Church of Jesus Christ (Cutlerite)

39°05′02″N 94°25′36″W / 39.083825°N 94.426595°W / 39.083825; -94.426595 (Church of Jesus Christ (Cutlerite))

Church of Jesus Christ (Cutlerite)
Cutlerite church headquarters in Independence, Missouri
ClassificationRestorationist
OrientationLatter Day Saints
PolityChurch conference
ModeratorVernon Whiting (2013)
RegionUnited States
FounderAlpheus Cutler
OriginSeptember 19, 1853 (date of church reorganization)[1]
Separated fromNone, claims to be the sole legitimate continuation of the Church of Christ (Latter Day Saints)
SeparationsTrue Church of Jesus Christ (Cutlerite)
Restored Church of Jesus Christ
Congregations1[2]
MembersApproximately 12 (2010)[3]

The Church of Jesus Christ (Cutlerite) is a denomination of the Latter Day Saint movement headquartered in Independence, Missouri, United States. The church derives its epithet from its founder, Alpheus Cutler,[4] a member of the Nauvoo High Council and of Joseph Smith's Council of Fifty. Cutler justified his establishment of an independent church organization by asserting that God had "rejected" Smith's organization—but not his priesthood—following Smith's death, but that Smith had named Cutler to a singular "Quorum of Seven" in anticipation of this event, with a unique prerogative to reorganize the church that no one beyond this group possessed. Hence, Cutler's organization claims to be the only legitimate Latter Day Saint church in the world today. Currently, it has only one branch, located in Independence. The Cutlerite church retains an endowment ceremony believed to date to the Nauvoo period, practices the United Order of Enoch, and accepts baptism for the dead, but not eternal marriage or polygamy.

  1. ^ Fletcher, Rupert J. and Daisy Whiting, Alpheus Cutler and the Church of Jesus Christ. Church of Jesus Christ, 1974, pg. 47.
  2. ^ Adherents.com Retrieved August 14, 2009
  3. ^ Smith, Jason (2010). "Divergent Churches". In Reeve, W. Paul; Parshall, Ardis E. (eds.). Mormonism: A Historical Encyclopedia. ABC-CLIO. p. 236. ISBN 978-1-59884-107-7.
  4. ^ Religious Tolerance "Terms used in the LDS Restorationist movement".