The Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (here after referred to as the RLDS Church) was headquartered in the State of Illinois until 1882. To a greater degree than that of any…
To a greater degree than that of any other descendant of the early Mormon movement, the history of the RLDS Church in that early period is the story of a people in search of their personal and corporate identity.The search for identity first occurred in terms of what might be called the “Mormon boundary”—that is, the RLDS Church tended to identify itself in terms of what it was not, by contrasting itself with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (hereafter referred to as the LDS Church).The RLDS Church also sought to define itself by constructing internal boundaries—boundaries of authority, of internal structure and of religious dogma and belief. Finally, identity was sought through the attempt to establish new and workable boundaries to the Kingdom of God on Earth.Meanwhile, in Illinois, Wisconsin, Iowa, Missouri, Pennsylvania, New York, Kentucky, Canada and Ohio, there were hundreds of faithful Saints in tiny, semi-isolated branches of the Church. These Saints were not economically able or ideologically inclined to migrate to the West but they earnestly sought continued outlet and expression for their faith.
