*-mormon

Mormon labels and what that says about mormon culture.

There are a lot of labels floating around these days in the LDS/Mormon community, and I wanted to take a quick detour to explain what some of them are for those who, LDS or not, may not be aware of them.

It’s important to note that many of these labels are not official labels used or condoned by the LDS church, with the exception of the designations of Active, Less-Active, and Inactive LDS members and Part-Member families. Leadership typically uses those labels to identify members or member families that may need additional ministering or assistance.

True Believing Mormon (TBM)

This label gets used a lot - particularly on internet discussion forums, and typically by those who are outside of the LDS church or were formally part of the church. A True Believing Mormon is one who completely believes that the LDS church is true. They believe in the doctrines, the historicity of the Church and LDS scriptures, etc. It can sometimes be used neutrally, but it does carry the connotation of being insular and unquestioning.

Anti-Mormon

The term Anti-Mormon can have a variety of applications both inside and outside the LDS church. LDS people generally use the term Anti’s. An Anti is anyone who publicly criticizes or opposes the LDS church and its teachings. There is obviously a huge spectrum in what one may consider criticism or opposition, and so this term can be used fairly loosely. However, there has been quite a lot of toxic and vitriolic opposition to the LDS church in the public sphere, going back to the foundations of the LDS church. This opposition wasn’t just individual; it was institutional - with extermination orders being issued against Mormons by the state government, the US army marching on Utah, and the Edmunds Tucker Act that completely disenfranchised the church. As a result, this label carries a lot of emotional significance and connotations to LDS people. When a person uses the term Anti - it immediately conjures in the LDS mind a demonic, hate-filled, toxic person who will do anything to destroy the church and “steal” people’s testimonies. This can sometimes be associated with the “forces of the devil” that are being used to destroy “God’s true church.”