Telling the world we no longer wish to go by “Mormons,” “Mormonism,” or the “Mormon Church,” names that were never accurate in the first place and instead asserting our real name, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is not, as President Russell M. Nelson pointed out, a publicity stunt. This course correction is needed for the Church to go forward without this unnecessary stumbling block.

However, in addition to our church having a real name and respectfully asking others to refer to us by it is just one step out of obscurity – because that is where the Restoration has been for a very long time. From the humble beginnings in Palmyra to the public scrutiny in Nauvoo and eventual expulsion from the U.S. into Utah Territory, from our relative growth and expansion across the world to the candidacy of Republican Mitt Romney, the Church now more than ever has the opportunity to present itself for what it is, a continuation of the Church established by Christ and the message of unity that can heal our world.

Many still stumble with the restored church as it has to do with the primary questions as it relates to the larger Christian world, questions that keep many on the outside from giving the Church a fair shake. Still others struggle with the secondary questions of church history and internal issues that drive members away from the inside. My book Day of Defense can help the reader sharpen their knowledge on the primary questions. This website and a second book that is in progress can hope to sharpen the questions and criticisms that arise from the secondary questions.

Scott Thormaehlen received his Master’s in History in 2016 and taught U.S. History in the Lone Star College system in Houston, Texas and for Alvin Community College. His writings have appeared in Accuracy in Academia, the Journal of Multidisciplinary Studies at Sam Houston State University, LDS Living, Meridian Magazine, and East Texas History – a project by Sam Houston State University.