John Alpheus Cutler[2][3] (February 29, 1784 – June 10, 1864) was an early leader in the Latter Day Saint movement who founded the Church of Jesus Christ (Cutlerite) in 1853.

[11] He stood over six feet tall, and was described by one biographer as being "heavy set," "powerfully built," "critical" and "sarcastic," while generally expressing himself in "an extremely candid, sharp and brusque manner.

"[13] Following the War of 1812, Cutler and his family were living in western New York, where they heard David W. Patten of the Church of Christ preach about the coming forth of the Book of Mormon and the ministry of Joseph Smith.

[16] Although brought before the Kirtland High Council on 15 March 1835 on charges of arguing with fellow member Reynolds Cahoon and complaining about not being paid enough for his work on the temple,[15] Cutler weathered the storm and remained in Smith's good graces.

A victim of Governor Lilburn Boggs's "Extermination Order," Cutler was expelled from the state with the other Latter Day Saints during the winter of 1838–39.

These included the Quorum of the Twelve, led by Brigham Young; James Strang, a newly baptized convert from Wisconsin; and Sidney Rigdon, who had served as Joseph Smith's First Counselor in the First Presidency.

[29] Although the Nauvoo Temple would be dedicated on 1 May 1846 by apostle Orson Hyde, Cutler would later insist that it had not been finished by the "sufficient time" given in the revelation authorizing its construction;[30] this proved pivotal for his own claims to legitimacy when he decided to commence his own church organization in 1853.

During a discussion over the competing succession claims in the High Council, Cutler indicated that he "felt bound to sustain the Twelve, and all the Quorums of the Church with its present organization, for on that his salvation depended.

"[31] When Brigham Young decided to commence the Saints' trek to the Salt Lake Valley, he appointed Cutler as Captain of "Emigrating Company No.

In the fall of 1847, Brigham Young had sanctioned his request to conduct the mission work among the Indians to which Joseph Smith had assigned him, and Cutler had commenced his efforts with nearby tribes.

Cutler soon became the subject of lurid rumors concerning his Indian mission, with spurious reports indicating that he had been elected as the "Generalissimo" of a union of "thirty-seven nations".

[39] However, since the role and place of the Fifty within Joseph Smith's overall scheme of things was not well known to many Latter Day Saints (due in part to its secret nature, and in part to Smith's untimely demise), many Latter Day Saints misunderstood Cutler's intentions and pronouncements on this subject, and this contributed to the eventual severing of his ties with Brigham Young's church.

[42] Young labored to bring Cutler back into the fold, writing of an ardent desire to see his old friend and promising him protection against any enemies he might have in the church.

Having been forced to abandon his mission in 1851 under pressure from local Indian Agents and government authorities,[44] he and his followers relocated to Manti, Iowa, in the southwestern part of that state.

According to Cutler, the misdeed that brought about the rejection of Joseph Smith's church was its failure to complete the Nauvoo Temple within the "sufficient time" mentioned in Doctrine and Covenants 124:31–32; that organization had accordingly ceased to exist as a legitimate entity.

"[53] According to Joseph Smith III, eldest son of Joseph Smith and leader of a rival faction known as the New Organization,[54] Cutler's followers were so convinced that they would be moving to Independence soon that they refused to make substantial improvements to their homes and lands, and remained in a constant state of readiness to leave at a moment's notice for "Zion.

Cutler rebuffed Gurley's overtures with a tersely-worded letter of his own, in which he openly ridiculed the RLDS Church's claims and insisted that his organization alone was possessed of the true priesthood authority.

[59] On 10 August 1864, those members of his church who had remained loyal to Cutler (including his wife, Lois) relocated to Clitherall, near Battle Lake, Minnesota, in response to an alleged vision.

As Cutler had taught in Manti, his followers continue to perform endowments and baptisms for the dead today, virtually alone among all non–LDS Church-derived Latter Day Saint churches.