Author: Aaron Shafovaloff
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Jonah Barnes: Another LDS Apologist Goes Rogue
Jonah Barnes, a controversial figure in Latter-day Saint apologetics, has sparked growing controversy with his recent claims. Increasingly, voices within the LDS community are questioning his credibility.
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Questions To Ask When Reading the Book of Mormon
Ask these questions as you read the Book of Mormon with discerning eyes. Examine its origins, influences, revisions, Joseph Smith’s world, and how each chapter compares or contrasts with modern Mormonism.
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Q&A: John Taylor’s 1886 Revelation on Polygamy
On September 27, 1886, John Taylor received a revelation on the permanence of the doctrine of plural marriage. In 1933 the First Presidency denied its existence and called the “purported text” for it a “pretended revelation.” The LDS Church finally conceded its existence on June 14, 2025.
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Q&A: The King Follett Discourse
The sermon “is widely recognized as his single most important preaching event and perhaps the most important Mormon sermon of all time.”
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Was Peter “Justified” in Denying Christ? Some Mormon Leaders Suggest Yes
Some Mormon leaders and influential voices suggest that Peter may have heeded “protective counsel” from Jesus himself.
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Is Blake T. Ostler a Rebel LDS Philosopher, Dismissive of Prophets?
LDS philosopher Blake Ostler disputes traditional LDS teachings and denies common views of Heavenly Mother. He calls Brigham Young’s theology a “disaster” and proposes a “radical revision of some common assumptions about the Mormon concept of God.”
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How Our Father Became God, by LDS Philosopher Nels Lars Nelson
Nels Lars Nelson, a Brigham Young University professor, was a significant figure in Mormon intellectual circles. He wrote, “God became God because He fulfilled the law of becoming perfect as His Father in heaven was perfect.”
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Debate: Is God Our Literal Father?
Devin Barnes (LDS) and Aaron Shafovaloff (evangelical) debate the topic, “Is God our literal Father?”
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Intelligence(s) and Spirits: Competing LDS Views
Joseph Smith’s evolving views on pre-mortal existence shifted from a vague, conceptual intelligence to a later synonymy of intelligence, mind, soul, and spirit, sparking diverse interpretations among his followers.
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A Bibliography of Mormon Philosophy
Significant works on Mormon theology and philosophy, ranging from early writings by Orson Pratt and B. H. Roberts to modern explorations by Blake Ostler, Terryl Givens, and David Paulsen.
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Divine Begetting in Mormonism
We explore two LDS theological issues: the concept of pre-mortal spirit begetting and the origins of Adam’s body.
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D&C 76:24 Isn’t About “Literal” Spirit Children
LDS leaders often use D&C 76:24 to promote the notion that humans on this earth are “literal” spirit children of heavenly parents. Thomas Monson references the passage when saying, “The spirits of all men are literally His ‘begotten sons and daughters’.” (Monson) This 1832 revelation, whoever, is clearly referring to redemptive sonship, not pre-mortal “literal”…
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Mapping Mormon Theologies
Official doctrine Emeritus BYU Dean of Religious Education Robert Millet concedes: “I think most Latter-day Saints would be prone to answer this by pointing out the value and significance of living oracles, or continuing revelation, or ongoing divine direction through modern apostles and prophets, and thus to conclude that living prophets take precedence over canonized…
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Debate: Does It Matter Whether God Sinned?
Introduction In 1844 Joseph Smith preached a sermon at General Conference called the King Follett Discourse. In it he taught that, “God Himself was once as we are now, and is an exalted man…” And, “We have imagined and supposed that God was God from all eternity. I will refute that idea…”, And, “You have…
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Mormon Quotes on the Regress of Gods
Updated April 21, 2025. As of today there are at least five different positions in the Latter-day Saint tradition on divine ancestry and the regress of gods. Dominant view and modern dissonance “The notion maintained by many early Mormon leaders” Blake Ostler (2001): “The Lectures on Faith are inconsistent with the notion maintained by many…
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On Steve Pynakker
Steve Pynakker is a popular YouTuber from Florida who does interviews with Mormons. He often presents as an evangelical (without qualification) in interfaith dialog with interlocutors of the Latter-day Saint movement. In light of his own words, I submit that Steve is not favorable to nor a faithful representative of evangelicalism. “The evidence leans towards…
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Charles M. Larson’s Endorsement of GLM Video on the Book of Abraham
Charles M. Larson writes a comment on August 17, 2024, in response to Why Mormonism Can’t Recover from “The Book of Abraham”: Hello. I am the author of By His Own Hand Upon Papyrus — a New Look at the Joseph Smith Papyri (Institute for Religious Research, Grand Rapids, MI 1992), and I strongly endorse…
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The Mormons, by Samuel E. Wishard, D.D.
This 1904 book might be more appropriately titled The Early History of Presbyterian Missions in Utah. THE MORMONS BYSAMUEL E. WISHARD, D.D.SYNODICAL MISSIONARY FOR UTAH LITERATURE DEPARTMENTPRESBYTERIAN HOME MISSIONS156 FIFTH AVENUE, NEW YORK CITY1904 COPYRIGHT, 1904, BYTHE BOARD OF HOME MISSIONSOF THE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCHIN THE U. S. A. THE TROW PRESS, NEW YORK FOREWORD To know…
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Online Christian Historical Sources on Mormonism Index
1860s 1870s 1880s 1890s 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s See also
