The RLDS Church Is Still Alive

By Richard Price

God has declared that the RLDS Church shall not die, but will continue until Zion is redeemed!

When the Restorationists left their congregations in the institutional part of the RLDS Church in the late l98Os, they moved out and formed branches which were independent of the Hierarchy. Many did so without any thought of rejecting the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. But during the years since then, a tragedy has occurred—some Saints have concluded that the RLDS Church is dead and have completely rejected it. Some of them now declare themselves to be members of an ambiguous “Church of Jesus Christ”—which evidently is a different church.

Did God give them a revelation which stated that He had rejected the RLDS Church and they should become a part of a new one? The Scriptures say, “Surely the Lord God will do nothing, until he revealeth the secret unto his servants the prophets” (Amos 3:7). Has God told a true prophet that He was going to reject the RLDS Church and start another? Where in the Scriptures did the Lord announce that He would do so? There is no such authentic record. Read the divine passage wherein the Lord told us through the Prophet Israel A. Smith in 1950, “The night will come when for many of my people opportunity to assist will have passed” (DC 142:5b). Did the Lord then say, “My Church will collapse and you are to become a part of another church with some other name?” No, there has been no indication that the RLDS Church would be rejected. Instead, the Lord promised that “The hopes of my people and the goals of my church, while not yet fully realized, and at times and to many seemingly distant, are closer to realization than many recognize” (DC 142:5a). When speaking of ”my church” He was definitely referring to the RLDS Church and none other.

The Saints who reject the RLDS Church apparently have not been able to see that the Church did not die when the Community of Christ (C of C) leaders made all their apostate changes, but that the true RLDS Church continues in the hearts and lives of all those who reject the new false doctrines and cling to the Restored Gospel.

The RLDS Church has been divided between the liberalists in the Community of Christ Church and the fundamental Saints in the orthodox part of the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. The orthodox RLDS Saints can be found today in some of the Restoration branches, while others no longer attend regular Church services but worship in small unorganized groups, or in their homes. There are even some orthodox RLDS members still attending C of C branches for a variety of reasons. As an example, one grandmother explained that she was staying because she was her grandchildren’s church school teacher, and she wanted to be sure that they learned the true gospel.

Actually the C of C leaders have done the true Saints a favor by taking a new name for their part of the Church, for it has helped make a definite distinction between the true and false parts. The change of name makes it easier to understand and describe the differences.

God has declared that the RLDS Church shall not die. This is manifested in spiritual experiences received by eleven ministers. In view of these prophetic testimonies, the Saints should be assured that the RLDS Church is still alive and will survive the present crisis and triumph at last. God will yet build Zion through the RLDS Church.

(Vision 42:15)

The revelations which the eleven ministers received are published in a booklet called The RLDS Church Shall Survive. It is available for purchase at the Restoration Bookstore or from our online store.