"CHRISTIAN" AIM BEHIND MORMON NAME CHANGE

They don't want to be called Mormons anymore. Officials of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS) have announced that they want the church to be first identified by its full name, and as the "Church of Jesus Christ" in subsequent references, "The New York Times" reported. Church officials say the altered name will primarily affect how leaders refer to the institution to the media and how missionaries refer to the church in their work overseas. They have also decided that they do not want the church to be referred to as either the Latter-day Saints Church or the LDS Church. Jan Shipps, a non-Mormon expert on the church who is professor emeritus of history and religious studies at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis, told the "Times" that the name tinkering was prompted by "the desire of Latter-day Saints - and not just the leadership - to be understood as a Christian tradition." Shipps said the church has always seen itself as Christian. But in recent years the church has shifted from using Mormon as a noun to "an adjective, as in Mormon Christian," she added. Other ways the church has tried to align itself as a Christian denomination, include changing its logo in 1995 in order for "Jesus Christ" to appear in larger letters. More recently, the church's public affairs office issued a statement pointedly stating that the Mormon Church is not an official name.