Religion in Ohio
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| Mosaics adorn the front of the Center for Pastoral Leadership in Wickliffe, where Borromeo Seminary is located. |
Ohio has a broad range of religions within its borders, and Lake County fits right in. The first Christian missionary activity in the Ohio territory occurred as early as 1623, when a Jesuit missionary came to preach to the Hurons and other American Indian tribes in the Great Lakes area. Missionaries of different faiths later followed him, founding churches for the Delaware tribe at Schoenbrunn in 1772 and Gnadenhutten in 1782. Methodist James Finley founded a church for the Wyandot tribe in 1821.
The first Jewish synagogue in what had been the Northwest Territory was built in Cincinnati in 1836. Ohio has the largest population of Amish and Mennonites in the world. Both groups are offshoots of the Swiss Brethren or Anabaptists.
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| Just down the street from the Catholic seminary is Telshe Yeshiva Rabbinical College. Rabbi Ahron Y. Kushner teaches there as well as making sure the kitchen is kosher. |
The Mormon Church in Kirtland
Late in 1830, followers of Joseph Smith Jr. began to congregate in Kirtland to build a church and community based on Smith's spiritual revelations. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints draws from its book of scripture, the Book of Mormon. First printed in 1830, it took its name from one of the ancient prophets whose writings they believe it contains.
While in Ohio, membership increased significantly, and many of the church's founding doctrines were developed in Kirtland. The Kirtland Temple was dedicated in 1836. In 1837, the church started its first international mission, to London, England. Smith's group encountered financial difficulties and tension with nonmembers in the community due in part to its polygamist practices. As a result, they moved to Nauvoo, Ill., in 1839. Joseph Smith was killed by an angry mob there in 1844.
After his death, his followers split into several factions. The largest group followed Brigham Young to the Salt Lake Valley in Utah. Another group formed the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 1860 under Joseph Smith III, son of founder Joseph Smith Jr. The group, headquartered in Independence, Missouri, changed its name in 2000 to the Community of Christ. |
