Mormonism is the theology and religious tradition of the Latter Day Saint movement of Restorationist Christianity started by Joseph Smith in Western New York in the 1820s and 1830s. As a label, Mormonism has been applied to various aspects of the Latter Day Saint movement, although there has been a recent push from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to distance themselves from this label. A historian, Sydney E. Ahlstrom, wrote in 1982 that, depending on the context, the term Mormonism could refer to “a sect, a mystery cult, a new religion, a church, a people, a nation, or an American subculture; indeed, at different times and places it is all of these."
The Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ
Artist's depiction of the First Vision
A depiction of Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery receiving Priesthood authority from John the Baptist
Mormons believe that the U.S. Constitution is the result of divine inspiration. Fundamentalists believe in the related White Horse Prophecy.
Latter Day Saint movement
The Latter Day Saint movement is the collection of independent church groups that trace their origins to a Christian Restorationist movement founded by Joseph Smith in the late 1820s.
The Book of Mormon