On Monday afternoon, some social media users noticed a definition of Mormonism on Google that misrepresented the beliefs of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
When users typed the question, "What is Mormonism?" into the Google search engine, the answer displayed prominently at the top of the results page referred to a definition from Raptureready.com:
"Mormonism is a religion that denies the deity of Jesus Christ. In this religion, He is demoted to being a mere mortal, a true offspring of Elohim and an equal to Lucifer, another of Elohim's offspring. According to the Mormon doctrine: 'Every man who reigns in celestial glory is a god to his dominions.' "
Some members of the LDS Church took to social media to ask for a correction, and others contacted Google through the company's feedback option.
The first result Google displays has since been updated, though Google did not issue a response and the reason for the change is not definitive.
One Monday evening, Google's answer to, "What is Mormonism?" returned the result, "The doctrines and practices of the Mormon church based on the Book of Mormon." At the time of publication on Tuesday, a featured response was not displayed, and Raptureready.com was the third result.
Accurate answers to, "What is Mormonism?" can be found on mormon.org and mormonnewsroom.org, two sites owned and operated by the LDS Church.
Email: spetersen@deseretnews.com | Twitter: @Sarah_DNews