Church of Christ (Hancock)
Encyclopedia
The Church of Christ, also known as the Basement Church, the Church of Christ (Lukeite) and the Church of Christ (Bible and Book of Book of Mormon Teaching) was a sect of the Latter Day Saint movement
founded in Independence, Missouri
in 1946 by Pauline Hancock
. This church, which became defunct in 1984, bears the distinction of being the first Latter Day Saint sect to be founded by a woman. Among its members were Jerald and Sandra Tanner, who later became well-known opponents of the Latter Day Saint movement with their "Utah Lighthouse Ministry".
), whose father had been a minister of that denomination in Salt Lake City, Utah
. During the Supreme Directional Control
controversy of the 1920s, she opposed President Frederick M. Smith's attempt to take "supreme directional control" over the RLDS church; she later transferred her membership to the Church of Christ (Temple Lot)
. In 1935, following the excommunication of her friend Apostle Samuel Wood of the Temple Lot church (who was expelled for believing in a modalistic view of the Godhead, a view Hancock supported), Hancock resigned from that organization.
being crucified that led her to believe she had become "a new creature". Hancock's organization rejected the Doctrine and Covenants
of their parent church, as well as the Pearl of Great Price
used by the LDS Church, retaining only the King James Bible and the Book of Mormon
. She adopted a modalistic view of God
, insisting that the Father, Son and Holy Spirit were merely manifestation of the same, one God. The organization bought property in Independence and built a submerged sanctuary that became locally known as the "basement church" because most of it was underground.
Latter Day Saint movement
The Latter Day Saint movement is a group of independent churches tracing their origin to a Christian primitivist movement founded by Joseph Smith, Jr. in the late 1820s. Collectively, these churches have over 14 million members...
founded in Independence, Missouri
Independence, Missouri
Independence is the fourth largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri, and is contained within the counties of Jackson and Clay. It is part of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area...
in 1946 by Pauline Hancock
Pauline Hancock
Pauline Bailey Hancock was the founder of the Church of Christ in Independence, Missouri in 1946, and was the first woman to found and lead a denomination in the Latter Day Saint movement...
. This church, which became defunct in 1984, bears the distinction of being the first Latter Day Saint sect to be founded by a woman. Among its members were Jerald and Sandra Tanner, who later became well-known opponents of the Latter Day Saint movement with their "Utah Lighthouse Ministry".
Pauline Hancock
Pauline Hancock was a member of the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (now called the Community of ChristCommunity of Christ
The Community of Christ, known from 1872 to 2001 as the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints , is an American-based international Christian church established in April 1830 that claims as its mission "to proclaim Jesus Christ and promote communities of joy, hope, love, and peace"...
), whose father had been a minister of that denomination in Salt Lake City, Utah
Salt Lake City, Utah
Salt Lake City is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. The name of the city is often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC. With a population of 186,440 as of the 2010 Census, the city lies in the Salt Lake City metropolitan area, which has a total population of 1,124,197...
. During the Supreme Directional Control
Supreme Directional Control
The Supreme directional control controversy refers to a term commonly used within portions of the Latter Day Saint movement to describe a dispute between the primary leadership quorums of the Community of Christ , the movement's second largest denomination, that began in the 1920s and had...
controversy of the 1920s, she opposed President Frederick M. Smith's attempt to take "supreme directional control" over the RLDS church; she later transferred her membership to the Church of Christ (Temple Lot)
Church of Christ (Temple Lot)
The Church of Christ is a denomination of the Latter Day Saint movement headquartered in Independence, Missouri on what is known as the Temple Lot. Members of the church have been known colloquially as "Hedrickites", after Granville Hedrick, who was ordained as the church's first leader in July 1863...
. In 1935, following the excommunication of her friend Apostle Samuel Wood of the Temple Lot church (who was expelled for believing in a modalistic view of the Godhead, a view Hancock supported), Hancock resigned from that organization.
Founding a church
Hancock later claimed to have had a vision in which God told her to "go and teach others." She founded her own organization to propagate her teachings and visions, which included one of JesusJesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
being crucified that led her to believe she had become "a new creature". Hancock's organization rejected the Doctrine and Covenants
Doctrine and Covenants
The Doctrine and Covenants is a part of the open scriptural canon of several denominations of the Latter Day Saint movement...
of their parent church, as well as the Pearl of Great Price
Pearl of Great Price (Mormonism)
The Pearl of Great Price is part of the standard works of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and some other Latter Day Saint denominations....
used by the LDS Church, retaining only the King James Bible and the Book of Mormon
Book of Mormon
The Book of Mormon is a sacred text of the Latter Day Saint movement that adherents believe contains writings of ancient prophets who lived on the American continent from approximately 2600 BC to AD 421. It was first published in March 1830 by Joseph Smith, Jr...
. She adopted a modalistic view of God
God
God is the English name given to a singular being in theistic and deistic religions who is either the sole deity in monotheism, or a single deity in polytheism....
, insisting that the Father, Son and Holy Spirit were merely manifestation of the same, one God. The organization bought property in Independence and built a submerged sanctuary that became locally known as the "basement church" because most of it was underground.
Arrival of the Tanners and demise
In later years, after Jerald and Sandra Tanner joined her organization, Hancock's church established a second branch in Salt Lake City, Utah. Though Hancock remained a devoted believer in the Book of Mormon to the end of her life, her church began increasingly to question that book following her death, and ultimately made a decision to reject it in 1973. The church continued to function for a time strictly as a Protestant denomination, but later chose to dissolve itself in 1984, after which its members mostly joined with various Evangelical Protestant churches. Hancock's "basement church" was used by a Protestant church for a time, but was later sold to a local Restoration Branch, which constructed an above-ground sanctuary atop the old structure.See also
- Factional breakdown: Followers of Granville Hedrick