Category: Mormonism
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M. Russell Ballard (1928-2023)
M. Russell Ballard (1928-2023), a prominent leader in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, served as an apostle and President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles.
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The LDS Church’s Groundless Celebration of Moroni’s Visitation
Church News, a weekly publication by and about The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, recently noted, “The gospel Restoration [Mormonism] started on Sept. 21, 1823, when a heavenly messenger appeared to Joseph Smith and said: ‘My name is Moroni. Let’s get to work’” (as paraphrased by LDS church historian Kyle McKay in Church News,…
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Mormonism’s “Only True Church” Doctrine “Does Not Feel Loving.”
Earlier this month LDSLiving online posted an article titled, “What does it mean to believe the Church is ‘true’?” In this article, LDS author and historian Kate Holbrook (1972-2002) began by presenting two questions posed to her by a friend who was relatively new to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Dr. Holbrook…
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How to Insult an Ex-Mormon
Note: The following was originally printed in the May/June 2023 edition of Mormonism Researched, sent bimonthly to financial supporters of MRM. To request a free subscription to Mormonism Researched, please visit here. Not only have I had the honor of serving our gracious Lord as a missionary to the LDS people for over 40 years, but I…
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The Friction Between Isaac Hale and His Son-in-Law Joseph Smith
Note: The following was originally printed in the February 2023 edition of MRM Update., sent bimonthly to financial supporters of MRM. To request a free subscription to Mormonism Researched, please visit here. Isaac and Elizabeth Hale were married in 1790 and raised their family in an area then known as Harmony, Pennsylvania, located about 17 miles from…
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LDS Leaders Want Mormons To Make Informed Decisions – Sometimes
This month (June 2023) the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints wrote and released a letter to be read during sacrament meetings (Sunday church services) to LDS church members in the United States. The letter, signed by President Russell M. Nelson and his two counselors (President Dallin Oaks and President…
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Onward and Upward: The LDS Church’s Parable of the Slope
In late May The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints released a new video, “The Parable of the Slope.” This video is a condensed/edited version of a General Conference talk given by LDS General Authority Seventy Clark G. Gilbert in October 2021. The church has taken the main talking points from Mr. Gilbert’s address…
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LDS Apostle Names the Most Remarkable Thing in the History of the World
M. Russell Ballard, the President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, recently gave an address to church members and missionaries in Canada. Church News reports that in his talk, President Ballard identified “the most remarkable thing in the history of the world.” As a self-identified apostle…
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Is Divine Revelation Like Milk That Spoils?
Aaron critiques Allen D. Haynie’s view that ancient prophets are not superior to modern ones, emphasizing that for Christians, the teachings of ancient prophets, rooted in God’s unchanging and inerrant word, grow sweeter over time, in contrast to Mormonism’s fluctuating and evolving doctrines.
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On David Alexander, Evangelical Convert to Mormonism
David Alexander claims to have found true spiritual authority in the LDS Church after years of seeking it within evangelicalism, but his views on authority, the Bible, and faith reveal a fundamental misunderstanding of Christian doctrine.
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Mormonism’s “We’re Not Weird” Campaign
Once upon a time The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints freely identified itself as being different. In 1976, the man who became the church’s 15th president wrote, “Suffice it to say that [the LDS church’s] theology, its organization, and its practices are in many respects entirely unique among today’s Christian denominations” (Gordon B. Hinckley, What of…
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New LDS Easter Video Means To Offer Hope, but It Doesn’t Deliver.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints released a new Easter video last week. Titled “Rise,” the 1-minute 43-second video is described in a church news release as portraying “some of the challenges of life and the hope and help that Jesus Christ brings to those who follow Him” (“New Easter Video from Church…
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Revised LDS Temple Endowment Ceremony Now Includes More Pictures of Jesus
21 February 2023 I love to see the temple.I’ll go inside someday.I’ll cov’nant with my Father;I’ll promise to obey. “I love to See the Temple” is a popular Primary song in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Kids as young as three years old sing about preparing themselves to attend an LDS temple…
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The “Completely False” Rationale for Mormonism’s Restoration
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints struggles to explain past teachings about a universal Christian apostasy.
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LDS Church Corrects Perceived Improprieties in Classical Religious Art
2 January 2023 Just shy of 400 years ago, in the 1650s, Italian artist Carlo Maratta painted “The Holy Night,” a tender, nighttime depiction of Madonna and Child. In the painting, said to have been inspired by Correggio’s “Nativity,” the young Virgin Mary looks with adoration at her newborn babe from whom light seems to…