Here’s Part One: There is One God
Mormons claim that the Old Testament and New Testament are
incomplete.
They claim that after Jesus spent time in
Jerusalem
,
he spent time with American Indians. The time that he spent here in the
Americas
is recorded in the Book of Mormon.
According to them, there isn’t 1 book authoritative for
daily living… there are 4. The Bible, The Book of Mormon, the
Pearl
of Great Price, and Doctrine and Covenants.
How do we know that
these aren’t true and the Bible is true?
Refutations of the Book of Mormon (Source)
– The Book of Abraham, from Egyptian papyrus
scrolls which came into his possession in 1835. He stated that the scrolls were
written by the biblical Abraham "by his own hand." Smith’s
translation is now accepted as scripture by the LDS church, as part of its Pearl
of Great Price. Smith also produced an "Egyptian Grammar"
based on his translation. Modern scholars of ancient Egyptian agree that the
scrolls are common Egyptian funeral scrolls, entirely pagan in nature, having
nothing to do with Abraham, and from a period 2000 years later than Abraham.
The "Grammar" has been said by Egyptologists to prove that Smith had
no notion of the Egyptian language. It is pure fantasy: he made it up.
– The "Kinderhook Plates," a group of six metal
plates with strange engraved characters, unearthed in 1843 near
Kinderhook
,
Illinois
, and examined by Smith, who began
a "translation" of them. He never completed the translation, but he
identified the plates as an "ancient record," and translated enough
to identify the author as a descendant of Pharaoh. Local farmers later
confessed that they had manufactured, engraved and buried the plates themselves
as a hoax. They had apparently copied the characters from a Chinese tea box.
– The people of the Book of Mormon were supposedly
devout Jews observing the Law of Moses, but in the Book of Mormon there
is almost no trace of their observance of Mosaic law or even an accurate
knowledge of it.
– The only persons who claimed to have actually seen the
gold plates were eleven close friends of Smith (many of them related to each
other). Their testimonies are printed in the front of every copy of the Book
of Mormon. No disinterested third party was ever allowed to examine them.
They were retrieved by the angel at some unrecorded point. Most of the
witnesses later abandoned Smith and left his movement. Smith then called them
"liars."
– Many doctrines which were once taught by the LDS
church, and held to be fundamental, essential and "eternal", have
been abandoned. Whether we feel that the church was correct in abandoning them
is not the point; rather, the point is that a church claiming to be the
church
of
God
takes one
"everlasting" position at one time and the opposite position at
another, all the time claiming to be proclaiming the word of God.
o The
Adam-God doctrine (Adam is God the Father); NOTES
– the United Order (all property of church members is to be held in
common, with title in the church);
– Plural Marriage (polygamy; a man must have more than one wife to attain
the highest degree of heaven); NOTES
– the Curse of Cain (the black race is not entitled to hold God’s
priesthood because it is cursed; this doctrine was not abandoned until
1978); NOTES
– Blood Atonement (some sins – apostasy, adultery, murder, interracial
marriage – must be atoned for by the shedding of the sinner’s blood, preferably
by someone appointed to do so by church authorities); NOTES
Refutations of the Bible
Self-claims: 2 Timothy 3:16
External claims:
– Josephus and others
– Significant archaeological finds
– Fulfilled prophesy
– Singularity in theme
o 40
authors
o 2000
years
o One
theme
We don’t hold the
Bible to be true… useful for teaching, correcting, and training because we
think it is true… we have solid evidence.
How do we know the Book of Mormon and other Mormon
“scriptures” are false?
– Self-claims = FALSE
– External evidence = FALSE
– Fulfilled Prophesy = FALSE
– Singularity of theme = FALSE
So, how do I respond to Mormons— how do I deal with them
practically?
- Share
truth gently - Don’t
argue, just pray for them - Encourage
them to find truth on their own in the Bible
SMALL GROUP TIME
– Why does it matter that the Bible is absolutely true?
– Why aren’t we comfortable with the Book of Mormon being
false?
– What is one thing that you heard tonight and thought “I
need to know more about that?”
YOUR LIFE AS
A MORMON (Source)
If you should decide to become a member of the LDS church, you should be
aware of what your life in the church will be like. Although you will find
yourself warmly accepted by a lively community of healthy, active and generally
supportive people, many of whom are very happy in Mormonism and could not
imagine their lives without it, there is another side:
- You will be continually
reminded that to enter the highest degree of heaven (the "Celestial
Kingdom
to go through the endowment ceremony in the temple and have your marriage
to your Mormon spouse "sealed." (If your spouse is not Mormon,
or if you are not married, you cannot enter the highest degree of heaven.)
To get permission to have these ceremonies performed in the temple, you
must prove yourself to be a faithful and obedient member of the church and
do everything commanded by the church authorities, from the Prophet down
to the local level. You will have to undergo a personal
"worthiness" interview with the local church authorities
inquiring into your private life and your religious and social activities.
NOTES
- You will be expected to
donate at least ten percent of your income to the church as tithing. Other
donations will be expected as the need arises. You will never see an
accounting of how this money is spent, or how much the church receives, or
anything at all about its financial condition; the church keeps its
finances secret, even from its members. NOTES - You will be expected to give
up the use of alcohol, tobacco, coffee, and tea. NOTES - You will be expected to
fulfill any work assignment given to you. These assignments may be
teaching, record keeping, janitorial work, cannery or farm work, helping
in the Sunday nursery – any job that needs to be done. Each task you perform
successfully will make you eligible for others, with more responsibility
and more demands upon your time. The members who perform these jobs, even
those involving sensitive pastoral counseling, receive no formal training
whatsoever (there is no paid, trained clergy). You will be told that God
has called you to your assignments. Many Mormons find much of their spare
time taken up with church work, trying to fulfill the numerous assignments
that have been given them. - You will be expected to be
unquestioningly obedient to church authorities in whatever they might tell
you to do. "Follow the Brethren" is the slogan, and it means to
follow without doubt or question. Discussion of whether a decree from
above is correct is discouraged. You will be expected to have faith that
the leaders cannot possibly lead you astray. Even if they should tell you
something which contradicts what a previous prophet may have said, you
will be told "A living prophet takes precedence over a dead
prophet." NOTES - You will be able to
"vote" on those who have been called to positions of authority
over you, but the voting will be by the show of hands in a public meeting.
Only one candidate for each office will be voted on (the one "called
by God"). The voting is therefore almost always unanimous in favor of
the candidate. - You will be advised not to
read any material which is "not faith-promoting," that is, which
may be critical or questioning of the church or its leaders, or which
might place the church or its leaders in an unfavorable light. - You will be advised not to
associate with "apostates," that is, former Mormons. (You will
be asked in your "worthiness" interview about this.)
NOTES - If you are unmarried, you
will be encouraged to marry a good Mormon as soon as possible. When you do
marry, in a wedding ceremony in the temple, your non-Mormon family members
and friends will not be allowed to attend the ceremony, because only
"worthy" Mormons are allowed to enter the temple. - If you are homosexual, you
will be pressured to abandon this "evil" aspect of your nature.
If you do not, you will probably not be fully accepted by other church
members. If you do not remain celibate, you may be excommunicated.
NOTES - If you are a male over 12
years of age and "worthy" (that is, if you are obedient, attend
meetings, do not masturbate NOTES, etc.), you
will be ordained to one of the levels of priesthood, and, if you continue
to be faithful and obedient, you will gradually advance through the
priesthood ranks. If you are female, you will receive the benefits of
priesthood authority only indirectly, through your Mormon father or your
Mormon husband. The role of the Mormon woman is to be a wife and mother
and to obey and honor her priest husband (or father). NOTES - If you prove yourself to be
faithful, hard working and obedient, you will eventually be considered
worthy to "receive your endowment" in a Mormon temple. You will
not be told in advance exactly what to expect in this lengthy ceremony,
except that the details of the ritual are secret (Mormons prefer to say
they are just "sacred," but they treat them as though they are
secret). As part of that ceremony you will be required to swear a number
of oaths, the penalty for violation of which is no longer stated but until
1990 was death by various bloody methods, such as having your throat slit
from ear to ear. You will be given the secret signs and passwords which
are required to enter heaven. (Although most Mormons who have not received
the endowment know very little about the ceremony, the entire liturgy is
now available on the Internet to Mormon and non-Mormon alike.) After
receiving the endowment you will be required to wear a special
undergarment at all times. NOTES - If you should ever decide
that you made a mistake in joining the church and then leave it, you will
probably find (judging from the experiences of others who have done so)
that many of your Mormon friends will abandon and shun you. If you are
unable to convince your family members to leave the church with you, you
will find that the church has broken up your family and your relationship
with them may never recover. NOTES
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