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69-421: People convert to a different religion for various reasons, including active conversion by free choice due to a change in beliefs, secondary conversion , deathbed conversion , conversion for convenience, marital conversion , and forced conversion . Proselytism is the act of attempting to convert by persuasion another individual from a different religion or belief system. Apostate is a term used by members of

138-507: A Great Apostasy began in Christianity not long after the ascension of Jesus , marked with the corruption of Christian doctrine by Greek and other philosophies, and followers dividing into different ideological groups. Additionally, Latter Day Saints claim the martyrdom of the apostles led to a loss of priesthood authority to administer the church and its ordinances . According to Latter Day Saint churches, God re-established

207-427: A baptistry , although they can be performed in any body of water in which the person may be completely immersed. The person administering the baptism must recite the prayer exactly, and immerse every part, limb, hair and clothing of the person being baptized. If there are any mistakes, or if any part of the person being baptized is not fully immersed, the baptism must be redone. In addition to the baptizer, two members of

276-461: A Hindu have variously included a period where the interested person gets an informal ardha-Hindu name and studies ancient literature on spiritual path and practices (English translations of Upanishads , Agama , Itihasa , ethics in Sutra , Hindu festivals, yoga ). If after a period of study, the individual still wants to convert, a Namakarana Samskara ceremony is held, where the individual adopts

345-473: A Rigdon supporter, to assume leadership and the surviving members of Smith's immediate family remained unaffiliated with any larger body until 1860, when they formed the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints with Joseph's eldest son Joseph Smith III as prophet. These various groups are sometimes referred to under two geographical headings: "Prairie Saints" (those that remained in

414-412: A complex theological, historical, and sociological relationship. Mormons express the doctrines of Mormonism using standard biblical terminology, and claim to have similar views about the nature of Jesus ' atonement , resurrection , and Second Coming as traditional Christianity . Nevertheless, Mormons agree with non-Mormons that their view of God is significantly different from the trinitarian view of

483-641: A legal waiver which covers their relationship with the Church of Scientology before engaging in Scientology services. Research in the United States and in the Netherlands has shown a positive correlation between areas lacking mainstream churches and the percentage of people who are members of a new religious movement. This applies also for the presence of New Age centres. On the other end of

552-700: A means to salvation. However, beginning with his accounts of the First Vision in the 1830s and 1840s, Smith—who said that Christ had told him not to join any existing church—departed significantly from traditional Christianity, claiming all churches of his day were part of a Great Apostasy that had lost the authority to direct Christ's church. Mormonism does not characterize itself as a Protestant religion, as Smith taught that he had received revelation direct from Christ to restore his original church. Mormons believe that God, through Smith and his successors, restored these truths and doctrinal clarifications, and, initiating

621-490: A missionary ritual. This doctrine answers the question of the righteous non-believer and the unevangelized by providing a post-mortem means of repentance and salvation. Converting to Islam requires one to declare the shahādah , the Muslim profession of faith ("there is no god but God ; Muhammad is the messenger of God"). According to Clinton Bennett , British–American scholar of Religious studies , one's declaration of

690-646: A new heavenly dispensation, restored the original church and Christianity taught by Jesus. For example, Smith rejected the Nicene doctrine of the Trinity as of one body and substance, with no "body, parts, or passions", and instead taught that the Godhead included God, the Eternal Father, also known as Elohim ; his only-begotten son in the flesh, Jesus Christ, also known as Jehovah , the savior and redeemer of

759-434: A recent convert may be elected to serve on a local Spiritual Assembly – the guiding Baháʼí institution at the community level. Within Christianity conversion refers variously to three different phenomena: a person becoming Christian who was previously not Christian; a Christian moving from one Christian denomination to another; a particular spiritual development, sometimes called the "second conversion", or "the conversion of

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828-576: A religion only because of a relationship with the other convert. Secondary conversion can greatly expand a movement's influence, particularly after a conquest, such as the Muslim Moorish conquest of Spain and Catholic Spain's conquests in Latin America . This article about sociology of religion is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Latter Day Saint movement The Latter Day Saint movement (also called

897-514: A religion or denomination to refer to someone who has left that religion or denomination. The religions of the world are divided into two groups: those that actively seek new followers (missionary religions) and those that do not (non-missionary religions). This classification dates back to a lecture given by Max Müller in 1873, and is based on whether or not a religion seeks to gain new converts. The three main religions classified as missionary religions are Buddhism , Christianity , and Islam , while

966-515: A religion. Allan Kardec 's codification of Spiritism occurred between the years 1857 and 1868. Currently there are 25 to 60 million people studying Spiritism in various countries, mainly in Brazil, through its essential books , which include The Spirits Book , The Book on Mediums , The Gospel According to Spiritism , Heaven and Hell and The Genesis According to Spiritism . Chico Xavier wrote over 490 additional books, which expand on

1035-475: A revelation from God that officially changed the name to the "Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints". In 1844, William Law and several other Latter Day Saints in church leadership positions publicly denounced Smith's secret practice of polygamy in the Nauvoo Expositor , and formed their own church . The city council of Nauvoo, Illinois , led by Smith, subsequently had the printing press of

1104-680: A traditional Hindu name. The initiation ceremony may also include Yajna (i.e., fire ritual with Sanskrit hymns) under guidance of a local Hindu priest. Some of these places are mathas and asramas (hermitage, monastery), where one or more gurus (spiritual guide) conduct the conversion and offer spiritual discussions. Some schools encourage the new convert to learn and participate in community activities such as festivals ( Diwali etc.), read and discuss ancient literature, learn and engage in rites of passages (ceremonies of birth, first feeding, first learning day, age of majority, wedding, cremation and others). Jainism accepts anyone who wants to embrace

1173-678: Is a convert. Different factors and circumstances may operate and interact to persuade individuals of groups to convert and adopt a new set of religious doctrines and habits. Religious enthusiasm for proselytism can play a role. For example, the New Testament chronicles the personal activities of the Apostles and their followers in inspired preaching , miracle -working and the subsequent gathering of followers. Freshly-converted Irish and Anglo-Saxon priests spread their new-found faith among pagan British and Germanic peoples. Missions of

1242-450: Is not known to openly proselytize conversions, however it is open and accepting to anyone wanting to take on the Sikh faith. In the second half of the 20th century, the rapid growth of new religious movements (NRMs) led some psychologists and other scholars to propose that these groups were using " brainwashing " or " mind control " techniques to gain converts. This theory was publicized by

1311-448: Is that Mormonism is a form of Christianity, but is distinct enough from traditional Christianity so as to form a new religious tradition, much as Christianity has roots in but is a distinct religion from Judaism. The Mormonism that originated with Smith in the 1820s shared strong similarities with some elements of 19th-century Protestant Christianity including the necessity of baptism, emphasis on family, and central doctrine on Christ as

1380-597: The Bhakti schools began seeking or accepting converts in early to mid 20th century. For example, groups like the International Society for Krishna Consciousness accept those who have a desire to follow their sects of Hinduism and have their own religious conversion procedure. Since 1800 CE, religious conversion from and to Hinduism has been a controversial subject within Hinduism. Some have suggested that

1449-555: The Book of Mormon , which he published in 1830 as a complement to the Bible . Based on the teachings of this book and other revelations, Smith founded a Christian primitivist church, called the "Church of Christ ". The Book of Mormon attracted hundreds of early followers, who later became known as " Mormons ", "Latter Day Saints", or just "Saints". In 1831, Smith moved the church headquarters to Kirtland, Ohio , and in 1838 changed its name to

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1518-619: The Expositor destroyed. In spite of Smith's later offer to pay damages for destroyed property, critics of Smith and the church considered the destruction heavy-handed. Some called for the Latter Day Saints to be either expelled or destroyed. Joseph Smith and his brother, Hyrum, the Assistant President of the Church , were both killed by a mob while in a Carthage, Illinois jail , and several individuals within

1587-625: The LDS movement , LDS restorationist movement , or Smith–Rigdon 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. Collectively, these churches have over 17 million nominal members, including over 17 million belonging to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), 250,000 in Community of Christ , and several other denominations with memberships generally ranging in

1656-818: The Midwest United States ); and "Rocky Mountain Saints" (those who followed Young to what would later become the state of Utah). Today, the vast majority (over 98 percent) of Latter Day Saints belong to the LDS Church, which reports over 16 million members worldwide. The second-largest denomination is the Missouri-based Community of Christ, which reports 252,000 members. Small denominations that trace their origins to Rigdon, James Strang , or other associates of Smith's still exist, and several fundamentalist sects which separated from

1725-609: The New Testament , Jesus commanded his disciples in the Great Commission to "go and make disciples of all nations". Evangelization – sharing the Gospel message or "Good News" in deed and word, is an expectation of Christians. This table summarizes three Protestant beliefs. Much of the theology of Latter Day Saint baptism was established during the early Latter Day Saint movement founded by Joseph Smith, Jr . According to this theology, baptism must be by immersion , for

1794-694: The Nicene Creed of the 4th century. Mormons consider the Bible as scripture and have also adopted additional scriptures. These include the Book of Mormon, Doctrine and Covenants , and Pearl of Great Price , although not all denominations use all books as part of their scriptures. Mormons not only practice baptism and celebrate the eucharist but also participate in religious rituals not practiced in traditional Christianity. Focusing on differences, some Christians consider Mormonism "non-Christian"; members of

1863-551: The Remnant Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints , which supports lineal succession of leadership from Smith's descendants, and the more controversial Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints , which defends the practice of polygamy . The movement began in western New York during the Second Great Awakening when Smith said that he received visions revealing a new sacred text,

1932-565: The Three Jewels – Buddha , Dhamma , and Sangha ) before a monk , nun , or similar representative, with often the sangha, the community of practitioners, also in ritual attendance. Throughout the timeline of Buddhism , conversions of entire countries and regions to Buddhism were frequent, as Buddhism spread throughout Asia. For example, in the 11th century in Burma , king Anoratha converted his entire country to Theravada Buddhism . At

2001-602: The Vedic age . The six Astika and two Nastika schools of Hindu philosophy , in its history, did not develop a missionary or proselytization methodology, and they co-existed with each other. Most Hindu sub-schools and sects do not actively seek converts. Individuals have had a choice to enter, leave or change their god(s), spiritual convictions, accept or discard any rituals and practices, and pursue spiritual knowledge and liberation ( moksha ) in different ways. However, various schools of Hinduism do have some core common beliefs, such as

2070-506: The Zealots . Secondary conversion In the sociology of religion , secondary conversion is the religious conversion of an individual that results from a relationship with another convert, rather than from any particular aspect of the new religion. For example, someone might join a religious group primarily because their spouse or partner has done so; such a person would be a secondary convert. Secondary converts are people who join

2139-647: The current Dalai Lama discourages active attempts to win converts. Hinduism is a diverse system of thought with beliefs spanning monotheism , polytheism , panentheism , pantheism , pandeism , monism , and atheism among others. Hinduism has no traditional ecclesiastical order, no centralized religious authorities, no universally accepted governing body, no binding holy book nor any mandatory prayer attendance requirements. In its diffuse and open structure, numerous schools and sects of Hinduism have developed and spun off in India with help from its ascetic scholars, since

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2208-739: The spiritualist doctrine . As explained in the first of the 1,019 questions and answers in The Spirits Book : 1. What is God? Answer: "God is the Supreme Intelligence-First Cause of all things." The consensus in Spiritism is that God, the Great Creator, is above everything, including all human things such as rituals, dogmas, denominations or any other thing. Persons newly adhering to Buddhism traditionally " Taking Three Refuge " (express faith in

2277-451: The "Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints". After the church in Ohio collapsed due to a financial crisis and dissensions, in 1838, Smith and the body of the church moved to Missouri. However, they were persecuted and the Latter Day Saints fled to Illinois. After Smith was killed in 1844, a succession crisis led to the organization splitting into several groups. The largest of these,

2346-495: The "latter days", before the Second Coming of Christ , and is used to distinguish the members of the church, which considers itself the restoration of the ancient Christian church. Members are therefore often referred to as " Latter-day Saints " or "LDS", and among themselves, "saints". The Latter Day Saint movement classifies itself within Christianity, but as a distinct restored dispensation . Latter Day Saints hold that

2415-423: The 19th century spread against a background of North Atlantic revivalism with its emotionalism and mass-meeting crowd psychological behaviours. Messianism may prepare groups for the coming of a Messiah or of a saviour . Thus the 1st-century Levant , steeped in expectations of overturning the political situation , provided fertile ground for nascent Christianity and other Jewish messianic sects, such as

2484-511: The Islamic religion, it is believed that everyone is Muslim at birth . Due to this, those who convert are typically referred to as reverts. In Islam, the practice of religious circumcision is considered a sunnah custom, not a requirement for conversion, and furthermore it is never mentioned in the Quran . The majority of clerical opinions holds that circumcision is not required upon entering

2553-490: The LDS Church after it rejected plural marriage in 1890 claim tens of thousands of members. Most members of Latter Day Saint churches are adherents to Mormonism , a theology based on Joseph Smith's later teachings and further developed by Brigham Young, James Strang and others who claimed to be Smith's successors. The term Mormon derives from the Book of Mormon , and most of these adherents refer to themselves as Latter Day Saints or Mormons. Mormonism and Christianity have

2622-510: The LDS Church, focusing on similarities, are offended at being so characterized. Mormons do not accept non-Mormon baptism. Mormons regularly proselytize individuals actually or nominally within the Christian tradition, and some Christians, especially evangelicals , proselytize Mormons. The LDS Church has a formal missionary program with nearly 70,000 missionaries, with 15 training centers and 407 missions worldwide. A prominent scholarly view

2691-654: The LDS Church, migrated under the leadership of Brigham Young to the Great Basin (now Utah ) and became known for its 19th-century practice of polygamy . The LDS Church officially renounced this practice in 1890 and gradually discontinued it, resulting in Utah Territory becoming a U.S. state . This change resulted in the formation of several small sects that sought to maintain polygamy and other 19th-century doctrines and practices, now referred to as " Mormon fundamentalism ". Other groups originating within

2760-641: The Latter Day Saint faiths as converts are baptized, even if they have previously received baptism in another faith. When performing a Baptism, Latter Day Saints say the following prayer before performing the ordinance: Having been commissioned of Jesus Christ, I baptize you in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen. Baptisms inside and outside the temples are usually done in

2829-559: The Latter Day Saint movement followed different paths in Missouri , Illinois , Michigan , and Pennsylvania . For the most part, these groups rejected plural marriage and some of Smith's later teachings. The largest of these, Community of Christ (known previously as the "Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints"), was formed in Illinois in 1860 by several groups uniting around Smith's son, Joseph Smith III . The founder of

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2898-425: The Latter Day Saint movement was Joseph Smith, and to a lesser extent, during the movement's first two years, Oliver Cowdery . Throughout his life, Smith told of an experience he had as a boy having seen God the Father and Jesus Christ as two separate beings, who told him that the true church of Jesus Christ had been lost and would be restored through him, and that he would be given the authority to organize and lead

2967-667: The Muslim faith. In the Sunnī branch of Islam , the Shāfiʿī and Ḥanbalī schools regard both male and female circumcision as legally obligatory for Muslims, while the Mālikī and Ḥanafī schools regard it as non-binding and only recommended for both sexes. Conversion to Judaism is the religious conversion of non-Jews to become members of the Jewish religion and Jewish ethnoreligious community . The procedure and requirements for conversion depend on

3036-689: The Muslim profession of faith does not imply faith in God alone, since the conversion to Islam includes other distinct Islamic beliefs as well as part of the Muslim creed ( ʿaqīdah ): Technically, the Shahadah ( first pillar ) is the only obligatory statement of faith in Islam ; however, over time a list of six items evolved, the essentials of faith ( Iman Mufassal ), namely: belief in God, in God's angels, scriptures, messengers, day of judgment, and God's power. In

3105-513: The baptised". Conversion to Christianity is the religious conversion of a previously non-Christian person to some form of Christianity. Some Christian sects require full conversion for new members regardless of any history in other Christian sects, or from certain other sects. The exact requirements vary between different churches and denominations . Baptism is traditionally seen as a sacrament of admission to Christianity. Christian baptism has some parallels with Jewish immersion by mikvah . In

3174-439: The baptized individual putting off of the natural or sinful man and becoming spiritually reborn as a disciple of Jesus. Membership into a Latter Day Saint church is granted only by baptism whether or not a person has been raised in the church. Latter Day Saint churches do not recognize baptisms of other faiths as valid because they believe baptisms must be performed under the church's unique authority. Thus, all who come into one of

3243-518: The belief that all living beings have Atman (soul), a belief in karma theory, spirituality, ahimsa (non-violence) as the greatest dharma or virtue, and others. Religious conversion to Hinduism has a long history outside India. Merchants and traders of India, particularly from Indian peninsula, carried their religious ideas, which led to religious conversions to Hinduism in Indonesia, Champa, Cambodia and Burma. Some sects of Hindus, particularly of

3312-661: The church claimed to be the senior surviving authority and appointed successors. These various claims resulted in a succession crisis. Many supported Brigham Young, the president of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles ; others Sidney Rigdon , the senior surviving member of the First Presidency . Emma Hale Smith failed to persuade William Marks , the president of the Presiding High Council and

3381-527: The church witness the baptism to ensure that it is performed properly. Following baptism, Latter Day Saints receive the Gift of the Holy Ghost by the laying on of hands of a Melchizedek Priesthood holder. Latter Day Saints hold that one may be baptized after death through the vicarious act of a living individual, and holders of the Melchezidek Priesthood practice baptism for the dead as

3450-413: The churches of the Latter Day Saint movement operate under a lay priesthood, children raised in a Mormon family are usually baptized by a father or close male friend or family member who has achieved the office of priest , which is conferred upon worthy male members at least 16 years old in the LDS Church. Baptism is seen as symbolic both of Jesus ' death, burial and resurrection and is also symbolic of

3519-647: The concept of missionary conversion, either way, is contrary to the precepts of Hinduism. Religious leaders of some of Hinduism sects such as Brahmo Samaj have seen Hinduism as a non-missionary religion yet welcomed new members, while other leaders of Hinduism's diverse schools have stated that with the arrival of missionary Islam and Christianity in India, the view that "there is no such thing as proselytism in Hinduism" must be re-examined. In recent decades, mainstream Hinduism schools have attempted to systematize ways to accept religious converts, with an increase in inter-religious mixed marriages. The steps involved in becoming

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3588-476: The cultural underpinnings of the people in their adopted communities, are encouraged to integrate into the society and apply Baháʼí principles in living and working with their neighbors. Baháʼís recognize the divine origins of all revealed religion, and believe that these religions occurred sequentially as part of a divine plan (see Progressive revelation ), with each new revelation superseding and fulfilling that of its predecessors. Baháʼís regard their own faith as

3657-518: The distinctive theological developments they believe to have been developed later in Mormonism. The beliefs within the LDS Church with regard to saints are similar but not quite the same as the Protestant tradition. In the New Testament , saints are all those who have entered into the Christian covenant of baptism. The qualification "latter-day" refers to the doctrine that members are living in

3726-531: The end of the 12th century, Jayavarman VII set the stage for conversion of the Khmer people to Theravada Buddhism. Mass conversions of areas and communities to Buddhism occur up to the present day, for example, in the Dalit Buddhist movement in India there have been organized mass conversions . Exceptions to encouraging conversion may occur in some Buddhist movements. In Tibetan Buddhism , for example,

3795-469: The institutions and laws he established. Conversion to the Baháʼí Faith carries with it an explicit belief in the common foundation of all revealed religion, a commitment to the unity of mankind, and active service to the community at large, especially in areas that will foster unity and concord. Since the Baháʼí Faith has no clergy, converts are encouraged to be active in all aspects of community life. Even

3864-501: The most important and widely cited studies of the process of religious conversion, and one of the first modern sociological studies of a new religious movement. The Church of Scientology attempts to gain converts by offering "free stress tests". It has also used the celebrity status of some of its members (most notably that of the American actor Tom Cruise ) to attract converts. The Church of Scientology requires that all converts sign

3933-463: The most important of which is that Christ is the savior of the world and that he suffered for the world's sins so that the penitent can return to live in heaven. A small fraction of Latter Day Saints, most notably those within Community of Christ, the second largest Latter Day Saint denomination, follow a traditional Protestant theology. Community of Christ views God in trinitarian terms, and reject

4002-650: The most recent (but not the last), and believe its teachings – which are centered around the principle of the oneness of humanity – are most suited to meeting the needs of a global community. In most countries conversion is a simple matter of filling out a card stating a declaration of belief. This includes acknowledgement of Bahá'u'llah – the Founder of the Faith – as the Messenger of God for this age, awareness and acceptance of his teachings, and intention to be obedient to

4071-445: The non-missionary religions include Judaism , Zoroastrianism , and Hinduism . Other religions, such as Primal Religions, Confucianism , and Taoism , may also be considered non-missionary religions. In sharing their faith with others, Baháʼís are cautioned to "obtain a hearing" – meaning to make sure the person they are proposing to teach is open to hearing what they have to say. " Baháʼí pioneers ", rather than attempting to supplant

4140-414: The people who joined did so because of personal relationships – often family relationships – with existing members. Lofland summarised his findings in 1964 in a doctoral thesis entitled "The World Savers: A Field Study of Cult Processes", and in 1966 in book form (published by Prentice-Hall ) as Doomsday Cult: A Study of Conversion, Proselytization, and Maintenance of Faith . It is considered to be one of

4209-494: The popular news media but disputed by other scholars, including some sociologists of religion . In the 1960s sociologist John Lofland lived with Unification Church missionary Young Oon Kim and a small group of American church members in California and studied their activities in trying to promote their beliefs and win converts to their church. Lofland noted that most of their efforts were ineffective and that most of

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4278-796: The proselytising scale are religions that do not accept any converts. Often these are relatively small, close-knit minority religions that are ethnically based such as the Yazidis , Druze , and Mandaeans . The Parsis, a Zoroastrianism group based in India, classically does not accept converts, but this issue became controversial in the 20th century due to a rapid decline in membership. Chinese traditional religion lacks clear criteria for membership, and hence for conversion. However, Taoism does have its own religious conversion ceremony which seems to be adopted and modified from Chinese Buddhist refuge-taking ceremonies. The Shakers and some Indian eunuch brotherhoods do not allow procreation, so that every member

4347-534: The religion. There is no specific ritual for becoming a Jain. One does not need to ask any authorities for admission. One becomes a Jain on one's own by observing the five vows ( vratas ) The five main vows as mentioned in the ancient Jain texts like Tattvarthasutra are: Following the five vows is the main requirement in Jainism. All other aspects such as visiting temples are secondary. Jain monks and nuns are required to observe these five vows strictly. Sikhism

4416-592: The remission of sins (meaning that through baptism, past sins are forgiven), and occurs after one has shown faith and repentance. Mormon baptism does not purport to remit any sins other than personal ones, as adherents do not believe in original sin . Latter Day Saints baptisms also occur only after an " age of accountability " which is defined as the age of eight years. The theology thus rejects infant baptism . In addition, Latter Day Saint theology requires that baptism may only be performed with one who has been called and ordained by God with priesthood authority. Because

4485-589: The sponsoring denomination . A conversion in accordance with the process of a denomination is not a guarantee of recognition by another denomination. A formal conversion is also sometimes undertaken by individuals whose Jewish ancestry is questioned, even if they were raised Jewish, but may not actually be considered Jews according to traditional Jewish law . As late as the 6th century, the Eastern Roman empire and Caliph Umar ibn Khattab were issuing decrees against conversion to Judaism , implying that this

4554-634: The thousands of members. The predominant theology of the churches in the movement is Mormonism , which sees itself as restoring again on Earth the early Christian church ; their members are most commonly known as Mormons . An additional doctrine of the church allows for prophets to receive and publish modern-day revelations . A minority of Latter Day Saint adherents, such as members of Community of Christ, have been influenced by Protestant theologies while maintaining certain distinctive beliefs and practices including continuing revelation , an open canon of scripture and building temples . Other groups include

4623-436: The true Church of Christ. The Latter Day Saint church was formed on April 6, 1830, consisting of a community of believers in the western New York towns of Fayette , Manchester , and Colesville . The church was formally organized under the name of the "Church of Christ". By 1834, the church was referred to as the "Church of the Latter Day Saints" in early church publications, and in 1838 Smith announced that he had received

4692-473: The world; and the Holy Ghost or Holy Spirit, an individual personage of spirit whose influence can be felt in many places at once. Further, Smith taught that the essence of all humans is co-eternal with God and that humans, as the spirit offspring of God the Father, have the potential to become like God. The LDS Church, the largest Mormon denomination, while acknowledging its differences with mainstream Christianity, often focuses on its commonalities, which are many,

4761-413: Was still occurring. In some cases, a person may forgo a formal conversion to Judaism and adopt some or all beliefs and practices of Judaism. However, without a formal conversion, many highly observant Jews will reject a convert's Jewish status. There are no rituals or dogmas, nor any sort of procedures in conversion to Spiritism . The doctrine is first considered as science, then philosophy and lastly as

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