The Mormons and The Hopi: A Study of Prophecy

Abstract

This project addresses the concept of prophecy and the role it plays in how the “other” is fit into the religious and cultural framework of a specific group. Not only do the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (Mormons) and Hopi have independently rich prophetic traditions, their prophecies and histories intersect in a variety of revealing ways. The goal of this analysis is to get as specific as possible to the prophetic issues pertaining to both the Mormons and Hopi and relate them to the larger context of how the conception of the “other” fits into a group’s culture and religion. This paper starts with an overview of the general histories of both the Hopi and the Mormons in the United States. Where did these groups come from, where do they live, how long have they been there, and what makes them unique? Answering these questions provides a good background to how these groups came in contact with one another. Next, the paper will address the specific historical interactions of Mormon and Hopi. Finally, it will analyze the specific prophecies of both groups, exploring how they relate to each other and how they relate to the relevant historical, political, economic and religious forces that have acted upon them. The final goal is to present an interpretation of prophecy and show that one of its functions has been to enable the “other,” who is at first a dangerous, or, minimally, unknown category, to be fit safely into the cosmic order of a group so that there is a definite hope for future cultural preservation. Prophecy also functions by placing the “other” into a neutral/shared category or, more extremely, it can act negatively as a religious critique of the group itself and/or the “other.”