My friend Stephen Smoot has done a good job answering objections that the focus of the name of the Church and the preference of "Latter-day Saint" over "Mormon" are novelties introduced by Russell M. Nelson, or at least, the emphasis on such:
What
An Original Apostle Said About The Name of the Church
One of my favourite scholars, the late
John A. Tvedntes, shared this same attitude. In his August 12, 1998 response to
a “survey” by Ed. Decker (co-author with Dave Hunt of The God Makers), we
read:
Q: Do you consider yourself a Mormon? an Orthodox Christian?
A: I am a long-standing member of the Church of
Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I NEVER refer to myself as "a
Mormon," since "Mormon" is the name of an ancient prophet from
whom I do not descend and with whom I have no special relationship. I DO refer
to myself as a "Christian," though I'm not sure that
"Orthodox" would correctly define me, any more than it would define,
say, a Southern Baptist, whose religion is even farther than mine from what has
historically been called "Orthodox Christianity." (source)
We hear of “retrograde
Nelson”; “retrograde Tvedtnes” has a nice ring to it.
