MEMBERSHIP LOSSES AND GAINS
MORMONISM AND THE CASE OF THE MISSING DNA
CUF SEEKS A NEW HOME
Dear Friend of Catholic Answers:
Well, we got through another round of the "There Used to be a Female Pope." Every few years someone breathlessly reports that in the ninth century a woman was elected pope and that she was known in later centuries as Pope Joan.
Fantasy, pure fantasy, pretty much on the level of the predictions of Nostradamus, except a little less reliable. There is no need to rehash the silly arguments in favor of Pope Joan--not a single "fact" holds up to scrutiny--but it is worth noting that some things become matters of faith for some people because they desperately want to believe that they are true.
Pope Joan will be back in a few years. Count on it. Just as there are people who still believe in the power of crystals, so there are (and will be) people who "just know" that Pope Joan really existed. Ideology trumps good sense and always has--another effect of the Fall.
UPS AND DOWNS IN MEMBERSHIP
If you were a member of the Disciples of Christ Church, you would not find the latest statistics consoling.
In the last forty years your denomination lost 57 percent of its membership (more than 1 million people), doing even worse than the Presbyterian Church in the USA, which lost 44 percent (1.8 million) and the Episcopal Church, which lost 35 percent (1.3 million). In fact, all of the mainline Protestant churches have seen a precipitous decline in membership.
That decline has been offset by big increases for more conservative denominations. The Assemblies of God gained 2.2 million members, for a 377 percent increase, and the Southern Baptist Convention gained 5.7 million for a 53 percent increase.
The biggest gainer of all in terms of head count has been the Catholic Church, up by 21 million members for a growth of 45 percent.
MORMONS AND DNA
Another church that has seen rapid growth is the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, better known as the Mormons. But that may change if members pay attention to the latest news about one of their core beliefs.
When Joseph Smith began his new religion, he claimed that American Indians were descendents of ancient Israelites. The Book of Mormon--at least in those portions that were not lifted directly from the King James Bible--is largely an account of how Israelites came to America, prospered, and eventually went to war with one another, with the good guys being wiped out by the bad guys, who are the ancestors of today's Indians.
One of the great battles took place, it is said, at Hill Cumorah in New York. Unfortunately for the Mormon church, excavations there have revealed not the slightest artifact that would substantiate Mormonism's account of ancient history. That's one reason why, in recent years, emphasis has shifted southward.
The current line is that the Israelites ended up in Central America. But this is of lesser moment than the fact that, according to Mormonism, the Indians of North and South America are descended from the Israelites.
Or are they? Not according to DNA research that indicates that American Indians are descended not from any people in the Middle East but from Polynesians. A one-time Mormon bishop (equivalent roughly to a parish priest), Simon G. Southerton, wrote a 2004 book called "Losing a Lost Tribe." An Australian research scientist, Southerton concluded that the Book of Mormon is historically wrong in making the Israelite-Indian connection.
A spokesman for the Mormon church said, "We would hope that church members would not simply buy into the latest DNA arguments being promulgated by those who oppose the church for some reason or other."
This is disingenuous. People such as Southerton are turning against their church precisely because of this new scientific evidence, not just "for some reason or other." It is not likely that they "simply buy into" an argument against their faith but that they have seen an unresolvable conflict.
Some Mormon leaders have tried to effect a tertium quid: Yes, the DNA shows no connection between Indians and Israelites, but that's because the latter colonized only a very small portion of Central America and their DNA was "swallowed up" by Indians who preceded them there. "It would be a virtual certainty that their DNA would be swamped," said Daniel Peterson, a professor at Brigham Young University.
If so, wouldn't this really mean that today's Indians are not, in fact, descended from those Israelite colonists? That ancient DNA would disappear only if its holders failed to reproduce. Peterson's argument doesn't save the traditional Mormon teaching.
How will this scientific revelation affect the Mormon church? There probably will be no mass defection. The leadership will provide a response that will satisfy most of the people in the pews, but surely some Mormons will doubt, and some will leave.
Consider Jose Loayza, who was born in Peru but now is an attorney in Salt Lake City. "We were taught all the blessings of that Hebrew lineage belonged to us and that we were special people. It not only made me feel special, but it gave me a sense of transcendental identity and identity with God. I've gone through stages. Absolute denial. Utter amazement and surprise. Anger and bitterness." This does not sound like a man for whom Mormonism will be a long-term home.
Other Mormons will go through similar stages, and some of them will leave the church of their upbringing. Mormonism will continue to grow, but perhaps its rate of growth will level off. The religion will lose some of its allure, particularly in Latin America, once it becomes known that Indians are just Indians and can't trace themselves to ancient Israel.
A PLUG ON BEHALF OF FRIENDS
Catholics United for the Faith has been around for nearly forty years now and is going through a growth spurt. Having outgrown its offices (an old house, really) in Steubenville, Ohio, it is seeking to move into a new facility just north of town. All that is needed is--you guessed it--money.
Archbishop Raymond Burke of St. Louis has endorsed CUF's new capital campaign. It's a worthy cause. You can learn more about it by visiting:
www.cuf.org/Capital_Campaign/index.asp
p.s., If you have a comment about anything appearing in this E-Letter, please do not hit your Reply button. Instead, go to Catholic Answers' discussion forums at
http://forums.catholic.com
where you may post your comment in the forum dedicated to the E-Letter. You will find a thread devoted to this issue of the E-Letter. Feel free to add your comment in the form of a reply to that thread.
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