Tag: god
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Revisiting a Fundamental Disagreement between Mormonism and Christianity
7 June 2019 About a year ago here at Mormonism in the News, I addressed an article about the doctrine of the Trinity by LDS scholar Daniel Peterson. Dr. Peterson has recently reposted his 2018 article. Because links to that recent repost keep popping up in my news feed, I thought it might be helpful…
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Mormonism and the Blossoming Rose of Isaiah 35:1
9 July 2018 An article appeared online last month that took a critical look at water usage in the state of Utah. Journalist Nathalie Baptiste wrote, “Utah is one of the driest states in the country, but you couldn’t tell by how much water its residents are using. The average American uses between 80 and…
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A Fundamental Disagreement between Mormonism and Christianity
On April 19th (2018) Deseret News published an article by Daniel Peterson in his “Defending the Faith” column that discusses the Trinity. Dr. Peterson begins, “A fundamental disagreement between Latter-day Saint Christianity and mainstream Christianity concerns the doctrine of the Trinity. Both outsiders and members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints themselves commonly say…
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The Supreme God of Mormonism
In its “Until We Meet Again” feature, the April 2017 issue of the LDS Church’s Ensign magazine includes an article titled, “The Power of God.” This is a 500-word excerpt from a longer (2300-word) General Conference address titled, “The Doctrine of the Priesthood.” Mormon apostle Bruce R. McConkie delivered this address in April 1982 during…
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Does the Bible Really Say That Jesus Is God?
This is one in a series of articles on the Christian doctrine of the Trinity. To see MRM’s website page on the Trinity to see other resources, please click here. The Bible teaches in many different ways that Jesus is God. It is the centerpiece of the Christian faith. Without this, Christians would be in error to…
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What is the early history of the Trinity?
This is one in a series of articles on the Christian doctrine of the Trinity. To see MRM’s website page on the Trinity to see other resources, please click here. By Eric Johnson Christians believe that the Trinity is originally taught in the Bible. However, the word “Trinity” did not come until later in Christian church history.…
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The Biblical Doctrine of the Trinity Index
En Español The biblical doctrine of the Trinity has been unduly criticized for many years. The objections by Mormons, Jehovah’s Witnesses, and Muslims might come in statements and questions like these: However, the Trinity is a vital doctrine in Christianity. (See The Athanasian Creed.) Without a proper understanding of this teaching, the biblical concept that there is one…
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The Possibility of Idolatry
Peter Leithart at First Things recently addressed the oft-heard claim that “Christians and Muslims worship the same God but understand God in partly different ways.” He explains, “Muslims and Christians indeed share certain beliefs, and it is, of course, possible to believe different things about the same person… “Yet the common beliefs of Muslims and…
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This is a Test: Joseph Smith and Deuteronomy 13
It had been a long forty years of wandering in the wilderness. God’s people Israel were finally nearing their Promised Land. Moses’ life was drawing to a close and the people were about to enter a new way of life under the untried leadership of Joshua. They needed to be prepared for what lay ahead.…
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Yahweh needs no Asherah
Yahweh needs no Asherah. He says to none, “You complete me.” He needs no partner. He needs no permission. He needs no counsel. He needs no counterpart. He needs no complement. He creates, not by sexual union or cooperation, but by the effortless, self-sufficient, raw power of his word. “I am the LORD, who made…
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Rejoinder to the Mormonism 201 Introduction (Schindler)
To visit the list of rejoinders, go here. The article by Schindler is word for word from the article posted in May 2003 and is both bold faced as well as italicized. When students enroll in a class called “101” they expect a comprehensive and sympathetic introduction to the subject at hand. For example, if…
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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:…
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The Lorenzo Snow Couplet’s Subordination & Dependence Dilemma for Mormons
Given both halves of the Lorenzo Snow couplet: “As man now is, God once was. As God now is, man may be.” (a) If we will forever be dependent on and subordinate to our God, then it stands to reason that God himself remains dependent on and subordinate to his own God (our Heavenly Grandfather).…
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Mormonism and the “Great Machine”
Mormonism’s “eternal law” is the creed of multiverse. Transcending all gods. Governed by no ultimate Persons. Impersonal. Cold. “Without body, parts, passions.” Incromprehensible. “Unknown and unknowable—formless, passionless, elusive, ethereal, simultaneously everywhere and nowhere.” All the gods must submit to it, abide by it, conform to it. “We were there and then (say) born in the express…
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Gospel Topics Essay: First Vision Accounts
A good Mormon will be able to explain Smith’s supposed vision of God the Father and Jesus. As part of the Gospel Topics Essay, Joseph Smith’s First Vision account is described and defended by the LDS Church. But what about the different accounts that provided contradictory details? Did Smith see angels or did he see God…
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Mormonism, the Bible, and God the Father
The January 2014 Ensign magazine includes an edited version of a General Conference talk given in 1986 by (now deceased) Gordon B. Hinckley of Mormonism’s First Presidency. The 2014 “Gospel Classic” is titled, “The Divine Godhead.” In it Mr. Hinckley explains what he believes about God the Father and relates an experience he had while…
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Gospel Topics Essay: Becoming Like God
In its fifth essay of a series published on lds.org meant to explain hard teachings, the issues of godhood and new worlds are discussed. “Becoming Like God” was first published on 2/25/2014, with the doctrines of preexistence and exaltation serving as the focal points. We have reprinted this entire article, with our commentary scattered throughout.…
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Trinity (Defined)
Trinity. In Mormonism the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost make up the Godhead. They are “one God” only in the sense that they are united in the attributes of perfection.” LDS Apostle Bruce McConkie called the Christian view of the Trinity “the chief and greatest heresy of Christendom” (Sermons and Writings of Bruce R. McConkie ,…
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A Mormon Apostle Explains the “Component Parts” of God
Foundational to the Mormon gospel is the existence of Heavenly Mother, the spouse and counterpart of Mormonism’s Heavenly Father. When Mormon Apostle Erastus Snow taught on this concept in 1878, he explained that God is a component being, consisting of both male and female “parts.” While Apostle Snow’s remarks could be misunderstood, I believe that…
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The “Most High” has potentially billions of ancestor-gods?
Mormon Jaxon Peterson argues that Israel was “monolatristic or henotheistic” for most of its existence and that “‘the highest’ does not denote status of authority of power, but rather the idea that God dwells above the Earth.” These are among the strongest LDS arguments against traditional Christian monotheism. How should Christians respond to this? Some…