Mormon Church Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Mormon Church - Essay Example In the 1800’s a man named Joseph Smith was told to dig up these records and to translate them. That is where the Book of Mormon comes from. The Mormon Church is becoming a powerful church all over the world. They actively try to get people to visit their church and to join. There are missionaries all over the world doing this right now. Mitt Romney is trying to get elected as the President of the United States. This has raised interest in the Mormon Church because Mitt Romney is a Mormon. Attending two services of the Mormon Church seemed like the best way to learn about this culture and to understand how Mormons think and view the world. Setting Both of my meetings were held on a Sunday morning. The meetings were actually arranged into a three-hour block of time. The first meeting is referred to as Sacrament Meeting, the second hour is devoted to Sunday School, and the third meeting for men is called Priesthood Meeting while women attend Relief Society. The Chapel was a large , spacious building that was clean and tidy. There was very little ornamentation in the chapel. Typical symbols of Christianity such as a crucifix or statues of Jesus were conspicuously absent from the sanctuary. The building had a very utilitarian feel to it. The sanctuary was no more ornate than the simple classrooms that lined the halls. There were nicely framed paintings on the walls. I was unfamiliar with most of the themes and There was a children’s area and a space referred to as the Cultural Hall that included a basketball court and a stage. The meetings began at 9:00 AM and ended at 12:00 PM. There was a 5-10 minute break that appeared to exist mainly for socializing between each class period. Everything about the setting suggested order and efficiency, from the way the building was constructed and designed, to the way the various meetings were conducted. Participants The people in the congregation were mainly Caucasians. There were a few individuals that appeared to be of Latino descent and only one African American. There were approximately 220 participants in the Sacrament Meeting portion of the worship service. The group that seemed to most dominate the demographics of the congregation was families with children. There were many families with at least three small children and several that appeared to have more than five. Families appeared to sit together for most of the Sacrament Meeting time. There were some elderly women, but only one elderly man was in the congregation. Ethnically and demographically, the congregation was very homogenous. Sacrament Meeting The first meeting of the block each week is Sacrament Meeting. This is the most sacred service for Mormons because they pass bread and water to remember that Jesus died for their sins by giving his body and his blood. The blood is represented by water. The body is represented by bread. The meeting begins with a greeting by a man with the title of Bishop. He is the local leader of the c ongregation. He started the meeting by announcing changes in the Ward staffing assignments. A Ward is a geographic references to the area assigned to a particular congregation. In the Mormon Church, you are encouraged to attend the Ward that your town or community has been assigned to. Church staffing is all voluntary. The Bishop, the teachers and other participants receive no money for their time and efforts so there is no paid clergy in the Mormon Church. The Bishop