Archive for category: Mormonism

The Encyclopedia of Mormonism    Before we conclude our examination, I would like to call one last witness to the stand. In 1992 a major publication appeared in LDS bookstores called The Encyclopedia of Mormonism. This major work represented the work of numerous LDS scholars and writers. Does it, likewise, speak of these doctrines? It most assuredly does. One of the

Bruce R. McConkie    I have often commented that I’m glad I am not Bruce R. McConkie. Why? Because of all the LDS Apostles of recent memory, he is the one about whom I have heard it said most often: “Well, that was just his opinion.” As far as Apostles go, he is the one that LDS missionaries like to disagree

James Talmage    Another leading scholar (and General Authority) of Mormonism was James Talmage. Talmage’s books, Articles of Faith and Jesus the Christ, have been read so widely that they are almost quasi-canonical. Indeed, both have been published by the LDS Church itself, sometimes in leather-bound editions! They are often included in the books given to Mormon missionaries as they prepare

   The current CRI Journal has an article by Bill McKeever and Eric Johnson on the issue of Mormon apologetics and the situation that has arisen due to the Millet/Johnson situation in Utah, and the group “Standing Together.” I was especially interested to read a number of citations that mirrored my own comments made in response to Richard Mouw’s attacks upon

Wilford Woodruff Wilford Woodruff became the fourth President of the LDS Church in 1889. While known to history more as the Prophet through which the Manifesto ending polygamy came to the LDS Church, he also spoke to the topic of our study in the years prior to his elevation to the Presidency, here from 1857: If there was a point

   I have been seeking to provide to those interested in knowing the truth the facts concerning the teachings of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (the Mormons) related to the doctrine of God. Who is the God of Mormonism? Is Mormonism just a variant of Christianity? The candidacy of Mitt Romney for President has once again thrown tremendous

Statements of General Authorities in Conference    The semi-annual General Conferences of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints provide a forum for the leaders of the Church to provide constant, up-to-date guidance of the LDS Church. Here the Apostles gather with the Prophet and instruct the Church on issues doctrinal and moral. The LDS Church has diligently recorded the

Men are Gods in Embryo    At times LDS representatives have complained that Christian writers use terminology of Mormonism that Mormons would never use themselves. Sometimes there is truth to this complaint, but in the case of the Mormon doctrine of God, one will find some of the strongest terms being used in LDS literature itself. It might seem to some

Student Manual    The LDS Church also offers various courses in religion and doctrine, and publishes manuals to go along with these courses. One such manual, Doctrines of the Gospel, is meant for the Religion 231 and 232 classes. Early on (Chapter 3) it addresses the nature of God from the LDS viewpoint. We should no longer be surprised that as

   Just finished a quick segment with Todd Friel on Way of the Master. He had called yesterday when a Mitt Romney proponent had challenged him on his statement that Jesus and Lucifer are spirit brothers. So we did the “Todd Friel Express Interview”® thing, but I only got to read a single statement actually substantiating the doctrine, since I had

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints provides a tremendous amount of literature to its people. This body of printed material can hardly be surveyed here. However, we can focus upon those publications that are specifically meant to communicate doctrinal truth to the members of the Mormon Church. Since the vast majority of this material appears in Church published

The LDS Temple Ceremonies    Recognizing that Mormons find discussion of their ceremonies offensive, we present only that information that is vital to determining the theological teaching of those ceremonies. We have already established the fact that these ceremonies are believed to be revelatory, and hence must be allowed to speak with reference to the official LDS doctrine of God.    What

More from Joseph Smith    While the preceding discourse is certainly the longest extant presentation of the LDS doctrine of God and man from the Mormon Prophet, it is certainly not all he said on the subject. Indeed, in the few years before his death in 1844, Smith spoke often of this concept. He encountered a good bit of opposition, even

   We received this e-mail unsolicited. We have sought to exemplify a God-honoring approach to Mormonism since 1982. Here is why: Dear Dr. White, I would like to thank you for taking a bold, truthful stand in opposition to the ungospel of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I am especially grateful that you rely of TRUTH to denounce

The Council of the Gods    At this point Smith goes into a fascinating discussion of Genesis 1:1 and how this passage supports his theology, but we move past this to remain focused upon ascertaining the what of his theology more than the how at this point.    Oh, ye lawyers, ye doctors, and ye priests, who have persecuted me, I want

   Keith Walker got a response from CT about the deceptive Millet/McDermott article that so grossly spun Mormonism as to try to make it look evangelical. Here’s the correspondence. (HT: Plaidman!)

   The spin only moves faster as the article continues: Besides, Mormon beliefs are not as un-evangelical as most evangelicals think. Unlike Jehovah’s Witnesses, Mormons hold firmly to the deity of Christ. For Latter-Day Saints, Jesus is not only the Son of God but also God the Son. Evangelical pollster George Barna found in 2001 that while only 33 percent of

   Folks, please read this series, even if you live out East where Mormonism is not that big an “issue.” The complicit cooperation of alleged “evangelicals” in deceiving Christians about the nature of Mormonism represents a trend relevant to all sorts of apologetics issues today. Read on!    I have been presenting the statements of LDS leaders (not current BYU academics, but

Learning to be a God    Smith’s attempts to defend this doctrine from the Bible are enlightening with reference to his claimed abilities as a Scriptural exegete, but we must pass over them lightly at this point, since we have much material yet to admit into evidence before getting to an evaluation of these claims. The Scriptures inform us that Jesus

God is an Exalted Man    God himself was once as we are now, and is an exalted man, and sits enthroned in yonder heavens! That is the great secret. If the veil were rent today, and the great God who holds this world in its orbit, and who upholds all worlds and all things by his power, was to make

   I have been providing portions from my book, Is the Mormon My Brother?, which define, from exclusively LDS sources, the teachings of Mormonism regarding the central definitional doctrine of any theistic religion: the doctrine of God. Given the presidential aspirations of Mitt Romney, a Mormon, this topic is once again in the public eye, and sadly, the general ignorance of

   But how can men become gods? This is answered in probably the most famous portion of the Doctrine and Covenants, Section 132. This portion, put to paper on July 12th, 1843, speaks directly to the issue by introducing the covenant of eternal marriage. This concept is vitally important to Mormons, and while plural marriage (which was intimately connected with the

   The end result of having canonized revelations that span the period of Smith’s doctrinal development is simple inconsistency. LDS apologists and theologians normally interpret the earlier monotheistic and traditional statements in light of the later, more unique statements. The First Vision story becomes the lens through which all else is seen, so that the unity of the Godhead envisioned in

The latest edition of the Salt Lake City Messenger, #108, May 2007 (which I just received in the mail today) is online. The featured article, which appears to be at least two parts (second part forthcoming), is by Ronald V. Huggins titled Jerald Tanner’s Quest for Truth. This article is similar to listening to Wesley Walters as he discusses the

   For anyone who has studied the theology of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, listening to talk radio of any kind during this political season is proving painful. Being even a conservative talk show host obviously does not impart to you even the slightest bit of theological or historical knowledge. The flood of utter ignorance of LDS beliefs

   I had never met a Mormon scholar before with an earring, to be honest, but Dr. Dennis Potter broke new ground for me. Dr. Potter is a graduate from Notre Dame, and we debated about four years ago at the University of Utah. The discussion is focused primarily upon the nature of the gospel, God’s grace, etc. Note the last

I do not just do debates with Roman Catholics. In fact, we have done a number of debates in Salt Lake City. Here is the cross-examination period from a debate on the effect of Adam’s fall with Dr. Gilbert Scharffs, the author of the LDS response to the “GodMakers” film, a long time professor and LDS theologian. I had more

   As soon as the music ended, the screaming began. The band of street abusers (they call themselves preachers, but that has a particular biblical meaning that is utterly disconnected from their disjointed harangues) with their barely relevant signs held high began yelling out at those gathered on the front lawn of the LDS Temple in Mesa, Arizona, “Mormonism is a

   As expected, there isn’t any such thing. Student newspaper, reporter without understanding, confusing what they’d like to find with what they have in fact found. Here is a letter from the actual scholars doing the imaging. Of course, that does not really explain the comments of the undergraduate student which still, it seems to me, give an insight into the

   This is interesting in light of the discussion we have been having on the DL about textual criticism. Here is a story that claims that scholars working on the Oxyrhnchus papyri using multi-spectral imaging have discovered “an unidentified Christian apocryphal Gospel, a new ending to the Gospel of Mark, a different version of two verses in the book of Philemon,