Posted by:
Brother Of Jerry
(
)
Date: March 22, 2021 05:51PM
LDS Inc had a lot going for it through the 1970s. American Mormons were enthusiastic participants in the Baby Boom that happened after WW II. By the 1970s those Boomers were hitting college, getting married and having lots of kids, creating the Echo Boom.
Wards with lots of young marrieds, huge nurseries, yada yada. On top of that was the counterculture that got rolling in the mid 1960s. That scared lots of parents, and more than a few of them looked to the Mormon Church for safety and stability. Some of us on RFM were probably dragged into Mormonism during that period by our nervous parents.
Also there was a lot of pro-American sentiment around the world because of programs like the Peace Corps, Food for Peace, and earlier, the Marshall Plan and the Berlin Airlift in Europe. LDS missionaries were generally looked on with benevolence.
In 1984, Rodney Stark predicted that Mormonism would be the next world religion, possibly with 280 million members by 2080. See :
http://cup.columbia.edu/book/the-rise-of-mormonism/9780231136341 . In retrospect, he was a bit optimistic, seeing as how the current active membership is likely somewhere in the general neighborhood of 5 to 6 million, if that.
The Echo Boom subsided. Non-Mo parents became less terrified their dear darlings would grow long hair and start using pot. They kind of liked Bruce Springsteen. They didn't need to run to Mormonism to keep their kids out of trouble. Foreign countries, particularly in Europe, were less enamored of all things American.
Meanwhile, Mormonism proceeded to shoot itself in the feet with:
The BoA papyri calling into question JS "translation" (late 1960s)
creation of the three hour block (1974ish)
excommunicating Sonia Johnson and ERA supporters (late 1970s)
Mark Hofmann (early to mid 1980s)
Lafferty Brothers (1984)
Excommunicating/disfellowshipping the September Six (1993)
High profile defections of Martha Nibley Beck and Steve Benson (1994-ish?)
GBH repeated dissembling about Mormon doctrine.
And there's much more, but my brain is starting to hurt. Anyway, there was plenty that happened to cause the BIC side of Mormonism to scratch their heads and have a WTF moment.
And here we are, with Rodney Stark's growth predictions up in smoke. The Q15 were not as specific in their predictions, but they were expecting great things too. Those dreams also up in smoke.
We need new lyrics for "Shall the Youth of Zion Falter?"