nickname that other people have given us that started at the early years if the church. I asume because of the Book of Mormon. We actually refer to ourselves as LDS which is short for Latter-Day Saint. Our church is called The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. So it's not a claim to anything, it's a nickname that most people are better aquainted with and we have accepted as a nickname.

Answer 6

I claim to be a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. You call me a Mormon. It is a nickname that has been given to members of the LDS church, because of our belief in the Book of Mormon. We take upon ourselves the name of Christ at baptismm and thus are Christians and members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saits. I am glad to hear that you recognize that Mormon was a living prophet on this earth in ancient America, though.

Answer 7

I am a member of the LDS church, but when I tell people this they go "huh?" SO I I say I am Mormon then they know what I am talking about. It is simply a nickname, does it really bother you that much?

Answer 8

I don't claim to be a Mormon. They are led by false prophets.

Answer 9

Mormon is spelt wrong, the middle M should not be there

Answer 10

We didn't first coin the word as a "name" for us. That was thanks to our enemies.