Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are just like anyone else. We have ups and downs and everything in between. Latter-day Saints are often thought of as a kind, happy people. But that doesn’t mean we don’t have challenges. Everyone in life is fighting a hard battle—but when we try our best to live the gospel of Jesus Christ, we have additional strength and peace to make it through.

As far as lifestyle is concerned, Latter-day Saints try to keep Jesus front and center. Our beliefs about the Savior and His teachings affect our day-to-day decisions about how we speak, dress, and act. For example, we try to avoid working on Sundays so we can attend church, serve others, and spend time with family. Faithful members of the Church strive not to smoke, drink alcohol, or gamble.

The term “Mormons” is a nickname that comes from a book of scripture unique to our Church called the Book of Mormon. We didn’t come up with the nickname, but lots of people use it to describe the Church and its members. In the past, we’ve embraced the term and even used it ourselves, but recently we have asked people to call the Church by its full name: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. This re-emphasis of the Church’s name helps us follow the Lord’s command given to the Prophet Joseph Smith: “For thus shall my church be called in the last days, even The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints” (Doctrine and Covenants 115:4). It also helps everyone know that Jesus is the core of our religion and beliefs.

“Latter-day Saints” is a good way to refer to your friends who are members of the Church.

Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints choose not to drink beer, because we believe in an inspired health code called the Word of Wisdom, which encourages us to take care of our bodies. Most of it is commonsense stuff: No illegal drugs. No alcohol. No tobacco. Reasoning for avoiding other substances, like coffee or tea, is perhaps less obvious. However, we believe these instructions came from God, so we abstain from those substances.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints teaches that sexual relations are reserved for men and women who are legally and lawfully married to each other. After marriage, God expects spouses to be completely loyal and faithful to their companions. We refer to these principles as the “law of chastity.”

We believe that through marital intimacy, couples can experience some of life’s most profound blessings, including the gift of children and a stronger bond between marriage partners. Our bodies are sacred (see 1 Corinthians 6:19–20), created in the image of God (see Genesis 1:27), and He wants us to treasure them. When you are sexually pure, you prepare yourself to build a strong marriage and to bring children into the world as part of an eternal and loving family.