Stability and Growth

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A Period of Peace and Growth

Overview

From the late 1800s, when Utah became a state, to World War II, the restored gospel of Jesus Christ and the The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints moved from being an isolated Church in Utah, to gaining respect from mainstream American society, and becoming more integrated into the country. The restored gospel of Jesus Christ also grew outside the United States, especially in Mexico, Canada, and England, while many thousands joined the Church in Germany. Missionary work began in Japan and Korea as well. This period also saw much consolidation in Church practice and organization. Many organizations of the Church were streamlined and regularized in preparation for the explosive growth of the Church in the later half of the twentieth century. By the end of this period, just after World War II, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was set to become an international church.

The Presidencies of Wilford Woodruff and Lorenzo Snow

Following statehood, which put many restrictions on the Church, Utah-based political parties were abandoned, especially the Church-endorsed People's Party, and most Latter-day Saints became Democrats, since the Republican party had been the driving force behind much of the persecution in the 1880s. Because of fears of government intervention if Latter-day Saints appeared to vote solely in blocks, some Church leaders, including Mormon Apostle Joseph F. Smith, encouraged Latter-day Saints to consider both parties. He even outlined reasons why Latter-day Saints should consider becoming Republicans. As part of this effort to show their loyalty to the U.S., the Church of Jesus Christ issued a statement supporting the United States against Spain in the Spanish-American War in 1898.

This period also saw many firsts. In November of 1896, President Wilford Woodruff directed that the first Sunday of every month be set aside for fasting. Fast Sunday, as Latter-day Saints call it, is still practiced. On that day, Latter-day Saints abstain from eating and drinking anything for twenty-four hours and give offerings to help the poor. Initially these offerings were in kind, such as chickens, milk, eggs, or clothing. By the early 1900s, in-kind contributions were discontinued. In 1897, the Improvement Era magazine was begun, which was renamed The Ensign in the 1970s, and continued as the official magazine of the Church until 2020 when it was renamed The Liahona. The first single, female missionaries were sent out in 1898.

President Wilford Woodruff died in 1898, and Lorenzo Snow became president and prophet to the Church soon after. In October of 1898, President Snow issued bonds to help get the Church out of the debt caused by the intense persecution of 1870s and 1880s. In May of 1899, while traveling to drought-stricken St. George, Utah, he received a revelation that the members of the Church were not paying a full tithing, that is, a tenth of their annual income, as the Lord had commanded. He promised them that if they would pay, the rains would return and the Church would get out debt. Within months, the amount of tithing being paid doubled and sure enough the rains came. In 1907, the Church announced they were out of debt.

The twentieth century dawned with 271,681 members, mostly in a belt from northern Mexico to southern Canada. Missionary work continued, and Lorenzo Snow directed missionaries to proselyte in Japan in 1901. President Snow also reissued the Manifesto[1] since some members of the Church, especially those not in the United States, believed that it did not apply to them. President Snow died on October 10, 1901.

The Presidency of Joseph F. Smith

Joseph F. Smith, nephew to the Prophet Joseph Smith, and first president of the Church born a Latter-day Saint and the last to have met Joseph Smith, became Church president in 1901. He and his successor, Heber J. Grant, oversaw a period of increasing national presence and respect, though still coupled with many challenges. They also oversaw the purchase and preservation of many important historical sites. Problems continued with the federal government, and many Latter-day Saints found it difficult to obtain public office. In 1898, B. H. Roberts of the Quorum of the Seventy, had been elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, but the Congress banned him from taking his seat. In 1903, Reed Smoot, an Apostle, was elected to the U.S. Senate. His election started a two-year trial as he attempted to take his seat. Ultimately, most Church leaders were subpoenaed to appear before Congress. President Joseph F. Smith was questioned at length. At issue was the continuation by some Latter-day Saints of polygamy, and fears that Reed Smoot would not adequately separate his religious and political obligations. Theodore Roosevelt himself came to the aid of Smoot, who was a Republican. In 1904, President Smith issued a Second Manifesto, forbidding polygamy Church-wide. This caused two Church apostles, John W. Taylor and Matthais F. Cowley to resign. Taylor was excommunicated from the Church. Ultimately, Smoot took his seat and served in the U.S. Senate admirably for nearly thirty years.

Under Joseph F. Smith the Church established new magazines like the Church News, and The Children's Friend, which continue today. He also oversaw two hospitals built by the Church, LDS Hospital and Primary Children's Hospital, both in Salt Lake City. In 1903, the Brigham Young Academy officially became Brigham Young University, the most famous college of the Church of Jesus Christ, though the Church ran several colleges located in Utah, Idaho, Hawaii, and New Zealand, as well as many other secondary schools in the Pacific Islands and later in Mexico. Ultimately, the Church divested itself of most of these institutions, except for BYU and its satellite schools in Hawaii and Idaho, and a few others.

Joseph F. Smith is known for his many profound doctrinal teachings. He issued declarations on the origin of mankind, the nature of the Godhead, the role of Jesus Christ, and others. He was a huge advocate for education and in 1912, the Seminary program began in Salt Lake City. The program provided weekday religious education for Latter-day Saint teenagers and still continues today. He also oversaw the Church's adoption of the Boy Scout program, a partnership which continued until December 2019. In 1913, he broke ground for the first Latter-day Saint Temple outside the United States, in Alberta, Canada. In 1915, he broke ground for a temple in Hawaii, the first outside of the continental U.S. Shortly before he died, he received a vision of the salvation of the dead and the importance of temple work. It later was included in the Doctrine and Covenants as section 138. He died in November. Because of the Spanish Flu epidemic, his funeral was not open to the public, and for the next few months most large Church meetings were canceled.

The Presidency of Heber J. Grant

Heber J. Grant was the first Church prophet born in Utah. He became president in November 1918. His presidency saw the growth of the Church throughout the United States, and during his time, many Latter-day Saints rose to prominence in America, which helped dispel many myths and rumors about the Church. His popularity as a speaker, even among nonmembers, led him to speak nationwide in many diverse forums supporting moral and political causes. He dedicated the Hawaii temple in 1919, and the Alberta, Canada, temple in 1923, marking the growth of the Church outside of Utah.

In 1920, President Grant, a strong health advocate, reemphasized the importance of the Word of Wisdom, which many Latter-day Saints had become lax in following. He also campaigned vigorously for prohibition. In 1922, the Church of Jesus Christ helped started KZN, now KSL radio. and President Grant was one of the first to speak on this, the first radio station in the Intermountain West. In 1928 the Mormon Tabernacle Choir began its award-winning Music and the Spoken Word, which has since become the longest running broadcast in radio history. President Grant was known for his concern for others and for his preaching a Gospel of love. He therefore re-instituted the Home Teaching program where companionships of two men visit the members of a congregation to teach them the Gospel and render assistance. Ministering Brothers, as they are now called, have become an important aspect of Latter-day Saint life. In 1925, President Grant established the Mission Home, the forerunner to the Missionary Training Centers, usually called MTCs by Latter-day Saints. The following year, 1926, the Church started its Institute of Religion program which provides religious education for college-age Latter-day Saint. President Grant also encouraged Latter-day Saints to spend time as families; this led to what Latter-day Saints call Family Home Evening, where Latter-day Saint families set aside one night each week, usually Mondays, to study the Gospel, or just be with each other.

Like everywhere else in the world, the Great Depression adversely affected Utah. After a few years, Harold B. Lee, a future president of the Church, began a program to provide employment and assistance for the Latter-day Saints in his area. The Church then instituted this program Church-wide in 1936 as the Church Security Program, later called the Welfare Program. This helped thousands of families support themselves during the Great Depression and continues to help many today.

World events continued to effect the Church, especially as it grew abroad. Over 11,000 people joined the Church of Jesus Christ in Germany alone during the 1920s. The Church organized its first stakes outside Utah in the 1920s. The Hill Cumorah Pageant began in 1937 and continues to attract thousands of visitors each year to the place where the Book of Mormon was unearthed and translated. Many historical sites were purchased and visitors' centers, like the one at Temple Square were established. However, events in Europe forced the Church to withdraw its missionaries from most countries in August of 1939, just one week before Hitler invaded Poland.

During World War II, Latter-day Saints found themselves on opposing sides. By this time the Church of Jesus Christ was established, albeit in small congregations, in nearly all the participating countries, Allied and Axis. President Grant issued a statement in 1942, saying that the responsibility for the war rested with the leaders of the countries and that while Latter-day Saints were opposed to war, they also supported the law and thus Latter-day Saints could be part of the military. To help Latter-day Saints in the military, the Church appointed Hugh B. Brown, a Canadian lawyer, to be a liaison for Latter-day Saint soldiers. The Church also published special, smaller copies of the Book of Mormon and the New Testament that allowed soldiers to carry the scriptures with them during the war. Still, many Latter-day Saints in Europe struggled. In Germany, Latter-day Saints walked a fine line and while they were never targeted for overt persecution like Jews or Jehovah's Witnesses, their meetings were watched. Three Latter-day Saint boys, led by Helmuth Hübener spread anti-Nazi propaganda. Hübener was eventually caught and executed, becoming the youngest person sentenced to death and executed by the Nazis outside the death camps. His two friends were sent to prison camps. Other Latter-day Saints, afraid for their lives, cut off ties with Hübener and his friends, though he has since come to be honored as a national hero in Germany. It was a very difficult time, with people afraid for their lives and torn by conflicting loyalties. In the U.S., evidence of the Church's broader acceptance was shown by the U.S. Navy's commissioning of two ships, the U.S.S. Joseph Smith and the U.S.S. Brigham Young.[2]

Eventually, the war ended, but not before devastating Europe. However, the man who led the Church of Jesus Christ from obscurity and persecution to more general acceptance did not live to see its end. He died on May 14, 1945. During his ministry, and the ministry of Joseph F. Smith, many Latter-day Saints rose to prominence and their good examples helped open doors for the Church. The first was Reed Smoot whose career as a Senator won him many honors. Others like Edgar B. Brossard and J. Reuben Clark Jr. served in high government positions. Clark eventually became U.S. Ambassador to Mexico. Richard W. Young became a general during World War I as well as serving as commissioner of the Philippines. Latter-day Saint soldiers often shared the Gospel with their fellow soldiers and even the citizens of the countries they were fighting. This led to the Church being established in Japan, the Philippines, and Korea where hundred of thousands of Latter-day Saints now live. Just after World War II, the new Church president, George Albert Smith approached U.S. President Harry Truman and provided tens of thousands of pounds of clothes, blankets, and food for European reconstruction. He and Ezra Taft Benson, who later served as Secretary of Agriculture to President Eisenhower, and then as president of the Church, toured Europe distributing over 90 train car–loads of food and clothing to the people of Europe. They also contacted Latter-day Saints who had been cut off during the war. After the war, the restored gospel of Jesus Christ began to spread rapidly throughout the entire world and the Church became a truly international church.

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