Only 54% of US Mormons Self Identify as Mormon

[_DarkHelmet]

It was a "survey" people..... Hardly 100% accurate. It's not that they interviewed every single Mormon or inactive Mormon and asked them what they were. They didn't.

Although, to be fair, it's likely close to accurate. The Church has always known that 30-40% of the Church is inactive or have left the Church.
It's always been that way.... Nothing new here. Move on.

If the church has always known that 30-40% are inactive or have left, this survey will shock them. I am surprised that only 3.2 million americans identify themselves as Mormon. That is a 46% inactive rate in the US alone. The inactive rate outside the US is much, much higher, and they account for more than half the members on the books. That could put the total inactive rate in the 60% range, double what they have "always known."

[_mms]

Wondering if ldsfaqs might come back and answer my question.

[_ldsfaqs]

It was a "survey" people..... Hardly 100% accurate. It's not that they interviewed every single Mormon or inactive Mormon and asked them what they were. They didn't.

Although, to be fair, it's likely close to accurate. The Church has always known that 30-40% of the Church is inactive or have left the Church.
It's always been that way.... Nothing new here. Move on.

It was accurate to .5% margin of error. That's pretty accurate. Take a statistics course.

Unlike you, I've actually done a professional study and used statistics to do it..... Just "saying" something is whatever percentage of error doesn't mean it actually is. It all depends on how the study is done, populations used, etc.

I'm telling you what the actual FACTS are..... You do know that the Church does actually know how many of it's members are actually active? There's that little guy in Sacrament meeting that goes around counting.

[_Melchett]

Time to count ze faithful.....



One! Ha ha ha ha ha! Two! Ha ha ha ha ha!........

[_ldsfaqs]

So, ldsfaqs, if "[t]he Church has always known that 30-40% of the Church is inactive or have left the Church," was it misleading for the Church to use this title for an official church press release ahead of the April 2005 LDS General Conference: "Over 12 Million Worldwide United in a Single Purpose."

It may have been slightly misleading and inacurrate, but certainly not "intentionally" so.
People that go around making slogans for the Church don't think like anti-mormons or apologists.
They simply look at the official stats and then make the slogan.
Those are after all the official numbers, whatever else is involved is really irrelevant.

Or could one be both "inactive or have left the Church" and still be "united in a single purpose"?

Most who are inactive haven't actually left the Church either intellectually or literally.

If it was misleading, why do you think the Church chose to mislead this way?

Choice had nothing to do with the matter. The layman doesn't deal with "nuances".
Further, actual activity rate is not "public knowledge". Thus, who-ever made the stat was simply going by the numbers that any religion or group goes by publically.

What you ignore in order to justify your hate of the Church is that EVERY GROUP on the PLANET publicizes their official membership numbers when-ever they say or do anything. It's not about lying, it's simply their numbers. There is nothing sinister going on with the Church, move on and get a life. Don't want to believe, fine, otherwise, move on. We are not sinister evil monsters trying to destroy and deceive the world. So, get a life will you?

[_Melchett]

What you ignore in order to justify your hate of the Church is that EVERY GROUP on the PLANET publicizes their official membership numbers when-ever they say or do anything. It's not about lying, it's simply their numbers. There is nothing sinister going on with the Church, move on and get a life. Don't want to believe, fine, otherwise, move on. We are not sinister evil monsters trying to destroy and deceive the world. So, get a life will you?

Please, let us have full and frank disclosure of the LDS financial records.

[_Darth J]

So, ldsfaqs, if "[t]he Church has always known that 30-40% of the Church is inactive or have left the Church," was it misleading for the Church to use this title for an official church press release ahead of the April 2005 LDS General Conference: "Over 12 Million Worldwide United in a Single Purpose."

It may have been slightly misleading and inacurrate, but certainly not "intentionally" so.

So it was accidentally misleading, even though according to you the Church overstated how many were "united in a single purpose" by 30-40%, and the Church has actual knowledge of how many of its members are active (by your own statement).

You think that 30-40% is "slight"? Between 3.6 million and 4.8 million people (by your figures) is "slight"?

People that go around making slogans for the Church don't think like anti-mormons or apologists.
They simply look at the official stats and then make the slogan.
Those are after all the official numbers, whatever else is involved is really irrelevant.

Oh, okay. I am completely inactive and do not believe in the truth claims of the LDS Church. However, my name is still on the records and I am still, on paper, a member of the Church. Therefore, there is nothing misleading in saying that you and I are united in a single purpose.

Or could one be both "inactive or have left the Church" and still be "united in a single purpose"?

Most who are inactive haven't actually left the Church either intellectually or literally.

As far as "literally" left by taking their names off the records, you are merely making a circular statement. By definition, a person who has not "literally" left the Church but does not attend is an inactive member. That tautology says nothing about whether they self-identify as Mormon, and therefore whether the number of members claimed by the Church has any particular relationship to reality.

But as far as "most" inactive members not "intellectually" leaving the Church, you have no way of knowing that.

If it was misleading, why do you think the Church chose to mislead this way?

Choice had nothing to do with the matter.

Someone forced a church employee at gunpoint to claim in 2005 that there were 12 million "united in a single purpose"? A computer program with no free will simply spat out the "12 million united in a single purpose"? How did this statement come to be made with no sentient entity making a choice?

The layman doesn't deal with "nuances".

A layman in what field?

Further, actual activity rate is not "public knowledge". Thus, who-ever made the stat was simply going by the numbers that any religion or group goes by publically.

What probably happened is that some non-LDS outsider layman, who did not have the actual knowledge possessed by the Church as to its activity rates, and thus does not understand nuances, came up with this statement and imposed it upon the Church (since choice was not involved).

What you ignore in order to justify your hate of the Church is that EVERY GROUP on the PLANET publicizes their official membership numbers when-ever they say or do anything. It's not about lying, it's simply their numbers. There is nothing sinister going on with the Church, move on and get a life. Don't want to believe, fine, otherwise, move on. We are not sinister evil monsters trying to destroy and deceive the world. So, get a life will you?

The difference is that other religious groups report membership numbers that are consistent with census data and other self-identification surveys.

Still, I don't know why you are so angry at the rest of your bretheren and sisters (sisteren?) who no longer believe but still are technically members of the Church. We are all united in a single purpose!

[_Jason Bourne]

It was a "survey" people..... Hardly 100% accurate. It's not that they interviewed every single Mormon or inactive Mormon and asked them what they were. They didn't.

Although, to be fair, it's likely close to accurate. The Church has always known that 30-40% of the Church is inactive or have left the Church.
It's always been that way.... Nothing new here. Move on.

Activity rate world wide is likely about 30% or so. In US and Canada more like 40% to maybe 50%. The church has about 1 million members that they cannot locate and are thus in the lost member file. Yet the church continues to say that the membership is 14 million strong. Why? At least don't report the lost files. These people clearly are not concerned about being identified as Mormons. Personally I think if someone has not attended for five years their names should be take off the roles automatically. A letter could be sent out to the member stating such and if they do not respond then take their names off. If they later want to come back simply reinstate their membership.

[_Wisdom Seeker]

To make the new marketing program look like a real success they need to include in the Spring report all baptisms for dead as new convert baptisms.

[_Aristotle Smith]

What you ignore in order to justify your hate of the Church is that EVERY GROUP on the PLANET publicizes their official membership numbers when-ever they say or do anything. It's not about lying, it's simply their numbers. There is nothing sinister going on with the Church, move on and get a life. Don't want to believe, fine, otherwise, move on. We are not sinister evil monsters trying to destroy and deceive the world. So, get a life will you?

Hey super-statistician, could you please give a reason why the Seventh Day Adventists and the Jehovah's Witnesses manage to produce numbers that highly correlate with what self-reporting in censuses and surveys also produce? And once you've done that, could you please explain why the LDS church cannot perform such feats of statistical wizardry? I pick them because their age, origins, and demographics are most comparable to the LDS church.