Author: Sharon Lindbloom
-
Brigham Young’s Test of a Prophet
Brigham Young taught, “[The wicked] found fault with Joseph Smith, and at length killed him, as they have a great many others of the Latter-day Saints. What for? Because of his wickedness? No. But the cry was, ‘Away with him, we cannot do with this man nor with his people.’ Did they hate him for…
-
Joseph Smith “Carried Off My Daughter”
Over the years, much has been written about the heartbreak caused by Mormon weddings. The oft-cited cause of this heartbreak is the sacred, exclusive LDS temple wedding that necessarily excludes “unworthy” friends and family from attending. According to Mormonism, marriages must be performed and sealed in a Mormon temple by the proper priesthood authority so…
-
Are You Ready To Engage Mormons for Christ?
The Mormonism Research Ministry website is filled with resources to help people gain a broader understanding of the Mormon Church, including its doctrines and history. The website also offers resources to help Christians prepare to reach out to Mormons or those investigating Mormonism. Among other things, MRM has prepared pdf files of three “Redi-references” that can…
-
How Was Joseph Smith’s Seer Stone Like a Smart Phone?
I know the headline sounds like a lead-in to a joke, but in fact, Mormon apologist Daniel Peterson wrote a “Defending the Faith” column for Deseret News in which he suggested that, though “some critics of Joseph Smith mock the fact that part of the Book of Mormon translation process apparently involved dictating while looking…
-
Do Mormons Have Faith in the Bible?
The Mormon Church recognizes four books as scripture: The Book of Mormon, Doctrine & Covenants, Pearl of Great Price, and the Bible. And yet, as noted at the MRM website, Joseph Smith said [of the Bible], “Ignorant translators, careless transcribers, or designing and corrupt priests have committed many errors” (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, 327).…
-
The Pattern of Mormon Temples
Last week I returned from a visit to Utah. While there, I took a tour of the Mormon Church’s newly completed Payson Temple. As is the normal practice for temple open houses, the tour began with a video about Mormon temples. And as is usual for the temple open house videos, the claim is made…
-
Mormon Church Essay on Priesthood Ban Banned From Church Classroom
An interesting thing happened to Mormon Sunday school teacher Brian Dawson. The Salt Lake Tribune reports that a student in Mr. Dawson’s youth Sunday school class asked him why his Nigerian wife joined a church that had at one time excluded blacks from the priesthood and Mormon temples. The student wondered where the priesthood ban…
-
“As Mormons, We Worship…?”
At the Mormon.org website, visitors can learn about Joseph Smith and what he means to members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Under the sub-heading, “A Martyr of the Restored Gospel,” the site says, “Joseph Smith gave his life for the cause of truth. “Some people mistakenly believe Mormons worship Joseph Smith.…
-
What I Learned on My Visit to Old Mormon Nauvoo
A few weeks ago I visited The City of Joseph: Nauvoo, Illinois. It was quick trip; I was only able to spend two days in the area, hurrying from place to place in an effort to do some primary source research. I had little success regarding the event on which I sought information, but I…
-
Looking at the April 2015 Mormon General Conference
The LDS Church’s most recent General Conference was held April 4-5, 2015. A couple of interesting graphics have been produced as a result. Over at MormonChannel.org’s Facebook page visitors were asked to fill in the blank: “Because of #ldsconf I will __________________.” A few days later Mormon Channel posted this word cloud created with the answers…
-
A Mormon “Detective Story”
[The following is a guest post written by a friend of Mormonism Research Ministry – a former Mormon who wishes to remain anonymous to keep family peace.] I’m submitting for your consideration a “detective story” from my family history that raises more serious questions about Joseph Smith and polygamy. It starts with my uncles – devout…
-
“Utter Nonsense” Presented at the April 2015 Mormon General Conference
It’s like an April Fools joke, but nobody’s laughing. Instead, people are scratching their heads. During the April 2015 Sunday morning General Conference session, Mormon Apostle Dieter F. Uchtdorf (of the First Presidency) gave a talk that just a few decades ago would have been described by LDS Church leaders as one of “such utter…
-
Mormonism’s “Different Jesus”
On Monday I blogged about my disagreement with Mormon bishop Nate Sharp’s implication that because there is “one and only one Jesus Christ” the idea that Mormons believe in a “different Jesus” is a myth. Today I want to look again at his blog article and very briefly examine a few of the attributes Dr. Sharp…
-
Is It Wrong Say Mormonism Embraces a “Different Jesus”?
Mormon bishop Nate Sharp wrote a blog article aimed at “Dispelling 5 More Myths About Mormons.” I want to take a look at the first ”myth” he tackled: “Myth #1: Mormons believe in a ‘different Jesus.’ “One myth about Mormons is the notion that we believe in a ‘different Jesus.’ In reality, of course, there…
-
What a Mormon Seventy Finds in the Book of Isaiah
In February (2015) the Charlotte Observer, in its Voices of Faith section, asked its religious columnists to answer the question, “Why is Isaiah your favorite prophet?” The newspaper published two responses — one from a Unity Temple reverend, and one from a Mormon Seventy. The Unity clergyman gave two reasons for choosing Isaiah as his favorite prophet:…
-
Saving Mormonism: Divorcing Faith from Fact
The Salt Lake Tribune published an article earlier this month: “New Mormon mission: How to teach members the messy part of LDS history, theology.” Written by Peggy Fletcher Stack, the article looks at the need for the Mormon Church to shift its “simple” historical narrative to something that comports more with truth. She writes, “These…
-
Mormon Church Does Not Require “Bloodletting”
Last week the Utah Senate voted to reinstate death by firing squad as one of the state’s options in carrying out a judiciously imposed penalty of capital punishment. The bill awaits the signature of Utah’s governor before it can become law. As the bill is written, the firing squad alternative would be required if lethal…
-
Mormon Leadership Not Appropriate at a Christian Event
In a blog post on Monday (March 9, 2015) Jana Riess told readers about the recent cancellation of a Christian retreat at which Dr. Riess was scheduled to speak. The reason the retreat was cancelled: Christian church leaders deemed that, due to Dr. Riess’ Mormon faith, she is “not an ‘appropriate’ person to be a…
-
Joseph Smith’s Grandiloquent Assertion: “I Am the Only Man That Has Ever Been Able To Keep a Whole Church Together”
In 1844, while the Mormon Church was in the middle of a crisis involving dissention in the Church, The Prophet Joseph Smith preached a Sunday morning sermon in which he exclaimed, “In all these affidavits, indictments, it is all of the devil—all corruption. Come on! ye prosecutors! ye false swearers! All hell, boil over! Ye…