The Vitality of "Mormonism": An AddressTalmage, James E. (James Edward)
Religion
The Vitality of "Mormonism": An Address
Talmage, James E. (James Edward)
Latter Day Saint churches; Latter Day Saints
(F) A community whose vital statistics tell of prolonged life, high
birth and low death rates, high marriage rate, few divorces, and
general material prosperity. I present to you a few comparisons of
data obtained from the Presiding Bishopric of the Church, showing the
condition of Latter-day Saints in the organized stakes of Zion, for
the six-year period ending with the year 1915, as contrasted with the
latest reports for such States of the Union as maintain statistical
bureaus and are classed in official reports as the registration area.
Among the Latter-day Saints resident in the Stakes. In the country at
large so far as reported
Birth rate per 1,000................39.........................25
Death rate per 1,000............... 8.7........................14.1
Marriage rate per 1,000.............16.........................13
Divorces per 10,000..................4.........................10
Average age at death.................38........................32
The statistics of infant mortality are strikingly significant. Deaths
from all causes among children under one year of age averaged for
the three years ending with 1915 fewer than 59 per thousand births
in "Mormon" families, while the latest report from the United States
registration area shows 249 deaths per thousand. Deaths of children
under five years of age, including those who die under one year,
separately reported, average 82 per thousand births among "Mormons" and
349 for the country at large.
A letter from the Presiding Bishopric to the author, accompanying the
statistical report from which the foregoing items have been culled,
contains the following statement: "A detailed record is kept of all the
causes of death among Latter-day Saints in the intermountain region.
This is carefully supervised by local officers and compiled, and we
think it is even more accurate than are the average statistics of the
best regulated States of the Union. Details concerning any group of
causes of death under the international classification are on file
subject to examination by any who may be interested."
One of the certified causes of death in which "Mormons" lead the
country is old age. In Latter-day Saint communities the families owning
their own homes constitute 75 per cent of the whole number of families.
Think what this means the absence of rent-collector or landlord, whose
shadow too often converts the home into a dreary house.
Yes, "Mormonism" is alive. The world is better for its presence.
It extends to all peoples the invitation to come, to drink at its
fountains, to partake of its fruits, and to rejoice in the countless
blessings offered by the restored Gospel of Jesus Christ our Lord.
ARTICLES OF FAITH
OF THE CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER-DAY SAINTS.
1. We believe in God, the Eternal Father, and in His Son, Jesus Christ,
and in the Holy Ghost.
2. We believe that men will be punished for their own sins, and not for
Adam's transgression.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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