Community of Christ, Book of Mormon, & Future (Stassi Cramm 4 of 4)

Community of Christ (CoC) President Stassi Cramm, the church’s first female prophet, addressed pointed questions regarding the role of the Book of Mormon, the pursuit of consensus and faithful disagreement, her prophetic vision for the church, and the ongoing debate over infant baptism.

Don’t miss our other conversations with Stassi: https://gospeltangents.com/people/stassi-cramm/

Gospel Tangents

Book of Mormon: Upholding Scripture

President Cramm emphatically denied the accusation that the Community of Christ is “moving away from the Book of Mormon.”

Key points regarding the Book of Mormon’s status include:

Official Position: The church’s belief statement upholds the Book of Mormon and the Doctrine and Covenants as two additional books of scripture supporting the testimony of the Bible. Cramm noted that eliminating the Book of Mormon from scripture would require rewriting this belief statement, which is not currently on the World Church Leadership Council’s docket.
Non-Creedal Approach: The perception that the Book of Mormon plays a smaller role stems from the CoC being non-creedal; they do not require members to use specific scriptures when preaching or teaching. Therefore, some congregations in the United States may never use the Book of Mormon.
Historicity: The Community of Christ has not taken an absolute stance on the historicity of the Book of Mormon. Cramm suggested this lack of a firm requirement—unlike some who view belief in the Book of Mormon’s specific historical origins as a “test of faith”—is what causes the perception that the church has “pulled away from it.”
Translation Challenges: The CoC’s version of the Book of Mormon (chaptered and versed differently than the LDS version) is not available in French and Spanish. Cramm noted that French might be the dominant language spoken globally in Community of Christ on any given Sunday morning, meaning large segments of the church lack easy access to it. This unavailability was a factor cited in the defeat of a prior resolution to put the Book of Mormon online, primarily due to significant cost associated with translation and formatting.

Cramm emphasized that regardless of historical origins, the Book of Mormon contains important gospel lessons and “long-term stories” demonstrating the continuous cycle of reaching peace only to fall apart due to human tendencies like greed and power.

Navigating Baptism and Sacramental Practice

The discussion shifted to the contentious issue of baptism. The Community of Christ practices believer’s baptism for those 8 years or older. Historically, they accept baptism from other denominations only if the person was 8 or older when baptized.

Infant Baptism Proposal: Multiple resolutions have come forward asking the President to give prayerful consideration to accepting infant baptism from other denominations for membership, followed by confirmation.
Divisive Issue: This issue elicits very strong feelings. While many members, particularly in Europe where infant baptism is common, wish to avoid re-baptism after joining from another denomination, lifelong members argue that the Doctrine and Covenants mandates the age-eight requirement.
Current Action: President Cramm confirmed that the church is currently engaged in an exploration process using reading material and an online survey to gather perspectives before the Presidency makes a determination.

Leadership, Consensus, & Prophetic Voice

Cramm shared her perspective on her new leadership role, which she entered at an older age than some predecessors.

Role as Prophet: Cramm views her tenure as standing in a “liminal space” to help the church navigate current hurdles and prepare emerging leaders.
Empowerment: Her emphasis is on the empowerment of the prophetic voice of the people. Leaders are committed to engaging the imagination of the whole church on important theological questions.
Faithful Disagreement: Cramm agreed that the divisiveness following the 1984 priesthood revelation—which saw congregations leave and property debates ensue—led the church to focus on achieving greater consensus and creating a culture of faithful disagreement. This means that the process under which the church explores and grows together is considered as important as the actual decision itself.

When facing disagreements—such as those surrounding the acceptance of women in the priesthood or current theological issues—the principles of faithful disagreement ensure that people with differing opinions are not judged as unfaithful or immediately ostracized. Instead, they must cultivate Christlike love, which is a choice that requires respecting an opposing opinion even if it is not shared.

Don’t miss our other conversations with Stassi: https://gospeltangents.com/people/stassi-cramm/

Gospel Tangents

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