Mormonism - Church

Utah Mormon Church Lawsuit Over Alleged Misuse Of Donations To Be Appealed

James Huntsman, a member of one of Utah’s most prominent families and brother of a former governor, is persisting in his argument that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints used donations the church solicited for charity for commercial purposes.

Huntsman filed an appeal Friday with the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, The Salt Lake Tribune reported. A federal judge in California dismissed Huntsman's complaint against the church in September, saying no reasonable juror would believe that church leaders made false statements about how funds would be used.

Huntsman, brother of former U.S. Diplomat and ex-Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. And son of late billionaire philanthropist Jon Huntsman Sr., said he was defrauded out of millions of dollars during the 24 years he gave 10% of his annual income to the church. He is seeking the return of $5 million.

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Contributions to the Utah-based faith known widely as the Mormon church "are used for a broad array of religious purposes, including missionary work, education, humanitarian causes and the construction of meetinghouses, temples and other buildings important in the work of the Church," spokesperson Eric Hawkins said in a statement after the complaint was filed.

The lawsuit was filed more than a year after a former church investment manager filed a whistleblower complaint with the IRS, saying that the church has misled members and possibly broken federal tax rules for religious organizations by using an affiliated investment arm to set aside about $1 billion a year from the $7 billion that the faith received annually in member donations. The whistleblower lawsuit said the church's investments totaled $100 billion.

Former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. (Fox)

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The church reported its largest investment fund contained nearly $38 billion at the end of 2019. The report did not detail all the church's investments.

Huntsman said he planned to give the millions of dollars in damages he is seeking to "organizations and communities whose members have been marginalized by the Church’s teachings and doctrines, including by donating to charities supporting LGBTQ, African-American, and women’s rights."

LDS Church Does Itself No Favors By Attracting Fair-weather Members.

(Trent Nelson | The Salt Lake Tribune) The Brigham Young statue on Temple Square in Salt Lake City on Friday, May 14, 2021.

By Stuart C. Reid | Special to The Tribune

  | Feb. 7, 2022, 1:00 p.M.

Recently, the KUER radio station published a report suggesting that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is enforcing new policies for on-campus demonstrations and hiring standards for faculty and staff at Brigham Young University.

Patrick Mason, an LDS historian and professor at Utah State University observed for the KUER report: “I do think this is really a muscular reassertion of the church’s distinctive identity and mission.”

And, Matthew Bowman, who teaches LDS history at Claremont Graduate University in California, reportedly opined: “It seems to me that the church has picked up this sense of separation and the sense that being different from mainstream American society is the way through which the church will survive.”

Reasserting its “distinctive identity and mission” and “being different from the mainstream” was exactly what the church was about from 1961 through 1990, when it experienced for 30 years the most remarkable average annual rate of growth of 5.2%. Growing more robustly than nearly every other Christian denomination during that time.

Then, unfortunately, following the lead of the church’s public affairs professionals, beginning in 1991 and throughout the next 30 years, the church reoriented its marketing away from its highly prosperous niche market strategy that emphasized the uniqueness and peculiarity of its restored gospel claims.

The church mistakenly shifted its marketing strategy to engage the general Christian marketplace, demonstrating in word and deed that “Mormons” were in fact Christian, with the objective to decrease criticism and the occasional persecution.

To achieve this objective, the church intentionally and energetically de-emphasized its uniqueness and the peculiarity of its restored gospel claims and instead highlighted its commonality with the general Christian marketplace. It decided to go along to get along.

While unintentional, the shift in marketing strategy proved to be devastating. Not only did the church shortsightedly abandon its highly productive niche market, it attracted out from the general Christian marketplace new members, who, understandably, are at best lukewarm towards the church’s restored gospel claims.

Moreover, the church inadvertently sent the message to its membership that “all is well in Zion,” because it was effectively “building bridges of understanding” into the general Christian marketplace. As it set out to do, it successfully reduced criticism and increased acceptance. Over the last 30 years the church’s level of popularity and acceptance within the general Christian marketplace has never been higher. What is not to like? All truly is well.

Not so fast. What the church’s public affairs professionals failed to discern was the criticism and occasional persecution naturally screened out those who would not truly be converted to the restored gospel claims — claims that during the previous 30 years attracted highly devoted converts and solidified the devotion of members because of the criticism and occasional persecution, not in spite of it.

Today, the church is filled with fair-weather members who lack conversion and devotion to its restored gospel claims. Unfortunately, the church’s membership does indeed reflect much of what the church sought to emulate in its pursuit to be accepted into the general Christian marketplace.

The church’s successful assimilation into the general Christian marketplace has unexpectedly become the enemy of its prosperity. Its misguided marketing shift away from its highly productive niche market resulted in the catastrophic collapse of the church’s average annual rate of growth, reduced to 2.6% — half of what it was during the previous 30 years. The decline in the last decade has even been worse, with an anemic average annual rate of growth under 2%.

If the KUER report accurately reflects a true reality regarding a “muscular reassertion” of the church’s “distinctive identity and mission” that is very much “different from the mainstream,” which also happens to be providentially fitted for its prosperity, undoubtedly the church’s annual rate of growth will rise again. And then, perhaps, much will be well in Zion.

Stuart C. Reid, Ogden, is a former Army chaplain and a former public affairs professional who regrettably helped develop the 1990s marketing strategy shift away from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints’ successful niche market.

By Stuart C. Reid | Special to The Tribune

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Pocatello LDS Church Converted Into Airbnb That Sleeps 40, Has An Arcade, Basketball Court And More

A former church in Pocatello sleeps 40, has an arcade room, and is available to rent now. (Kalama Hines, EastIdahoNews.Com)

Estimated read time: 3-4 minutes

POCATELLO — Planning a multi-family weekend getaway? Family reunion? Team gathering?

A local family has just the place in Pocatello.

Built in 1927 to serve The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints' fifth ward in Pocatello, a former church house at the corner of McKinley Avenue and West Elm Street is now available to rent. It sleeps 40 and houses a basketball court, arcade, climbing wall, zipline, and full kitchen and dining area.

The building has been completely renovated and remodeled by the ownership team of brothers Josh and Justin Andersen and their wives Kendra and Alysha.

"It's fun to be able to create a place for families to come. And really, there's something for everyone here," Kendra Andersen told EastIdahoNews.Com. "It's perfect."

While the building was in need of much gutting and renovation — with several repaired or replaced sections of boiler pipe, redone flooring and a complete kitchen overhaul — the Andersens were careful not to replace everything.

Chandeliers hanging in the entryway and arcade are holdovers from the building's day as a church. As are the piano and organ — though the organ is in a portion of the building that will likely not be available for rent until the summer. And the owners are offering an exchange for any nostalgic photos of the building's former life.

Discounts up to 50% are available for those renters with such photos.

"We're trying to gather photos and history for this building, so we can make a little book with pictures," Josh Andersen said.

A former church in Pocatello sleeps 40 and is available to rent now. (Photo: Kalama Hines, EastIdahoNews.Com)

This project has been in the works for years since Justin and Alysha began operating a similar property in Idaho Falls. Wanting to get in on the action, Josh discussed partnering on a second venture with his brother, with the plan to buy a warehouse and build living pods around a gym and arcade.

"We were looking all over Idaho Falls, Rexburg," Josh Andersen said. "Then we started expanding (our search) this way (to Pocatello), and one day I typed in warehouses and this church house popped up. I was like, 'Hey Justin, what about a church house?'"

The brothers swooped in and purchased the property. Then from August to December, spent long, tireless days creating a massive escape for renters.

The 8,000-square-foot building features seven bedrooms, holding 10 queen-size beds and numerous fold-out couches. A common area downstairs provides additional fold-out couches and the dining room and kitchen are built to accommodate these numbers.

"The kitchen's for large groups," Josh said. "We've got two stoves, two ovens and two fridges, so they can store quite a bit of food here, and cook quite a bit of food."

Showers, though separate for men and women, are locker room style, but the Andersens have added curtains to separate showering areas. Doored partitions separate toilets.

The rental is also pet-friendly, Kendra added, though an additional pet deposit for necessary cleaning.

The rental is available on Airbnb and Vrbo for $499 per night, but reservations are a two-night minimum.

As Josh and Kendra pointed out, gathering large groups means that a stay at their property ends up being cheaper than most area hotels. For a group of 30, rental cost is around $35 per person — or $200 per family for five families.

All told, the Andersens believe they have created a gathering point that could serve locals and visitors alike.

"If you're not big into camping but you like to get together with your family, this is a great place," Josh Andersen said.

Kendra Andersen added, "What a great way to spend your weekend. We would love for locals to stay and try it out."

Photos

Umn ministry Chennai