Zion (Latter Day Saints)

The city of Zion is an urban concept of the Mormon pioneers, the Joseph Smith developed and implemented in Nauvoo into practice. Following this pattern, Brigham Young conceived the founded in Utah towns and villages, as the first Salt Lake City. The idea comes from the theological concept that secrete " the Holy " from " Babylon" ( the world) and create their own society by divine law. This community is named for the Mormon Zion, according to the promise of Isaiah in particular, who made ​​the original name of a hill in Jerusalem, the place of the eschatological promise of the New Jerusalem.

Theological basic concept

As an example, the city of Enoch serves. The only briefly mentioned in the Bible, Enoch was, according to the Mormon scripture Pearl of the job, the people who were lost in the general wickedness, call to repentance. He collected the repentant and with them founded the city of Zion. The inhabitants of Zion were finally so righteous that they were taken as a whole in the sky.

As a further basis of the statement " Zion is the pure in heart are.

One aim of the missionary activity of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter -day Saints is to those who are pure in heart, or wanting to find out and collect them to take with them this Zion of pure heart to build (the new Jerusalem) was in the early days of the Church to collect all the saints in an area, if not necessarily in a single city. Initially this was Independence, Missouri, after the expulsion from Missouri, it was Nauvoo, Illinois, and then Utah.

Only in the 20th century, the idea was taken up, the already Joseph Smith had said:

"Every place where the Saints gather is Zion which every righteous man will build a place of safety for his children. "

Since then, to any place where it is possible to be a pile founded Zion, and offer a refuge from the evil of the world.

The underlying urban design

In the 19th century Mormonism was dominated by the idea of ​​" literal gathering of the saints ." This also had an effect in the development concept of the Prophet Joseph Smith. He wanted the country, indeed the world finally cover with a "City of Zion " of around 20 000 inhabitants, which should be supplied by farms nearby with food. In the cities, certain areas of Commercial and others should be designated as residential areas. The city center should be reserved for community buildings, both secular purposes (schools, theater, town hall ) and religious purposes (worship, religious instruction, councils of the Priesthood ) should be used.

All buildings should be solid buildings of good looks, built of stone or brick. Gardens with fruit and ornamental trees, vegetables and flowers at every home should break up the city.

The original plan of 1833

During this time it was planned in Missouri "Zion" erect, so an equally secular as religious communities. Joseph Smith saw for this project a special type before settlement, which should combine the advantages of an urban and a rural life, without the negative side of a large city to bring forth with their bad reputation neighborhoods of violence, prostitution, alcohol and gambling.

The total built-up area of ​​the city is to be a square with side length 1 miles by 1 mile. Through roads with a width of 8 rods (about 40 m), which are precisely aligned to the cardinal directions and run at the same distance to the town square in block 40 by 40 rods (about 200 by 200 m) with an area of are each 10 acres ( 4 hectares ) divided. Any intended as a residential area block is 2 times 10 plots, each one-half acre (approx. 2000 square meters ) of a width of 4 rods and a length of 20 rods (about 20 times 100 m) are divided. The plots should be oriented north-south and east-west alternately in adjacent block. In this way, never stand against two rows of houses.

In the city center two blocks for public buildings should be provided. These included 24 temples for the various departments of the priesthood and warehouses and barns for the bishop in accordance with the then practiced " United Order ."

Due to the persecution in Missouri, culminating in the extermination order of 1839, there these plans could not be realized in full. To some degree, these plans were realized in Kirtland, Ohio, Far West and Adam ondi Ahman, Missouri. Because of the short time that could settle the Mormons there, it was not a very depth test.

Realization in Nauvoo in 1839

Adapted to the location in a bend of the Mississippi, the plans were generally implemented in Nauvoo with the wide streets, the center with public buildings and temples as well as the farms outside the city. Unlike in Missouri no central warehouses of the bishop were provided here, the " United Order " had been replaced by the " law of tithing ". Instead, a " Main Street " was provided with shops, public buildings and crafts. The temple, however, should form the absolute center of the city. The blocks were smaller with four plots and the freedom of the owner, she was to dress as they see fit larger than the original plan.

Nauvoo soon reached the prescribed forms for the city of Zion around 20,000 inhabitants. Here it was possible, the design of the city of Zion to study in practice and adapt to the needs.

The community fell into disuse after the departure of most Mormons from 1846. The central building and the pride of the residents, the temple, fell in 1848 an arson attack victim and was subsequently destroyed by a Tornadeo further and used by the later inhabitants of Nauvoo as a source of building blocks.

Realization in Salt Lake City from 1847

When the Mormons arrived at the Great Salt Lake, the memory of Nauvoo was still fresh. One of the first acts of Brigham Young was the establishment of a temple land between the branches of City Creek, which should form the center and the starting point for the planning of the new city of Salt Lake City. The advance party, which had reached the Salt Lake Valley in July 1847 decided by vote that the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles was to lead the urban planning of Salt Lake City.

It was decided that starting from the temple to divide the city into square blocks of 10 acres ( 4 hectares ), the North-South were exactly aligned. The original plan to plan 40 acres for the Temple, was dropped in favor of a uniform block size. The streets between the blocks should be 8 rods (about 40 m ) wide. Each block was divided into eight plots of 10 by 20 rods (about 50 times 100 m), in each block alternates between the narrow sides to the south and north and the east and west. It should in each plot in each case only a single house to be built and that at a distance of 20 feet (about 6 meters ) from the road.

This basic structure can be seen in Salt Lake City is still partly, though usually four, in the city center and 16 blocks were merged.