| Remnant movement fellowships | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Abbreviation | Fotr |
| Type | Latter Day Saint movement |
| Classification | Neo-LDS fundamentalist[1] (in schism with LDS Church) Neo-Reorganized Latter Day Saint (rejectsBrigham Young'sapostolic succession) |
| Orientation | Supra-denominational Christian[2] andRestorationist |
| Scripture | • Old Covenants (drawn fromJoseph Smith’s New Translation of the Holy Bible) • New Covenants (drawn from Joseph Smith’s New Translation of the Holy Bible &Book of Mormon) • Teachings and Commandments (original revelations to Joseph Smith,Lectures on Faith, several of Smith's letters, expandedJoseph Smith History, & modern material approved by movement's common consent) • "The Covenant of Christ" (a modern English version of the Book of Mormon published and accepted as scripture in 2024) |
| Theology | NontrinitarianLatter Day Saint movement as found inJoseph Smith's original teachings and revelations throughDenver Snuffer Jr. |
| Governance | By common consent ("And all things shall be done by common consent in the church, by much prayer and faith, for all things you shall receive by faith. Amen."—D&C 26:2) |
| Structure | Ad hoc committees |
| Region | Worldwide (mostly the U.S.) |
| Headquarters | Unknown |
| Founder | Spontaneous, post-LDSGospel dispensation (De facto:Denver Snuffer Jr.) |
| Origin | 2013 (unofficially)2017 (officially) |
| Separated from | The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints |
| Number of followers | 5,000-10,000 as of September, 2017[1] |
| Other names | • fellowships movement • Covenant of Christ movement • Restoration movement • "Snufferites" (Participants may consider this term spurious.) |
| Official website | Born of Water ChristianReformation500Years.info RecordersClearinghouse.com: Recorder's messageScriptures.info |
| Not to be confused with fellow Latter Day Saints religious groupRemnant Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, founded in 2000 inIndependence, Missouri or with the Latter Day Saint religious unity movement, the Church of Jesus Christ in Christian Fellowship,[3] or with Protestant congregation Remnant Fellowship ofBrentwood, Tennessee, founded in 1999 byGwen Shamblin[4] | |
"And again the Lord called others, and said unto them likewise; and he gave unto them power to baptize. And he said unto them: On this wise shall ye baptize; and there shall be no disputations among you."
———"And whoso shall declare more or less than this, and establish it for my doctrine, the same cometh of evil, and is not built upon my rock; but he buildeth upon a sandy foundation, and the gates of hell stand open to receive such when the floods come and the winds beat upon them."
—3 Nephi 11:22 & 40
"I will establish my church among them, and they shall come in unto the covenant and be numbered among this the remnant of Jacob[...]and also as many of the house of Israel as shall come, that they may build[...]the New Jerusalem."—3 Nephi 21:22, 23
"Joseph told us to expect great events among the gentiles, Native Americans and remnant of Jewish people before Christ’s victorious return. He did not live to see this happen. Upon his death, he left a great deal for others to complete. Assuming the work Joseph began is to be finished, it will not happen by heaven laboring independent of us. We have work to do." — Denver Snuffer, 2018[5]
Remnant movement fellowships are a loosely organized branch of theLatter Day Saint movement formed by individuals who accept allegeddivine revelations received byDenver Snuffer Jr., an attorneyexcommunicated fromThe Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) in 2013. Participants in the movement generally feel called to personal and social renewal in preparation for Christ's eventualsecond coming. According to movement beliefs, participants anticipate a coming time when remnants remain within the fully restored covenant with Jesus Christ,[6][7] an allusion to a belief that "TheBible,Book of Mormon, and modern revelation through theProphet Joseph Smith, prophesy that the gospel ofJesus Christ would shift from theGentile stewards of the gospel back to Israel in the last days."[8] The movement places a renewed focus on individual communion with God, gifts of the spirit, tangible expressions of faith, and the eventual establishment ofZion.
Participants areMormon dissidents andsupra-denominational Christians. Its individual fellowships are autonomous and lack affiliation with or oversight from the LDS Church.
Snuffer released a series of books and online articles explaining his beliefs and interpretations of scripture. He had said his writings were intended to promote loyalty to the LDS Church[9][10] and that he would not be instrumental in starting a new religion.[11] Snuffer's writings provoked a response from LDS Church leaders who eventually excommunicated him for what they described as directly challenging key doctrines. In 2014, Snuffer said he received a revelation informing him that "the Lord terminated the priesthood authority" of LDS Church leadership involved in his excommunication,[12] such as theFirst Presidency. Starting in 2013, inspired by Snuffer's teachings, grass-roots fellowships began to form. On February 17–19, 2017, a proposed set of governing principles was presented to these fellowships by Jeff Savage.[13] As of 2017, the movement included approximately 5,000 adherents worldwide.[14][15] As of 2024, at least fifty fellowships are affiliated with the movement, spanning throughout the United States, United Kingdom, Europe, Africa, and Japan.[16][17]
Adherents began gathering in conferences beginning in 2016.[18] At the 2017 conference, Snuffer-inspired teachings were canonized asholy scripture.[19] This canon consists of a reworking of scripture from the mainstream LDS Church, such as the Book of Mormon, as well as Snuffer's expanded translation of theBook of John and several of Snuffer's revelations.[19] The movement de-emphasizes hierarchy and organization, with some fellowships (for example, the movement's Minnesota fellowship) asserting they possess no leadership.[20] At the October 2024 conference, adherents voted to accept a modern English version of the Book of Mormon, titled The Covenant of Christ, as scripture.[21]
The fellowships draw largely from members and former members of the LDS Church, leading LDS Church authorities to identify Snuffer and his teachings as a vehicle for leading people out of that church. In 2017, the websiteMormonLeaks published aPowerPoint presentation shown in 2015 to the LDSQuorum of the Twelve Apostles, in which Snuffer was identified as one of 17 "Issues and Ideas Leading People Away" from mainstreamLDS doctrine.[22]
The general conferences organized by movement fellowships are listed below.[23]
According to Snuffer's interpretation of the scriptures, the presentGospel dispensation, as restored through Joseph Smith, has ended,[28] and a new Gospel dispensation has begun. Adherents believeall splinter groups that formed following the death of Smith had the opportunity to re-enter the covenant with God, but they all failed to do so and instead entered a state of final apostasy, with theReorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (RLDS Church), now known as the Community of Christ (CoC), and LDS Church being the last two to do so.
As foretold in scriptures, remnants, especially theindigenous peoples of the Americas, will adopt Christ's covenant in these Last Days. (The indigenous remnants are likely mixed-blooded; in LDS belief, such individuals are considered among theHouse of Israel). The present period is a time of the Lord calling out those to transition between the dispensation that resulted in the establishment of the Church of Christ through Smith and this next, foretold dispensation of Israel.[29][30][31][32]
With regard to the 1844 succession crisis within Mormonism after the murder of Smith, the Snuffer movement holds beliefs similar to those formerly maintained by the CoC, namely thatBrigham Young, who ultimately took leadership of the largest portion of Smith's followers, was in apostasy from Smith's teachings. The movement rejects Young's assertions to have possessed authority to fill the position held by Smith.[33] The movement agrees with the current teachings of the LDS Church in rejecting Young's theological innovations such as his attempt to formulate hisAdam God theory.[34] The movement goes further and rejects any doctrinal innovations by Young.
Most in the movement agree with the CoC's formerly maintained belief that Smith did not practiceplural marriage, believing instead that Young promulgated this innovation.[35][36]
Unlike either the LDS Church or CoC, movement believers hold that spiritual authority to perform certaingospel ordinances as restored through Smith passed from the earth at Smith's death but will be restored upon the building of a newtemple.
The fellowships believe Smith taught that the Last Days covenant people should forswear allegiance to any institution but to enact the same to each individual's own covenants and toSmith's open canon of scripture.[clarification needed] (Compare these beliefs with some of the aspects ofSola Scriptura, a doctrinal foundation ofProtestantism. In this respect, movement beliefs perhaps occupy some ground between the institutional authoritarianism of the LDS Church and individual conscience-privilegingNonconformist Protestantism.)
"I believe that the many revelations in the D&C identifying Joseph as the spokesman for God means exactly that: Joseph was and IS the spokesman God sent. Joseph's words need to be heeded as if they came from God directly to us. No one has the right to change or ignore them. No one (and I mean NO ONE) has the right to claim they are Joseph's equal. There are no "keys" or "key holders" who can alter Joseph's teachings except at their peril. When they ignore or contradict Joseph's revelations, and teach others that they can ignore the message and warnings given by that prophet who was called by God to begin this dispensation, they damn themselves and any who listen to them."—Denver Snuffer, September 25, 2013[37]
The movement is supra-denominational. It teaches belief in Christ, initialbaptism orre-baptism by authorized movement brethren[38] in living water (i.e., running water),receiving of the Holy Ghost, and acceptance of the movement's scriptural canon as prerequisites for participation.[30] Beyond these basics, the beliefs among participants vary.[16]
Movement adherents believe in the doctrine taught by Smith in 1839 of theSecond Comforter.[39]
"After a person has faith in Christ, repents of his sins, and is baptized for the remission of his sins and receives the Holy Ghost (by the laying on of hands), which is the first Comforter, then let him continue to humble himself before God, hungering and thirsting after righteousness, and living by every word of God, and the Lord will soon say unto him, Son, thou shalt be exalted. When the Lord has thoroughly proved him, and finds that the man is determined to serve Him at all hazards, then the man will find his calling and his election made sure, then it will be his privilege to receive the other Comforter, which the Lord hath promised the Saints, as is recorded in the testimony of St. John, in the 14th chapter, from the 12th to the 27th verses….
"Now what is this other Comforter? It is no more nor less than the Lord Jesus Christ Himself; …when any man obtains this last Comforter, he will have the personage of Jesus Christ to attend him, or appear unto him from time to time, and even He will manifest the Father unto him, and they will take up their abode with him, and the visions of the heavens will be opened unto him, and the Lord will teach him face to face, and he may have a perfect knowledge of the mysteries of the Kingdom of God; and this is the state and place the ancient Saints arrived at when they had such glorious visions-Isaiah, Ezekiel, John upon the Isle of Patmos, St. Paul in the three heavens, and all the Saints who held communion with the general assembly and Church of the First Born [TPJS, pp. 150-51].
"The Lord has counseled his Saints to "seek his face" (D&C 101:37-38). No sinful person can endure his presence, and hence will not obtain the blessing (D&C 67:10-13; JST Ex. 33:11, 20). In God's wisdom, some faithful individuals are blessed with the Second Comforter while remaining in mortality."
[See also Calling and Election; Jesus Christ: Latter-Day Appearances of Jesus Christ.]
—Daniel H. Ludlow (1992)."Jesus Christ, Second Comforter".Encyclopedia of Mormonism. New York:Macmillan. p. 742.
Fellowships include participants who are current or former members of the LDS Church, CoC (or other groups within the"Reorganized" tradition founded by Smith's son,Joseph Smith III),fundamentalist Mormon denominations,Catholic Church, and Protestant denominations. Fellowship participants need not leave their former faith tradition, whether this be Christian or another faith.[40][41]
Fellowships meet in homes or outdoors. The requirement for baptism in living waters entails meetings along streams. According to some in the movement, the divine command through Smith to buildthe temple in Nauvoo, Illinois for"endowment" rites has not been fulfilled. Movement believers are consecrating funds toward building a temple of Zion,[42][43] which they believe the Lord eventually will command for a Zion people to build.[29]
Like the LDS Church, the movement believes there isa Heavenly Father and a Heavenly Mother, and Snuffer has stated that he believes the Heavenly Mother came to Earth in the form ofMary to birth Jesus of Nazareth.[44]
Some participants in the movement keep the annual Passover in preparation for the temple practice.[45]
(Joseph Smith's New Translation of the Old Testament)
(Joseph Smith's New Translation of the New Testament &Joseph Smith's self-revised version of the Book of Mormon)
In 2013, a critical review by Gregory L. Smith of Snuffer'sPassing the Heavenly Gift was published inInterpreter: A Journal of Mormon Scripture. Smith responds to Snuffer's belief that "the Latter-day Saint church was predicted to fail, and in all likelihood has failed to secure the fullness of the priesthood" by Smith's contention that the book contains various "false statements and conclusions, contains errors, and makes mistakes in history."[49]
In 2013, Snuffer was informed by his Sandy Utah CrescentStake president in a letter that the thesis ofPassing the Heavenly Gift, soon to be published, was "in direct conflict with LDS Church doctrine" and unless Snuffer would withdraw it from publication he could be subject tochurch discipline for "apostasy." After the book's publication, Snuffer was excommunicated from the LDS Church.[50][51]
In 2015, "A Response to Denver Snuffer’s Essay on Plural Marriage, Adoption, and the Supposed Falling Away of the Church," byBrian C. Hales was published inInterpreter. Hales says that Snuffer's status as revelator is not unique, citing such Latter Day Saint movement revelators over the years asLorin C. Woolley, John T. Clark, Maurice Glendening, Leroy Wilson,Joseph W. Musser,Elden Kingston,Ben LeBaron, Gerald Peterson,James D. Harmston,Brian David Mitchell,Robert C. Crossfield, andAddam Swapp, who, akin to Snuffer, believe the mainstream LDS Church is in apostasy.[52][53][54]
A June 2015 three-stakefireside (which some colloquially term the "Boise (Idaho) Rescue") featured LDS devotional addresses byLDS Church ApostleDallin H. Oaks andChurch HistorianRichard E. Turley Jr. "We sometimes hear is that the church is no longer the church that was restored to the earth by the prophet Joseph," Turley said. "Here’s another claim: the church is focused on following the brethren instead of seeking Christ," said Oaks. "When you start toward apostasy, you are on the wrong side. [...] Stand fast with the leadership of the church." Snuffer said toKUTV news that soon before the fireside event, Remnant movement re-baptisms of LDS Church members had been performed in the area.[55]
An internal 2015 PowerPoint chart prepared for LDS Church Apostles (and later provided to news outlets by the MormonLeaks organization) lists Snuffer, theOrdain Women advocacy movement, andnew media journalist social commentatorJohn Dehlin among entities leading some LDS Church members away from fellowship with the denomination.[25]
According to religion reporterPeggy Fletcher Stack, when LDS Church ApostleM. Russell Ballard spoke at the LDS Church's October 2017General Conference, warning LDS Church faithful not to be deceived by non-LDS Church priesthood holders or "organizations, groups or individuals [...claiming] secret answers to doctrinal questions", his characterizations fit "the nascent Remnant movement".[56]
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