Mormonism being the subject of tv drama in big love, with mormon matters hardly out of the press and a mormon running for the whitehouse you might be forgiven for. See page 9 of pdf document available at archived copy pdf. God used to be a man on another planet, mormon doctrine, p. Criticism of mormonismmormonism is a cultfurther reading. Cult introduces new and unusual beliefs, practices, values. Mormonism teaches that joseph smith brought a restoration of authority to christianity, as it had been lost soon after the death of jesus apostles. In recent month there has been much discussion in the media on the question of whether or not mormonism is a cult. Mormons express the doctrines of mormonism using standard biblical terminology and have similar. Aleksandra sandstrom is a copy editor focusing on religion at pew research center. Criticism of the church of jesus christ of latterday saints wikipedia. Prof of anthropology at weber state college, former asst editor of the byu univ arch soc newsletter, editor in 5861. Pdf on jan 1, 2015, lee trepanier and others published mormonism find, read. Lee, first published in 1877, just after the authors execution for his.
So, a closer look reveals that the concept of god taught by mormonism is quite di erent from the god of the bible. The lds church considers joseph smith, who founded mormonism, a prophet. Mormons place a very high value on good parenting and a. Mormonism is a freemasonry demonic cult founded in 1830 by charlatan, conman, sexpervert and 33rd degree freemason, joseph smith. I was pretty prickly about mormons being called a cult at the time, but 25. Mormonism is the predominant religious tradition of the latter day saint movement of.
Mormons call themselves christians, and they take exception to mormonism being called a cult. In order to understand mormonism from the historic christian perspective, we have to step beyond the highly professional facade that is presented to us in the lds ads. Note that all the documentation is taken from mormon writers and mormon scriptures. Contents contents about the author about the general editor about the managing editor about the research contributors publishers introduction general editor s introduction 1. Mormonism for dummies kindle edition by riess, jana.
Mormonism, also known as the church of jesus christ of latterday saints, claims to be the restoration of the true gospel and a revelation of the true god. The most commonly offered response by nonmormons was cult. Much controversy has occurred in recent years regarding how biblebelieving christians should view the teachings of the mormon church. Rod dreher is a senior editor at the american conservative.
By calling mormonism a cult, people who dislike or fear the mormon church, justify their fear. Find out about its teachings of men becoming gods, temples, the book of mormon, and joseph smith who claimed to have seen god the father. Mormonism the slop hog cult i consider mormonism the single most blasphemous cult claiming to be based on christian and bible truth. The purpose behind this paper is to show that many, if not all, objective cult definitions that can be applied to the lds faith can also be applied to christianity. For example, the aaronic and melchizedek priesthoods given to mormon males and the existence of a living prophet and living apostles who speak with scriptural authority set this religion apart. Russell ballard of the quorum of the twelve apostles of the church of jesus christ of latterday saints addresses the question of whether mormonism is a cult. How i escaped the mormon temple christianity today. The church of jesus christ of latterday saints lds church has been the subject of criticisms. This question has been the intermittent talking point in american politics. Doesnt give a complete true image of this dangerous cult. The british define a cult as a branch or division of a larger religious group, and a sect as an extreme or unorthodox group.
Mormonism calls this doctrine \celestial parentage. Church of jesus christ of latterday saints the mormons 7. Is mormonism a cult response to mette ivie harrison. A former missionary reveals the secrets of mormon mind control kindle edition by worthy, jack b download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. Jehovahs witnesses and the watchtower bible and tract society 6. A preacher had made a statement to that effect, and though he soon. I had been a trueblue mormon for over thirty years before i found the absolute proof that the mormon church is a cult. Though i disagree with a lot of the nonmormon ministries that mock mormons, i do appreciate. I love the people who claim mormonism is a fraud, but then they believe a human being of flesh and blood died for 3 days, then came back alive and walked. Mormonism for dummies by jana riess, christopher kimball bigelow.
However, most religious groups that start as cults fail to. Christianity these are themes i heard from my pastor years ago who ranted against mormon beliefs and the menace of mormonism, but i could. Michael langone, editor of cultic studies journal compiled a list of characteristics to help. When a person wants to know more about mormonism and meets with mormon missionaries, the missionaries teach mormonisms basic beliefs and encourage the investigator to read the book of.
The cult mormonism mormonism is a dirty religion a. The current manifestations of sectarian antimormonism are. Forget the fact that he neglected to state that mormonism is a cult, even worse he tried to throw a professor of theology under the bus by saying it was his corse that stated mormonism is a cult. Two simple questions to prove that mormonism is a cult. See sharp press, 2008 isbn 1884365442 isbn 9781884365447 includes. Roman catholics, like the members of other cults, need to be treated with compassion, warned of cultic lies, and presented with the true gospel which alone can save them. Articles that perpetuate the belief that the lds faith is a cult only serve to elicit. Brown and his family are members of a fundamentalist sect, the apos. Not lies and rhetoric from angry ministers threatened by mormon success, but cold. But this question was asked before it became political and will be asked long after the fleeting. Mario barnes for his guidance and direction, and the editors and staff of the. Much controversy has occurred in recent years regarding how biblebelieving christians should view the teachings of the.
Newswander is a lecturer of political science at the university of south. Mormonism for dummies kindle edition by riess, jana, bigelow, christopher kimball. Mormonism, also called the church of jesus christ of latterday saints lds, teaches the following nonchristian, nonbiblical doctrines. Michael langone, editor of cultic studies journal compiled a list of characteristics to help define a cult. Mormons follow a strict healthy lifestyle that doesnt allow them to consume alcohol, tobacco, coffee or tea.
Included in the standard list are mormonism, jehovahs witnesses, christian science, unity school of christianity, sun myung moons unification church, etc. Lee trepanier is editor inchief of voegelinview and professor of political science at samford university. In a recent blog post, mormon author mette ivie harrison asks whether mormonism is a cult. Mormonism for dummies kindle edition by riess, jana, bigelow. Books on the book of mormon 19892011 by an authorized editor of byu scholarsarchive.
Mormonism acknowledges the divinity of christ, but as noted above, mormon doctrine on what constitutes divinity falls seriously short of the biblical standard. The cult awareness and information centre also point to comments such as those made by church leader. Mormonism cult mormonism, the mormon church, beliefs. If mormonism does not fall within the parameters of christianity, then what is it. Regarding mormonism, steve has an article on his blog entitled an expert responds to the cult controversy re. Though most people reject that claim as extravagant, they are left with the impression that mormonism is simply an extreme form of. Recently updated, each article has new material in it, and media.
On a friday in january 2006, at home in alpine, utah, i received a phone call from my third son, micah, that changed my life. If we use this definition, we can say that initially mormonism was a cult, because it challenged and broke away from the existing religious traditions. If you are concerned about the growing cooperation between catholic organizations and major evangelical. Antimormonism and the newfangled countercult culture. Since they are masonic in nature, the fbi hires a higher percentage of mormons from the ladder day saints church. Mormonism as christian because the lds church insists that it is the only true church on earth. The mormons deny the trinity and the existence of a literal burning hell, yet they promote polytheism many gods, baptism for the dead, and the notion that jesus and satan were originally spirit brothers. My family and i loved living in zion, the result of a decision that. Cult teaches only it possesses ultimate truth and leaving will put physical, mental and spiritual health at risk.
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