Author: Bill McKeever
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Tom Hanks, the Mormons, and Prop 8
By Bill McKeever Actor Tom Hanks angered many in the LDS community when he accused Mormons who helped fund the passage of Proposition 8, a ballot initiative that provides that only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California, of being “un-American.” In his controversial comment, Hanks said: “There are…
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Family Entertainment Network and Mormonism
In 1988, Family Entertainment Network (FEN), a company out of Dallas, Texas, produced a series of animated Bible video tapes which immediately became popular within Christian circles. Titles included “The King is Born,” “John the Baptist,” “The Prodigal Son,” and “He is Risen,” among others. As part of FEN’s marketing strategy, several prominent Christian personalities…
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Don’t Stereotype Mormons
Bill McKeever talks about inconsistency and diversity within Mormonism and the value of asking questions to the individual Mormon you are speaking with. 1920×1080 MP4, 640×360 MP4
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Struggling With A Loss of Faith?
Struggling in the aftermath of religious betrayal? We hope to offer some understanding and direction.
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Movie Review: Twilight
Reviewed by Bill McKeever Let me begin this review by making two confessions. 1) I haven’t read any of the books by Stephenie Meyer, and 2) had Meyer not been LDS, I doubt if I would have ever had any desire to see Twilight, a film based on the first of her four novels (The others…
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Prop 8, Hate Speech, and Plural Marriage
Eight years ago, 61 percent of California voters passed Proposition 22, the “California Defense of Marriage Act.” The proposition read very simply: “Only marriage between a man and woman is valid or recognized in California.” No doubt many Californians thought that because the people had spoken, the issue was over. But this was not to…
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Movie Review: Emma Smith: My Story
Reviewed by Bill McKeever When I first saw the billboards along Interstate 15 advertising Emma Smith: My Story, I wondered how much of “Emma’s story” was going to actually be told. When the trailers for the film started airing on local Salt Lake television stations and I saw that much of the film appeared to…
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Anti-Mormon: The Mormon N-Word
By Bill McKeever
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What is "Celestial Polygamy"?
By Bill McKeever The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints seems to be engaged in an uphill battle in its effort to convince the public that they no longer practice polygamy. An LDS Newsroom release posted on September 7, 2007, stated:
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A Look at Fundamentalism Mormonism
By Bill McKeever The practice of plural marriage had been the center of controversy for Joseph Smith and his fledgling church ever since rumors began circulating about an extra marital affair he had while living in Kirtland, Ohio. According to George D. Smith:
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"As God" or "Like God"?
By Bill McKeever The ability to attain godhood in the next life is one of the more unique (and blasphemous) teachings associated with Joseph Smith and the LDS Church he founded. Brigham Young mixed no words when he said,
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So Why Is Abortion a Sin?
According to the Guttmacher Institute, more than 42 million legal abortions have been performed in the U.S. between 1973 and 2002. That averages out to nearly 1.45 million abortions per year. The Mormon Church touts itself as a “pro-life” church although, like many teachings coming out of Salt Lake City, consistency regarding the topic of…
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Romney Gets It Right – Beck Got It Wrong
During a Fox Forum, Mitt Romney defended his ads against opponents as comparisons rather than attacks. Bill argues that while comparisons in politics are fair, Mormons misunderstand similar critiques of their faith as attacks. Glenn Beck’s comments on bigotry are challenged.
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Early Mormon Leaders on the Inhabitants of the Sun and Moon
By Bill McKeever and Aaron Shafovaloff
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The Relationship Between Jesus and Lucifer in a Mormon Context
In a December 11, 2007 Associated Press article written by Libby Quaid, the question of whether or not Mormonism teaches that “Jesus and the devil are brothers” was addressed. In response to this inquiry, Quaid noted that a spokesperson for the LDS Church said such a “question is usually raised by those who wish to…
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Follow-Up on Mitt Romney’s Speech
Like millions of others I made sure I didn’t miss what many were touting as Mitt Romney’s “JFK Speech.” I certainly wasn’t expecting to hear a whole lot about Romney’s Mormon faith. Thoughts of him standing behind the podium and saying, “Hi, I’m Mitt Romney, a normal guy running for president who hopes to one…
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They See Dead People?
By Bill McKeever Listen Human communication with the dead, or necromancy, is never encouraged in the Bible and is always condemned (1 Samuel 15:23, 28:6ff). Such a practice was punishable by death (1 Samuel 28:9) in theocratic Israel. Despite these grave warnings, many temple Mormons look forward with great anticipation to possibly being visited by…
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Why No Crosses?
By Bill McKeever You may have noticed that Mormon temples are normally adorned with a golden angel rather than a cross. The fact is, crosses are never used on any Mormon buildings. Strangely enough, Mormon leaders have often pointed to the Garden of Gethsemane as the place where Christ’s atonement took place.
