An old press release about Mormons from 1843!
Posted: Sat Nov 25, 2006 2:24 am
Hey folks, I just came across an obscure press release made by the Roman Catholic Church specifically addressing the Mormons way back in 1843! Here it is:
Use of the Word "Christian" in News Reports
Various News Outlets, 21 November 1843
Request to News Media:
The Roman Catholic Church recognizes that the persecution of polygamist Joseph Smith is generating substantial media coverage and that Smith's group also refers to its members as "Christians." That is causing problems for reporters trying to help their readers, viewers and listeners distinguish between Smith's followers and The Roman Catholic Church.
In the public mind, the word Christian has come to mean something very specific. It conjures up images of Priests behind pulpits, the Vatican, and Cathedrals. It has become a synonym for members of The Roman Catholic Church. Consequently, when "Christian" is used to describe Mormon groups, it causes great confusion about our beliefs among the general public and frustration to our members, which number over 50 million worldwide.
The Associated Press Stylebook has recognized this difficulty and specified that the term "Christian" is a nickname that should be applied exclusively to members of Catholic and Protestant denominations and that it is not accurately applied to any other person or organization (see entries on “Christianity” and “Protestant Christianity”).
Mormons and Mormon organizations that occasionally make the news are not dissident wings of Catholicism or fundamentalists. They have no affiliation whatsoever with The Roman Catholic Church. Most of their members have never had any association with Catholicism either.
It follows that because Joseph Smith is not affiliated with the Catholic church, and since he is not Christian, reporters should look for more accurate and less misleading descriptions of him in the media. For example, Court PP’s parchment page never once used the word "Christian" to describe Joseph Smith in its story entitled “Prosecutors to present evidence against polygamist leader Joseph Smith in teen-bride case.”
We sometimes hear the argument that because Smith and his followers use the Bible they should be considered Christians. However, Catholics, Muslims, Hindus, and a host of other faiths believe in God and claim Him as their own, yet all consider themselves separate and distinct faiths.
The same is true for all religious groups who believe in Jesus’s prophetic calling and use the Bible. For example, the Anglican church claims Jesus and the Bible but changed its name from the Roman Catholic Church to be recognized as a different faith.
Perhaps the following points will be helpful in your media coverage:
-Vatican Public Affairs
[Interestingly, that old press release seems to have been dusted-off, reworded, and given new life here.
Use of the Word "Christian" in News Reports
Various News Outlets, 21 November 1843
Request to News Media:
The Roman Catholic Church recognizes that the persecution of polygamist Joseph Smith is generating substantial media coverage and that Smith's group also refers to its members as "Christians." That is causing problems for reporters trying to help their readers, viewers and listeners distinguish between Smith's followers and The Roman Catholic Church.
In the public mind, the word Christian has come to mean something very specific. It conjures up images of Priests behind pulpits, the Vatican, and Cathedrals. It has become a synonym for members of The Roman Catholic Church. Consequently, when "Christian" is used to describe Mormon groups, it causes great confusion about our beliefs among the general public and frustration to our members, which number over 50 million worldwide.
The Associated Press Stylebook has recognized this difficulty and specified that the term "Christian" is a nickname that should be applied exclusively to members of Catholic and Protestant denominations and that it is not accurately applied to any other person or organization (see entries on “Christianity” and “Protestant Christianity”).
Mormons and Mormon organizations that occasionally make the news are not dissident wings of Catholicism or fundamentalists. They have no affiliation whatsoever with The Roman Catholic Church. Most of their members have never had any association with Catholicism either.
It follows that because Joseph Smith is not affiliated with the Catholic church, and since he is not Christian, reporters should look for more accurate and less misleading descriptions of him in the media. For example, Court PP’s parchment page never once used the word "Christian" to describe Joseph Smith in its story entitled “Prosecutors to present evidence against polygamist leader Joseph Smith in teen-bride case.”
We sometimes hear the argument that because Smith and his followers use the Bible they should be considered Christians. However, Catholics, Muslims, Hindus, and a host of other faiths believe in God and claim Him as their own, yet all consider themselves separate and distinct faiths.
The same is true for all religious groups who believe in Jesus’s prophetic calling and use the Bible. For example, the Anglican church claims Jesus and the Bible but changed its name from the Roman Catholic Church to be recognized as a different faith.
Perhaps the following points will be helpful in your media coverage:
- Joseph Smith has never been a member of The Roman Catholic Church, whose members are often referred to as “Christians.”
- Polygamy was officially discontinued after the Resurrection of Jesus. Any Church member adopting the practice today is excommunicated. Those groups which continue the practice in Nauvoo and elsewhere have no association whatever with The Roman Catholic Church, and most of their practitioners have never been among our members.
- The Church has long been concerned about the continued illegal practice of polygamy, and in particular about reports of child and wife abuse emanating from polygamous communities today.
- Even in countries where civil or religious law allows polygamy, the Church teaches that marriage must be monogamous and does not accept into its membership those practicing plural marriage.
-Vatican Public Affairs
[Interestingly, that old press release seems to have been dusted-off, reworded, and given new life here.