Mormonism and Violence

Mormonism And Violence

Mormonism, throughout much of its history, has had a relationship with violence. In the early history of the United States, violence was used as a form of control. Many people of different faiths were harassed and persecuted because of differences in religious beliefs. The followers of Mormonism, especially in its early history, were typically the victims of violence. Mormons were persecuted violently and pushed from Ohio to Missouri to Illinois and then west to the Utah territory. There were incidents of massacre, home burning, pillaging, and the murder of their founder, Joseph Smith. However, there were also a few Latter-day Saints who perpetrated violence as in the case of the Mountain Meadows massacre.

The effect of this violence has had an impact on the history of the Latter Day Saint movement and its doctrines.