Author: Sharon Lindbloom
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Is Mormonism Christian? Two Views
The October 2008 edition of First Things contains a lengthy article titled, “Is Mormonism Christian?” The article is in two parts. The first was written by LDS Seventy Bruce D. Porter and takes one position; Christian professor and author Gerald R. McDermott wrote the second part, concluding with a different opinion. After lamenting the poor…
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The Fruit of “Fanatical Earnestness”: The Testimony of the Eight Witnesses
Bill McKeever recently took a look at the documented history and evidence surrounding the testimonies of the Book of Mormon witnesses. In “Did the Eleven Witnesses Actually See the Gold Plates?” Mr. McKeever wrote, “Mormons generally believe that these eleven men actually saw the plates in question, and given what they said in their testimonies,…
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Feeling Lucky? The Probability of Exaltation
I just read Odds Are, You’re Going to be Exalted by LDS author Alonzo L. Gaskill (2008, Deseret Book). In this slim volume Mr. Gaskill seeks to reassure Latter-day Saints that even though they are not actually doing “all [they] can do” (2 Nephi 25:23), they can still expect to be exalted in the celestial…
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The God-Breathed Words of Scripture
In early September (2008) one of Mormon Coffee’s LDS friends left this comment: “On my other posts, I am finding a disturbing trend. I find that when I reference Christ’s words from the New Testament more often than not the rebuttal comes from Paul’s writings. “I have developed a general rule of thumb when reading…
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“All the Women Were Prostitutes.”
The Mountain Meadows Massacre’s anniversary prompts reflection on its historical context. A new book by Shannon Novak challenges traditional narratives, revealing that claims against the victims’ character were unfounded, undermining justifications for the tragedy.
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Questions
After reading some of the Google news alerts that came across my desk in the past couple of weeks I was left pondering several questions. For instance… On August 27th this headline appeared: “Huckabee Denies Mormon Slur.” The story was actually a transcript from a Rush Limbaugh radio interview with former presidential candidate Mike Huckabee.…
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Is the Mormon Religion First Century Christianity?
When LDS Apostle M. Russell Ballard encouraged LDS Church members to “[Share] the Gospel Using the Internet,” he said, “I love my present calling, which allows me opportunities to share the message of the Restoration of the gospel to the world and to testify that God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ, appeared to…
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Getting Mormons To Know the Doctrine
BYU professor Robert L. Millet spoke at Education Week in Provo, Utah on Tuesday (August 19, 2008). According to a report on the Deseret News blog Mormon Times, “false ideas” about the LDS Church held by non-members come from “dumb Mormons” who don’t really know what the Church teaches. Though said in jest, Dr. Millet’s…
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Mormons and the Media
Last week Joel Campbell over at Mormon Times posted two columns (Wednesday and Saturday) dealing with the media and its treatment of Mormon issues. Wednesday’s column asked, “FLDS: Does the media get it yet?” Mr. Campbell took a look at how well the media is doing now, a month and a half after the LDS…
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Heartbreak of the Mormon Gospel
In a recent article on Mormon Times, LDS author Orson Scott Card wrote a column about books. Books he’s seen, books he’s read, and “Mormon books [he’ll] do without.” Much of the article was written a bit tongue-in-cheek, but Mr. Card got serious when he wrote about the LDS mission he served in Brazil in…
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What God Has Prepared for Those Who Love Him
An LDS friend of mine experienced some spiritual dissonance a few years ago when her non-member father died. At his funeral, all his non-Mormon friends were talking freely and confidently about seeing him again in Heaven. They talked with fondness about what they imagined him doing at that moment as he enjoyed Heaven with others…
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Rejecting the Cross
Last week (August 9, 2008) Deseret News reported on a lecture given at the Sunstone Symposium by Robert A. Rees, the “former editor of the LDS periodical Dialogue.” “On the Cross of Calvary: Mormons and the Broken Tree” discussed the Mormon view of this “universal symbol of Christianity.” Deseret News reported: “[Rees] said there are…
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Equally Zealous
I’m in Nauvoo, Illinois this week. This little history-packed town has some pretty interesting spiritual dynamics going on. As a Christian who challenges the claims of Mormonism, the Restorationists in town see me somewhat as an ally. The Restorationists split from the Community of Christ Church (formerly known as the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ…
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Lost Book of Lehi
During the summer of 1828, while working on the Book of Mormon, Joseph Smith allowed his scribe, Martin Harris, to take 116 pages of the manuscript home to show Mrs. Harris. The manuscript pages disappeared. The lost book of Lehi is still missing; it has never been restored to the Book of Mormon. As the…
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The Mormon Doctrine of Materiality
On May 21, 1845 an article on the nature of God, man, and angels appeared in the LDS publication the “Prophet.” Understood to have been written by the editor, LDS Apostle Parley P. Pratt, the article was reprinted in the 1903 book Mormon Doctrine of Deity by B. H. Roberts. Mr. Roberts identified this article,…
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Governor Boggs vs. the Mormons
Last week, on July 24th, the state of Utah and Mormons everywhere celebrated Pioneer Day, the anniversary of the 1847 arrival of the Mormons to the Salt Lake Valley. I’ve been reading newspaper articles reporting on various celebrations from all over the country. One from Puyallup, Washington got me curious. In the article, while briefly…
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The Book of Mormon in Context
“The possibility of finding buried treasure fascinated many in late eighteenth- and early nineteenth-century America. Reports of searching for such riches were widespread in the Palmyra [New York] area, and extant accounts show that treasure was generally sought through supernatural means. Locations for buried wealth and lost Spanish mines were sometimes located through dreams. Treasures…
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The Bible Through Mormon Eyes
The LDS Church embraces four volumes as scripture: the Bible, the Book of Mormon, Doctrine and Covenants, and Pearl of Great Price. Following are ten statements from Mormon sources explaining how the LDS Church and its members view the Bible. “I believe the Bible as it read when it came from the pen of the…
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Joseph Smith’s 1832 Handwritten History
One hundred and seventy-six years ago yesterday (that is, on July 20, 1832) Joseph Smith began writing a history of his life. This was his first attempt at recording his history. He worked on it for several months while living in Kirtland, Ohio, but abandoned the project in November of the same year. The account…