The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, also known as the Strangites, is a Mormon faith. It is distinct from the the larger and more well-known Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, although both organizations claim to be the original church established by Joseph Smith, Jr on April 6, 1830.
According to the Strangites, Joseph Smith Jr. appointed James J. Strang to be his successor on June 18, 1844, in a letter now found at Yale University. According to Strang, at the time Smith was assassinated in 1844, Strang was visited by angels, who ordained him to be Smith's successor. See Revelations of James J. Strang. Strang's claim to be Smith's successor was opposed by others, including Brigham Young, who led a group of Mormons to Utah which became the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
After the death of Joseph Smith, Strang and his followers (which numbered about 12,000) settled in Wisconsin, and then Michigan. After Strang was assassinated in 1856, the group almost vanished. Today, the group has a small but steady following. The church believes in 7th day worship, it ordains women to some offices of the priesthood, practices baptism for the dead, an endowment ceremony similar to that practiced by pre-Nauvoo Mormons, and believes in Eternal Marriage. Historically, some members of the church practiced polygamy.
