Last week Slate.com had a week-long series on “How Will America End?” that examined various apocalyptic scenarios. Josh Levin, for instance, asked whether Mormonism can preserve American civilization:
A religion is also a good candidate to keep America alive. The history of Catholicism shows that religious movements can outlast the political systems in which they arose. Our idealized conception of what America stands for has its origins in religious belief as well: the Puritans’ values of industry and self-reliance, and their desire for the nation to be a “city upon a hill.”
What religion might serve as America’s preservationist? In the 1960 novel A Canticle for Leibowitz, Walter M. Miller Jr. imagines a group of monks playing the same role as their European forebears, preserving knowledge in a post-apocalyptic America. Considering this country’s microscopic monk supply, it’s hard to imagine monasteries banding together to combat data rot. Evangelical Christians seem like a more logical contender: Around 100 million Americans identify as evangelicals, and the idea of the United States as a promised land is pervasive in evangelical thought. But while they’re often thought of as a homogeneous bloc, evangelicals are really a diverse and fragmented lot. That makes the movement resilient and adaptable but not exactly the best vessel for preserving a culture. The early Catholic Church, in contrast, was more disciplined and hierarchical, a far better candidate both to survive a collapse and to carry forward societal traditions.
A better candidate to serve as America’s time capsule: the Mormons.
If a zombie apocalypse were to befall America, I’d put my money on the Mormons being the religious cohort most likely to survive. They have the combination of moral fortitude and self-reliance that would help carry them through such a sudden catastrophic scenario. The more intriguing question, I think, is whether the LDS church can survive the more mundane, steadily eroding effects of modernity.
While the LDS church is hierarchical, it doesn’t appear to put the same emphasis on institution building that has been the hallmark of American Catholics, mainline Protestants, and—the latest group playing catch-up—evangelicals. There are, for example, relatively few LDS colleges and universities. (How many can you name that are not BYU?)
Instead of institutions, the LDS church relies on individuals. According to professors J. Quin Monson and David Campbell, Mormons make greater sacrifices for their faith than members of many other religions do.
The typical adult Mormon spends three hours in Sunday services; complements this with periodic worship in Church temples, which fulfills obligations that Sunday worship does not; visits a pre-established network of congregation members each month to discuss their satisfaction with the Church; and volunteers in some other capacity for his or her congregation. (One study found that 60 percent of Mormons volunteer annually for a church-related group, compared to 36 percent of Southern Baptists and 27 percent of Catholics.)
. . . Monson and Campbell cite statistics showing that 53 percent of Mormons reported giving a speech or presentation at church in the past half-year, compared to 14 percent of Southern Baptists and four percent of Catholics. On top of that, most males also spend two years as missionaries just as they enter adulthood, journeying far from home to plug their faith to an often-hostile audience. Then there’s the unusually rigorous Mormon tithing guideline, which instructs adults to donate 10 percent of their income to the LDS Church. (In contrast, the Catholic Church asks adherents only to contribute to its upkeep; the average Catholic giving rate is about 1.5 percent.)
This remarkable level of individual dedication has helped the LDS church grow by a rate of approximately forty percent per decade during the twentieth century. Yet the church estimates that there are only four million active churchgoers out of a global Mormon population of twelve million. Within another century Mormonism is likely to hit a demographic tipping point that would ensure the survival of the religion for centuries to come. But what about until then?
One of the primary strengths of the LDS church—strong reliance on individual engagement—could quickly turn into a weakness. It appears that the Mormons are only an apathetic generation away from reversing their growth and sliding into decline. What would happen if a generation of mainstreaming young Mormons rebelled against the church? Imagine if the LDS church had the equivalent of the emergent church—a movement that isn’t an outright rebellion but merely a shifting away from traditional ways and norms. Could it sustain its levels of (already declining) growth if the participation of a younger generation were to decline by twenty percent?
The Catholic and mainline churches in America have institutional structures that prevent their decline from becoming too precipitous. They can outlast a generation or two (or three) without dying off completely (the mainline churches, however, are testing the limits of this rule). The evangelicals have weaker institutions but sheer bulk: they have the numbers to outlast even long periods of contraction. (Worse case scenario, if the American versions were to completely fail, the Africans can keep global Christianity alive.)
Can Mormonism survive if its average member was as unengaged as, say, the average Methodist? Throughout their history they have been shockingly successful in passing on their churches’ values to their young. But that is a task that becomes more difficult with every passing generation. The Mormons may find that surviving an American apocalypse is less difficult that surviving American apathy.
August 14th, 2009 | 10:10 am
The robust nature of the Mormon community has a deep institutional basis which is missed in this analysis about Mormon individulaism. The Mormons have integrated a brotherhood of men into two distinct priest castes with concomitant duties and status hierarchies. This accords with biblical forms of organization in both testaments and is deeply consonant with human anthropology forming male territorial groups as our basic PUBLIC social structure. The Twelve have a peter and everyman is socialized into the corporate group by acts of sacrificie and learning. The dynamic nature of the Mormon community is based on private life built on a deeply religious view of marriage and public life built on the most successful strategy of formal male socialization among American religions. Mormonismn by its formalized notion of priesthood is not another example of American protestant individualism but an institutional response rising from the burnt out milieu of American evangelicanism long on enthusisam and short on church discipline. I think of it as a kind of engrafting of a formal priesthood onto the protestant portion of the American continent. I say this as an admiring Catholic. Let me agree with the author that mormonism has a deep heft—–but that will hopefully not outlive our country but help to renew her so we can play our role as a prepared nation when the Lord comes again.
August 14th, 2009 | 12:34 pm
You have forgotten to mention one crucial LDS institution: the temple. Because the sacred sealing rites binding spouses, and children to parents, are only available in the temple, the official LDS Church can insist on formal personal engagement for the highest blessings to be obtained. One must qualify to enter the temple by attending church, paying tithing, living the dietary laws, etc. One cannot enter without a recommend issued by a local ecclesiastical authority who investigates one’s worthiness to attend.
This is no piddling issue: Mormons truly believe that the only way they can live with their loved ones in the hereafter is to participate in these rites. I’d say it would be pretty hard to have an entire generation apathetic about that.
August 14th, 2009 | 1:36 pm
GoodReason: This is no piddling issue: Mormons truly believe that the only way they can live with their loved ones in the hereafter is to participate in these rites. I’d say it would be pretty hard to have an entire generation apathetic about that.
But don’t all religions have something similar? Catholics and evangelicals, for example, claim that to be in heaven with ones loved ones requires subscribing to certain beliefs. And yet even that is too much for some people to do. How does adding layers of onerous orthopraxy make it more likely that they will conform? In other words, why would the Mormons be immune to the corrosive affects of theological liberalism that has plagued every other religion? (They very well could be, I just don’t seem why that would be so.)
Since WWII, their rate of growth has slowed from nearly 50% a decade to about 30%. That is still rather remarkable but it does seem that something has changed. I don’t think the LDS church has changed radically since then, so the slower growth is likely attributable to the culture in which they are trying to win converts. Americans become increasingly more individualistic each decade. This may not affect the core demographic of current Mormons (though they aren’t having as many babies as they used to) but it is likely to affect their expansion.
August 14th, 2009 | 2:00 pm
Strength is weakness; weakness is strength. The only people who survive the fall of civilizational institutions are those most open to grace; these sociological analyses are spurious and useless.
August 14th, 2009 | 3:52 pm
As a “gentile” living in the American Zion of Utah, my observation over these past 30 years is that, yes, orthodox Mormons still adhere to the wearing of the garments, the completion of temple work, avoidance of hot beverages with caffeine and other rules, but their message is more mainstream than ever.
They increasingly embrace birth control and believe abortion is a matter between a woman and her doctor. There is no absolute proscription against these two grave evils thus they are easy to embrace or adopt a laissez-faire attitude about. They recognize no Magesterium, though they do have prophets. However, their prophets seem to play it safe and will not boldly proclaim the truth about these two issues, although I do recognize the Mormon Church’s brave stance against homosexual marriage. The American Catholic bishops are seemingly reluctant to proclaim the evil of birth control and many have been in rebellion against the Magesterium on this issue since about 1968, however, are a bit better about proclaiming the evil of abortion and homosexual marriage. The Catholic Magesterium will always be there to protect and proclaim the truth about man whereas Mormonism has a history of being relative in its proclaimations, ie: abolishing polygamy to attain statehood and allowing African-Americans to attain the priesthood in a post civil rights landscape. In the face of apocalyse there may be a remnant of Catholicism and a more robust one of Mormonism, however, I personally believe the Catholics will prevail because the truth about these important life issues will prevail.
I personally think Mormonism is in decline and give it another 100 years, tops.
August 14th, 2009 | 6:44 pm
To Redfeather: According to the Pew survey, Mormons have larger families than Catholics. What moderates Mormon use of birth control is not the Catholic style absolute ban that is observed by very few, but a positive value on having children to fulfill God’s plan to bring his spiritual children from a premortal state into mortality, where they can be tried and tested and learn and then return to the Father’s presence throught the transforming gift of Christ’s grace. The Mormon strategy is working better than the Catholic strategy. Among our three children who survived to adulthood, we have 12 grandchildren.
Abortion for Mormons is NOT “between a woman and her doctor.” Abortion is considered justifiable only in rare circumstances such as a threat to the mother’s life, or when it results from rape or incest, and even then, parents (mothers AND fathers) are enjoined to ask God for guidance before adopting that drastic remedy. Again, abortion is extremely rare among Mormons.
On the blog topic:
A couple of years ago a study of how various religious groups were acculturating their teenagers found that the Mormons were the most successful among all groups in the US. Mormon teenagers have the highest rate of commitment to their parents’ religion, actually read the Bible frequently, and affirm a personal faith in God. The speculation in the original posting about “What if the Mormons were not successful in passing their religion to the rising generation?” is like asking “What if the U.S. Air Force lost its ability to instill patriotism in its recruits?” There is little basis in the real evidence to think that either institution is going to change so fundamentally that it loses its ability to replicate itself in each new generation.
If the Catholic Church depends on institutions like Catholic universities to perpetuate itself and ride out declines in member enthusiasm, it really is in trouble. Is the Catholic Church depending on Georgetown and Notre Dame, when those schools appear to be more dedicated to preserving the traditions of academia than the traditions of Catholicism?
While the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has few universities, that is intentional–and they are ALL BYU, including two branch campuses in largely Mormon Rexburg, Idaho and in Laie, Hawaii, that serves Mormons from all over the Pacific. Most Mormon college students are invited to attend other state and private universities, and include in their schedules classes in religion and scripture study at the Institutes of Religion adjacent to numerous campuses across the US.
The most fundamental Mormon “institution” is the family, and because of emphasis on both fathers and mothers being involved in child rearing, and relative youth when families are started, Mormon families are networks with grandparents and in-laws that create a “safety net” for each child of dozens of close relationships.
Another Mormon institution is missionary work, which takes young men and women to places often far outside their comfort zone, from Alaska to Zambia, and builds networks of relationships that are truly international and lasting.
The fact that Mormons have no career clergy means that a large percentage of mature adult men and women in the church have experience leading and teaching in virtually every capacity, so they are prepared to “clone” into and staff a new congregation on a moment’s notice. This happens all the time. In my current home in Richland, Washington (about 15% Mormon), the number of Mormons in our neighborhood has grown so much in ten years that our original single congregation has become four congregations in the course of ten years, each one almost fully staffed at its inception by experienced leaders and teachers, all unpaid volunteers. What could have more survival value than a church in which any random group of members can create a fully staffed operating congregation?
Finally, let me note another reason why Mormons have “survivability”: Because all adult members are given opportunities to serve and teach, the integration between religious commitment and all sorts of careers is part of the essential Mormon experience. Mormons are not threatened by science (for example), because many Mormons are scientists (some surveys suggest they are overrepresented in that career field), and demonstrate to other members how to integrate modern science into their religious lives. Mormons take Mormonism with them into every aspect of the modern world. The recent Pew survey found that, alone among American religions, Mormons become even more committed to their faith as they gain more education.
The senior church leadership exemplifies how to live an exemplary Mormon life while excelling in the world: they were successful lawyers, successful businessmen, specialists in public relations, an internationally famous heart surgeon and researcher, a nuclear engineer, a senior leader of Lufthansa, and academics with PhDs from Harvard and Stanford. The next tier of leadership includes former military generals and scientists along with all of the above, such as the former dean of the Harvard Business School who now leads BYU-Idaho.
These people are collectively equipped to deal with any conceivable issue, applying deep wells of expertise across professions to leading their church in dealing with any challenge. And their varied skills and faithful dedication are replicated through all levels of the church.
As for 100 years from now–they aren’t called Latter-day Saints for nothing. Mormons look forward to the vast cultural change that they expect will occur when Christ returns to the earth in glory.
August 14th, 2009 | 7:45 pm
I am a Catholic living in the heart of the Mormon seat of power. Redfeather is correct about the Mormon culture of outward adherence to works, but inward slouching toward Gomorrah.
The Mormons I observe and interact with daily are as materialistic and TV-cultured as the people in any of the other 6 areas I’ve lived as an adult. However … I think they’ll still be around as a group for a very long time. Due to their constricted, purely community-church-centered culture, they are truly wedded to that faith. To leave that faith means to leave family, friends, connections, even their favorite plumber sometimes … even while living in the same neighborhood with these people. It’s creepy. People stay put under those conditions. Maybe it’s easier to deal with a lack of belief when the requirements for salvation are all works-based in the first place … I dunno. In my experience, Catholics feel much freer to just leave the faith and say so outright … their families may grieve and worry, but they don’t shun them.
As far as practical survival, the Mormon teachings about emergency preparedness and whatnot … very few practice those teachings. In the case of zombie apocalypse, I don’t think the Mormons would be any better off than anyone else.
August 15th, 2009 | 1:16 pm
Thanks for your comments, Mr. Swensen. I do believe that when you scratch the surface of Mormonism, you find unbounded materialism and adherence to the wider, secular culture.
Many Mormons talk the talk, but don’t walk the walk. Gigantic homes, gigantic cars, breast enhancing and other cosmetic procedures are ubiquitous in this state. Bankrupcy rates and subscriptions to online pornography are higher in Utah than anywhere else in the USA.
Two anecdotal stories: I work with two devout Mormon women and one reported her daughter went to extreme measures to have children via IVF and now has extra embryoes that she doesn’t know what to do with. This is evil. And there is no admonition or guidance from the Mormon Church as to what to do with those tiny humans. The only end it is concerned with is to “be fruitful and multiply” seemingly whatever the cost, whereas the wisdom of the ages is evident in Catholicism’s identification of this practice (IVF) as evil. And I hold firm to my belief that Mormons believe abortion is between a woman and her doctor, or between a woman and her Mormon bishop. There is no visable prolife movement here in Utah among the Mormons which I am aware of, meaning there is no formal outreach to change the hearts of wider society that abortion is an absolute evil. I’m sure many Mormons believe abortion is wrong, and would never procure one, but that is not a political hill the institutionalized Church is willing to die on.
Another acquaintence’s daughter was being married and at the bridal shower at which she was present, sex toys were being given as gifts to the bride. My acquaintance was reportedly perplexed and attributed it to “that crazy younger generation”.
You may think these silly, isolated examples, but I think you can multiply these and other incideous evils thousands of times weekly in Mormon households and you can see where the evil is creeping in and taking a stranglehold.
American Catholicism is in a shambles, because the Magesterium is valued by so few Catholics and most, but not all, of our shepherds are so abominally weak.
However, I do think Catholics will prevail over Mormons in the end. Not to be dismissed in Catholicism is the Eucharist, which we believe to be Christ bodily present. Wherever Eucharistic adoration is the norm, holiness among Catholics is increased. Eucharistic adoration is on the rise and will lead us out of darkness. Mormonism is devoid of the Eucharist and that is no little thing.
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