Pacific Islanders and Mormonism

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Three of the major groups of islands in the Pacific Ocean.

Pacific Islanders have a particular place in the history of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). Its first non-English-speaking mission was in the region in 1844,[3] less than twenty years after the church's founding,[1]: 84  and there are currently six temples among the Pacific Island regions of Polynesia, Melanesia, and Micronesia.[1]: 83  In 2015 the Latter-day Saint population in the area was increasing in percentage and absolute numbers.[1]: 83 

Since the 1850s Mormon leaders have identified Polynesian islands with the "islands of the sea" marked in their scriptures for missionary activity, and taught that the people there were descendants of Israelite people from the faith's canonized Book of Mormon.[6] There are numerous notable adherents of the church, and LDS missionary efforts in the region were highlighted in the film The Other Side of Heaven. The church began operating schools in the Pacific Islands in 1850,[2]: 59  and currently owns and runs Brigham Young University–Hawaii (BYU–Hawaii) and the nearby Polynesian Cultural Center.[2]: 61  The Book of Mormon has been translated into numerous local languages of the region since 1855.[2]: 56 

History[edit]

Entrance to the Polynesian Cultural Center.

The Pacific islands were one of the first areas to be evangelized after Europe and North America, notably Hawaii, which fell under American influence and was annexed by the United States in 1898. The LDS Church began sending missionaries to the region in 1844,[3] and 75 years later the Laie Hawaii Temple became the first LDS temple outside the continental United States in 1919. In 1955, the church partially lifted some of its temple and priesthood racial restrictions and began allowing Melanesian women and men access to all temple ceremonies (called ordinances), and Melanesian men and boys to be ordained to the priesthood.[citation needed] The church allowed Pacific Islanders to hold the priesthood, and president of the church David O. McKay stated that native Fijians and Australian Aboriginals could also be ordained to the priesthood.[citation needed] Later that year BYU–Hawaii was established.[citation needed]

Hagoth[edit]

See also: Mormon teachings on skin color § Teachings on Pacific Islanders' skin color, and Mormon folklore

In addition to the LDS Church's stories about people sailing to the New World, there is also the story of Hagoth (/ˈheɪ.ɡɑːθ/[a]), a Nephite ship builder who according to The Book of Mormon lived in or around 55 BCE,[8] and whom some church publications have stated sailed from the Americas to Polynesia.[11][b] Leaders of the LDS Church[18] and LDS scholars have stated that the peoples of the Pacific Islands, including Hawaii, Polynesia, and New Zealand, are descendants of the Nephite Hagoth and his supposed followers,[11][b] and this accounts for their darker skin.[23] Many members of the LDS Church in Polynesia have come to believe that Hagoth is their ancestor.[16][24] Modern genetic testing has disproven any connection between Pacific Islanders and purported peoples of The Book of Mormon.[25]: 358–359 

Folklore[edit]

Main article: Mormon folklore
Tāwhiao

Some of the folklore that exists in the relationship of the LDS Church and Pacific Islanders include:

Temples[edit]

Although there is a sparse population, and great distances to travel, the Oceania region has a number of church temples due to the significant numbers of members in many countries. There are also temples in the Philippines and Australia.

Map Country Image Temple Location Status / Dedication date Floor area
  Operating
  Construction
  Announced
  Closed
Fiji Suva Fiji Temple edit Suva, Fiji June 18, 2000 12,755 sq ft
1,185.0 m2
French Polynesia Papeete Tahiti Temple edit Papeete, Tahiti, French Polynesia October 27, 1983 12,150 sq ft
1,129 m2
Hawaii Kona Hawaii Temple edit Kailua-Kona, Hawaii, U.S. Closed for renovation 10,700 sq ft
990 m2
Laie Hawaii Temple edit Laie, Hawaii, United States November 27, 1919 42,100 sq ft
3,910 m2
New Zealand Hamilton New Zealand Temple edit Hamilton, New Zealand April 20, 1958 45,251 sq ft
4,204.0 m2
Samoa Apia Samoa Temple edit Apia, Samoa August 5, 1983 18,691 sq ft
1,736.5 m2
Apia Samoa Temple (original) edit Apia, Samoa Destroyed 14,560 sq ft
1,353 m2
Tonga Nuku'alofa Tonga Temple edit Nukuʻalofa, Tonga August 9, 1983 21,184 sq ft
1,968.1 m2

Demographics[edit]

Book of Mormon translations[edit]

Main article: List of Book of Mormon translations
The branches of the Oceanic languages Orange is the Admiralties languages and Yapese, yellow-orange is St. Matthias, green is Western Oceanic, violet is Temotu, and the rest are Central-Eastern: dark red Southeast Solomons, blue Southern Oceanic, pink Micronesian, and ocher Fijian-Polynesian.

Portrayals in media[edit]

Notable Pacific Islander Latter-day Saints[edit]

Jonah Lomu

LDS Church members from indigenous groups:

Political Figures[edit]

Artists[edit]

Athletes[edit]

Valerie Adams (right) in 2017, after her investiture as a Dame Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit by the governor-general, Dame Patsy Reddy
Tony Finau

See also[edit]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^ IPA-ified from "hā´gäth"[7]
  2. ^ a b More examples of articles stating the Hagoth link between the peoples of the Pacific Islands and the purported peoples of The Book of Mormon are here:

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d e Morris, Paul (May 1, 2015). "Polynesians and Mormonism". Nova Religio. 18 (4). University of California Press. doi:10.1525/nr.2015.18.4.83. ISSN 1092-6690.
  2. ^ a b c d Britsch, R. Lanier (April 1, 1980). "The Expansion of Mormonism in the South Pacific" (PDF). Dialogue. 13 (1). University of Illinois Press. doi:10.2307/45224817. ISSN 0012-2157.
  3. ^ a b [1]: 85 [2]: 55 
  4. ^ Neilson, Reid L. (2008). "Joseph Smith's Legacy in Latin America and the Pacific" (PDF). Global Mormonism in the 21st Century. Brigham Young University. ISBN 978-0-8425-2696-8 – via Internet Archive.
  5. ^ a b Clement, Russell T. (December 1980). "Polynesian Origins: More Word on the Mormon Perspective" (PDF). Dialogue. 13 (4). University of Illinois Press. doi:10.2307/45224944. ISSN 0012-2157.
  6. ^ [1]: 85–86, 93 [4]: 39–40, 44–46 [5]: 91–97 
  7. ^ "Book of Mormon Pronunciation Guide". LDS Church.
  8. ^ Alma 63:5–8
  9. ^ Douglas, Norman (June 1974). "The Sons of Lehi and the Seed of Cain: Racial Myths in Mormon Scripture and their Relevance to the Pacific Islands". Journal of Religious History. 8 (1): 99. doi:10.1111/j.1467-9809.1974.tb00581.x. ISSN 0022-4227.
  10. ^ Parsons, Robert E. "Hagoth and the Polynesians". In Nyman, Monte S.; Tate, Charles D. Jr. (eds.). The Book of Mormon: Alma, the Testimony of the Word. Religious Studies Center at Brigham Young University.
  11. ^ a b [5]: 91–97 [9][10]
  12. ^ "Latter-day prophets have indicated that Pacific Islanders are descendants of Lehi" (Press release). LDS Church. July 9, 1988.
  13. ^ Book of Mormon Student Manual: Religion 121—122 (PDF). LDS Church. 2009. p. 261.
  14. ^ Book of Mormon Student Study Guide. LDS Church. 2000. p. 143 – via Internet Archive.
  15. ^ Britsch, R. Lanier (June 1981). "Maori Traditions and the Mormon Church". New Era. LDS Church. Since the days of George Q. Cannon in Hawaii (1851–54), the Church leaders had more and more frequently alluded to the idea that the Polynesians were descendants of Lehi, the early Book Of Mormon prophet. Although the relationship between the Polynesian peoples and the alleged "adventurer" Hagoth (see Alma 63:5–8) is not clear—he being a Nephite and the Polynesians appearing to be Lamanites—Church leaders have time and time again referred to the Polynesians as children of Lehi.
  16. ^ a b "A Worldwide Look at the Book of Mormon". Liahona. LDS Church. December 2000.
  17. ^ Perrin, Kathleen C. (June 1994). "Tahitian Pearls". Liahona. LDS Church.
  18. ^ a b Britsch, R. Lanier (June 1981). "Maori Traditions and the Mormon Church". New Era.
  19. ^ Murphy, Thomas W. (1999). "From Racist Stereotype to Ethnic Identity: Instrumental Uses of Mormon Racial Doctrine". Ethnohistory. 46 (3). Durham, North Carolina: Duke University Press: 457,463,472. ISSN 0014-1801. JSTOR 483199 – via JSTOR.
  20. ^ Dart, John (February 10, 1979). "'Curse' Idea Upsets Some Indian Mormons But Many Are Converted Despite Dark-Skin Teachings". The Los Angeles Times. p. 8 – via Newspapers.com.
  21. ^ Stuart, Joseph R. (September 2018). "'A More Powerful Effect upon the Body': Early Mormonism's Theory of Racial Redemption and American Religious Theories of Race". Church History. 87 (3). Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press: 794. doi:10.1017/S0009640718001580. S2CID 165766064. However, Mormons would continue to proselytize among 'black-skinned' Pacific Islanders, East Indians, and South Americans because of their supposed Israelite blood.
  22. ^ Simon, Hemopereki Hōani (April 3, 2023). "A Kaupapa Māori Intervention on Apology for LDS Church's Racism, Zombie Concepts, and Moving Forward". Anthropological Forum. 33 (2). Taylor & Francis. doi:10.1080/00664677.2023.2244184. ISSN 0066-4677.
  23. ^ [19][20][21][22]: 128–129 
  24. ^ Perrin, Kathleen C. (June 1994). "Tahitian Pearls". Liahona. LDS Church.
  25. ^ Simon, Hemopereki Hōani (Fall 2022). "Mormonism and The White Possessive: Moving Critical Indigenous Studies Theory into The Religious Realm" (PDF). Journal for Cultural and Religious Theory. 21 (3): 360.
  26. ^ a b c d Underwood, Grand, ed. (2000). Voyages of Faith: Explorations in Mormon Pacific History. Provo, Utah: Brigham Young University Press. ISBN 0-8425-2480-0.
  27. ^ Cowley, Matthew (September 1950). "Maori Chief Predicts Coming of L.D.S. Missionaries". Improvement Era. Vol. 53, no. 9. pp. 696–698, 754–756 – via Internet Archive.
  28. ^ Cowley, Matthew (1954). Rudd, Glen L. (ed.). Matthew Cowley Speaks: Discourses of Elder Matthew Cowley of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Salt Lake City, Utah: Deseret Book. pp. 200–205.
  29. ^ [27][28][26]: 107–126 [18]
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