According to the Next Mormons Survey (NMS), a study used in a new book “The Next Mormons: How Millennials are Shaping the LDS Church” by Jana Riess, the median marriage age for Mormons is 22. So to the rest of the country, you aren't a spinster just yet. But the odds are stacked against you if you're a woman.
The average age of first marriage for LDS Church members is approximately 23, said Jason Carroll, assistant professor of marriage, family and human development at Brigham Young University” (Source).
Returned-missionary men had a divorce rate of 9%; returned-missionary women had a divorce rate of 15%. Non-returned-missionary Latter-day Saint men had a divorce rate of 29%, while U.S. men nationally had a rate of 38%.
“Do not date until you are at least 16 years old. Dating before then can lead to immorality, limit the number of other young people you meet, and deprive you of experiences that will help you choose an eternal partner.” For the Strength of Youth, 24. “The Lord has made us attractive one to another for a great purpose.
Mormon men can lawfully have one wife. The practice of polygamy (polygyny or plural marriage), the marriage of more than one woman to the same man, was practiced by Church members from the 1830s to the early 1900s.
Church leaders have stated that outside of marriage "passionate kisses", defined as "more intense and last[ing] longer than a brief kiss", and "prolonged kisses that involve the tongue and excite the passions" are "off limits".
In keeping with the Mormon belief that heaven is full of millions of spirits awaiting an earthly body, birth control and abortion are also forbidden. Since the female body is regarded as the tabernacle of the spirit and the residence of God's spirit children, a high priority is given to prenatal care.
Not anyone can actually marry in the temple, but only men and women who are faithful members of the Church. Marrying a non-member is allowed, however, the marriage ceremony cannot be done in the temple.
Passages from scriptures connected with the Latter Day Saint movement (Mormons) explain that the "law of circumcision is done away" by Christ and thus unnecessary from a religious standpoint.
Aside from counseling against “passionate kissing” before marriage (For the Strength of Youth [2011], 36), Church leaders have not given specific guidelines about when kissing is “permitted” for youth.
However, these were broken down by Evangelical Protestant, Mainline Protestant, and Historically Black Protestant. Of this 74%, the highest number of divorces among this group were the Evangelical Protestants at 28 percent. The Historically Black Protestants had a divorce rate of only 9 percent according to the study."
The standard doctrine of the Church is monogamy, as it always has been, as indicated in the Book of Mormon (Jacob chapter 2): “Wherefore, my brethren, hear me, and hearken to the word of the Lord: For there shall not any man among you have save it be one wife; and concubines he shall have none. …
Today, some fundamentalist Mormon polygamists believe plural marriage is necessary to reach the highest level of heaven. Others practice polygamy simply to follow Smith's teachings. These polygamists tend to believe in big families: women often give birth to 10 or more children.
Life expectancy was 77.3 for LDS males, 70.0 for non-LDS males, 82.2 for LDS females, and 76.4 for non-LDS females.
Many single men (LDS men included) supposedly go by this rule of thumb: “You can date someone who is half your age, plus seven.” As we get older, this allows for more flexibility in age gaps.
Strong religious teachings against premarital intercourse - and the will to wait - do not lead to an abnormal sex life after marriage, according to one study of members of the Mormon Church.
Historically, the church discouraged surgical sterilization, like vasectomies and tubal ligation, and encouraged members to only use these options for serious medical conditions after discussing it with a bishop.
Mormon: The mainstream Mormon church, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, does not have any particular requirements about hair, said Kim Farah, a spokeswoman for the church in Salt Lake City.
Latter-day prophets strongly discourage the piercing of the body except for medical purposes.
Mormons, more properly referred to as members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are counseled by Church leaders not to tattoo their bodies–as their body is considered a temple and a gift from God. (see 1 Corinthians 6:19–20). Church President Russell M.
Mormon marriages are different from most marriages because they are considered eternal. If a husband and wife are sealed together in the temple, they can be together on into the celestial kingdom. However, the church does have a process for annulment and sees divorce as an unfortunately necessary evil.
In 1998, the LDS Church changed the policy and now also allows women to be sealed to more than one man. A woman, however, may not be sealed to more than one man at a time while she is alive. She may only be sealed to subsequent partners after she has died.
Mormons also tend to have more children than other groups. Mormons ages 40-59 have had an average of 3.4 children in their lifetime, well above the comparable figure for all Americans in that age range (2.1) and higher than any other religious group.
The rules prohibit alcohol, tobacco, illegal drugs and coffee and tea. They are based on what church members believe was a revelation from God to founder Joseph Smith in 1833.
For some reason, many people seem to think that Mormons aren't allowed to dance. While I agree that some Mormons can't dance very well, Mormons certainly can dance! In fact, the Mormon Church frequently sponsors dances for young men and women, ages 14-18.