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Revision as of 21:54, 27 April 2014
- REDIRECTTemplate:Test3
Analysis of books critical of Mormonism
Topics
A
Response to claims made in American Massacre: The Tragedy at Mountain Meadows, a work by author Sally Denton
Jump to details:
- Response to claims made in American Massacre: The Tragedy at Mountain Meadows, "Chapter 1: Palmyra, 1823"
- Response to claims made in American Massacre: The Tragedy at Mountain Meadows, "Chapter 2: Kirtland/Far West, 1831"
- Response to claims made in American Massacre: The Tragedy at Mountain Meadows, "Chapter 3: Nauvoo, 1840"
- Response to claims made in American Massacre: The Tragedy at Mountain Meadows, "Chapter Four: Winter Quarters—Council Bluffs, 1846"
- Response to claims made in American Massacre: The Tragedy at Mountain Meadows, "Chapter 5: Salt Lake City, August 24, 1849"
- Response to claims made in American Massacre: The Tragedy at Mountain Meadows, "Chapter 6: Sevier River, October 26, 1853"
- Response to claims made in American Massacre: The Tragedy at Mountain Meadows, "Chapter 7: Harrison, March 29, 1857"
- Response to claims made in American Massacre: The Tragedy at Mountain Meadows, "Chapter 8: Deseret, August 3, 1857"
- Response to claims made in American Massacre: The Tragedy at Mountain Meadows, "Chapter 9"
- Response to claims made in American Massacre: The Tragedy at Mountain Meadows, "Chapter 10: Mountain Meadows, September 7-11, 1857"
- Response to claims made in American Massacre: The Tragedy at Mountain Meadows, "Chapter 11: Deseret, September 12, 1857"
- Response to claims made in American Massacre: The Tragedy at Mountain Meadows, "Chapter 12: Camp Scott, November 16, 1857"
- Response to claims made in American Massacre: The Tragedy at Mountain Meadows, "Chapter 13: Cedar City, April 7, 1859"
- Response to claims made in American Massacre: The Tragedy at Mountain Meadows, "Chapter 14: Mountain Meadows, May 25, 1861"
- Response to claims made in American Massacre: The Tragedy at Mountain Meadows, "Chapter 15: Mountain Meadows, March 23, 1877"
- Response to claims made in American Massacre: The Tragedy at Mountain Meadows, "Chapter 16: Mountain Meadows Aftermath"
Response to claims made in An Insider's View of Mormon Origins by Grant Palmer
Summary: In Insider's View of Mormon Origins was developed during a period of time that its author worked as a teacher in the Church Educational System (CES), and was published after the author's retirement from Church employment. The book attempts to explain many otherwise clearly described events of the restoration by reinterpreting them as spiritual rather than physical events.
Jump to details:
- Response to claims made in An Insider's View of Mormon Origins, "Chapter 1: Joseph Smith as Translator/Revelator"
- Response to claims made in An Insider's View of Mormon Origins, "Chapter 2: Authorship of the Book of Mormon"
- Response to claims made in An Insider's View of Mormon Origins, "Chapter 3: The Bible in the Book of Mormon"
- Response to claims made in An Insider's View of Mormon Origins, "Chapter 4: Evangelical Protestantism in the Book of Mormon"
- Response to claims made in An Insider's View of Mormon Origins, "Chapter 5: Moroni and 'The Golden Pot'"
- Response to claims made in An Insider's View of Mormon Origins, "Chapter 6: Witnesses to the Golden Plates"
- Response to claims made in An Insider's View of Mormon Origins, "Chapter 7: Priesthood Restoration"
- Response to claims made in An Insider's View of Mormon Origins, "Chapter 8: The First Vision"
- Response to claims made in An Insider's View of Mormon Origins, "Conclusion"
Answering Mormon Scholars by Jerald and Sandra Tanner
Answering Mormon Scholars (Vol. 2) by Jerald and Sandra Tanner
Archaeology and the Book of Mormon by Jerald and Sandra Tanner
B
Response to claims made in Becoming Gods: A Closer Look at 21st-Century Mormonism by Richard Abanes
Summary: This book could best be described as an Evangelical apologetic work against Mormonism. The book spends much time refuting LDS interpretation of scriptural passages in the Bible, often claiming that Mormons have misinterpreted the scriptures and that they require "deeper study." In fact, it is claimed that LDS scholars have only a superficial knowledge of the scriptures, at one time stating that "[p]roperly interpreting them is not as simple as reading today's newspaper"
Jump to details:
- Response to claims made in Becoming Gods, "Preface: Can't We All Just Get Along?"
- Response to claims made in Becoming Gods, "Chapter 1: God's Latter-Day Prophet"
- Response to claims made in Becoming Gods, "Chapter 2: And it Came to Pass"
- Response to claims made in Becoming Gods, "Chapter 3: Thus Saith Joseph"
- Response to claims made in Becoming Gods, "Chapter 4: One God Versus Many Gods"
- Response to claims made in Becoming Gods, "Chapter 5: Heavenly Father is a Man"
- Response to claims made in Becoming Gods, "Chapter 6: Siblings from Eternity Past"
- Response to claims made in Becoming Gods, "Chapter 7: After All We Can Do"
- Response to claims made in Becoming Gods, "Chapter 8: Ye Are Gods"
- Response to claims made in Becoming Gods, "Chapter 9: More Than One Wife"
- Response to claims made in Becoming Gods, "Chapter 10: The 'Christian' Question"
Response to claims made in "Blood of the Prophets: Brigham Young and the Massacre at Mountain Meadows" by Will Bagley
Jump to details:
- Response to claims made in Blood of the Prophets, "Front matter"
- Response to claims made in Blood of the Prophets, "Chapter 1: Their Innocent Blood Will Cry unto the Lord of Hosts"
- Response to claims made in Blood of the Prophets, "Chapter 2: The Battle-Ax of the Lord"
- Response to claims made in Blood of the Prophets, "Chapter 3: Political Hacks, Robbers, and Whoremongers"
- Response to claims made in Blood of the Prophets, "Chapter 4: The Arkansas Travelers"
- Response to claims made in Blood of the Prophets, "Chapter 5: I Will Fight Them and I Will Fight All Hell"
- Response to claims made in Blood of the Prophets, "Chapter 6: We Are American Citizens and Shall Not Move"
- Response to claims made in Blood of the Prophets, "Chapter 7: The Knife and Tomahawk"
- Response to claims made in Blood of the Prophets, "Chapter 8: The Work of Death"
- Response to claims made in Blood of the Prophets, "Chapter 9: The Scene of Blood and Carnage"
- Response to claims made in Blood of the Prophets, "Chapter 10: Plunder"
- Response to claims made in Blood of the Prophets, "Chapter 11: All Hell Is in Commotion"
- Response to claims made in Blood of the Prophets, "Chapter 12: I Have Slain My Children"
- Response to claims made in Blood of the Prophets, "Chapter 13: Vengeance Is Mine"
- Response to claims made in Blood of the Prophets, "Chapter 14: A Hideous Lethargic Dream"
- Response to claims made in Blood of the Prophets, "Chapter 15: Lonely Dell"
- Response to claims made in Blood of the Prophets, "Chapter 16: As False as the Hinges of Hell: The Trials of John D. Lee"
- Response to claims made in Blood of the Prophets, "Chapter 17: He Died Game: The Execution of John D. Lee"
- Response to claims made in Blood of the Prophets, "Chapter 18: The Mountain Meadow Dogs"
- Response to claims made in Blood of the Prophets, "Chapter 19: Nothing but the Truth Is Good Enough"
- Response to claims made in Blood of the Prophets, "Epilogue: The Ghosts of Mountain Valley"
- Responses to claims made in Blood of the Prophets, "Appendix"
Response to claims made in "By His Own Hand upon Papyrus: A New Look at the Joseph Smith Papyri" by Charles Larson
Jump to details:
- Response to claims made in By His Own Hand upon Papyrus, "Chapter 3: Charges and Rebuttals"
- An analysis of the Charles M. Larson restoration of Facsimile 1 compared against the original papyrus
C
Response to claims made in Covering Up the Black Hole in the Book of Mormon by Jerald and Sandra Tanner
Jump to details:
- Tom Nibley, "A Look at Jerald and Sandra Tanner's Covering Up the Black Hole in the Book of Mormon"
- L. Ara Norwood, "Review of Jerald and Sandra Tanner, Covering Up the Black Hole in the Book of Mormon"
- Matthew Roper, "Review of Jerald and Sandra Tanner, Covering Up the Black Hole in the Book of Mormon"
- John A. Tvedtnes, "Review of Jerald and Sandra Tanner, Covering Up the Black Hole in the Book of Mormon"
D
Decker's Complete Handbook on Mormonism by Ed Decker
Deconstructing Mormonism by Thomas Riskas
Do Christians Believe in Three Gods by RBC Ministries
Summary: This article is in response to a pamphlet that attempts to explain LDS beliefs to non-LDS readers. Unfortunately, the pamphlet sometimes misrepresents LDS beliefs and uses standard anti-Mormon arguments to make its point.E
Early Mormonism and the Magic World View by D. Michael Quinn
- Index of claims—
Brief Summary: Responses to specific critical or unsupported claims made in Early Mormonism and the Magic World View indexed by page number. (Click here for full article)∗ ∗ ∗ - Use of sources—
Brief Summary: An examination and response to how the author of Early Mormonism and the Magic World View interprets the sources used to support this work, indexed by page number. (Click here for full article)∗ ∗ ∗ - Apologetics—
Brief Summary: Throughout the revised edition, the author often refers to the efforts of LDS apologetics related to his own works. He appears to have a particular issue with a review of the first edition of Early Mormonism and the Magic World View written by LDS scholar Bill Hamblin. This page addresses specific claims made by the author related to LDS apologetics. (Click here for full article)∗ ∗ ∗
- Index of claims—
I
Inside Today's Mormonism by Richard Abanes
Summary: This book is a 2007 re-issue of Becoming Gods.L
Letters to a Mormon Elder by James White
Losing a Lost Tribe: Native Americans, DNA, and the Mormon Church by Simon G. Southerton
- Index of claims—
Brief Summary: Responses to specific critical or unsupported claims made in Losing a Lost Tribe: Native Americans, DNA, and the Mormon Church indexed by page number. (Click here for full article)∗ ∗ ∗ - Use of sources—
Brief Summary: An examination and response to how the author of Losing a Lost Tribe: Native Americans, DNA, and the Mormon Church interprets the sources used to support this work, indexed by page number. (Click here for full article)∗ ∗ ∗
- Index of claims—
M
Response to claims made in "Mormonism 101" by Bill McKeever and Eric Johnson
Jump to details:
- Introduction to Mormonism 101: Back to School by David Waltz
- Response to claims made in Mormonism 101, "Chapter 1: God the Father"
- Response to claims made in Mormonism 101, "Chapter 2: Jesus"
- Response to claims made in Mormonism 101, "Chapter 3: The Trinity"
- Response to claims made in Mormonism 101, "Chapter 4: Preexistence and the Second Estate"
- Response to claims made in Mormonism 101, "Chapter 5: The Fall"
- Response to claims made in Mormonism 101, "Chapter 6: Apostasy"
- Response to claims made in Mormonism 101, "Chapter 7: The Bible"
- Response to claims made in Mormonism 101, "Chapter 8: The Book of Mormon"
- Response to claims made in Mormonism 101, "Chapter 9: The Doctrine and Covenants and the Pearl of Great Price"
- Response to claims made in Mormonism 101, "Chapter 10: The Atonement"
- Response to claims made in Mormonism 101, "Chapter 11: Grace and Works"
- Response to claims made in Mormonism 101, "Chapter 12: Heaven and Hell"
- Response to claims made in Mormonism 101, "Chapter 13: Communion and Baptism"
- Response to claims made in Mormonism 101, "Chapter 14: The Word of Wisdom"
- Response to claims made in Mormonism 101, "Chapter 15: The Temple"
- Response to claims made in Mormonism 101, "Chapter 16: Lamanites, Seed of Cain, and Polygamy"
- Response to claims made in Mormonism 101, "Chapter 17: Joseph Smith"
- Response to claims made in Mormonism 101, "Chapter 18: The Church and Its Leadership"
- Response to Mormonism 101, Quote mining
- About this work
Response to claims made in Mormonism: Shadow or Reality by Jerald and Sandra Tanner
Jump to details:
Response to claims made in Mormonism Unmasked by R. Philip Roberts
Jump to details:
- Response to claims made in Mormonism Unmasked, "Chapter 1: Mormons on Your Doorstep"
- Response to claims made in Mormonism Unmasked, "Chapter 2: The Marketing of an Image"
- Response to claims made in Mormonism Unmasked, "Chapter 3: The Making of a Religion"
- Response to claims made in Mormonism Unmasked, "Chapter 4: Polytheism Reborn"
- Response to claims made in Mormonism Unmasked, "Chapter 5: Confronting the Mormon Jesus"
- Response to claims made in Mormonism Unmasked, "Chapter 6: This is Good News?"
- Response to claims made in Mormonism Unmasked, "Chapter 7: Revealing Revelations"
- Response to claims made in Mormonism Unmasked, "Chapter 8: Jesus Is Coming Again"
- Response to claims made in Mormonism Unmasked, "Chapter 9: By Whose Authority?"
- Response to claims made in Mormonism Unmasked, "Chapter 10: Meeting the Mormon Challenge"
- Louis Midgley, "Orders of Submission: Review of essays on Mormonism. Southern Baptist Journal of Theology 9/2 (Summer 2005): 1–81."
Response to claims made in Mormonism Unvailed by Eber D. Howe
Jump to details:
Response to Mormon America: The Power and the Promise, a work by Richard N. Ostling and Joan K. Ostling
Jump to details:
- Response to claims made in Mormon America: "Introduction: A New World Faith"
- Response to claims made in Mormon America "Chapter 1: Sealed with Blood"
- Response to claims made in Mormon America "Chapter 2: Beginnings: A Very American Gospel"
- Response to claims made in Mormon America "Chapter 3: The American Exodus"
- Response to claims made in Mormon America "Chapter 4: Polygamy Then and Now"
- Response to claims made in Mormon America "Chapter 5: Redefining the Kingdom of God"
- Response to claims made in Mormon America "Chapter 6: Almost Mainstream"
- Response to claims made in Mormon America "Chapter 7: Mormons, Inc."
- Response to claims made in Mormon America "Chapter 8: Some Latter-day Stars"
- Response to claims made in Mormon America "Chapter 9: The Power Pyramid"
- Response to claims made in Mormon America "Chapter 10: Families Forever"
- Response to claims made in Mormon America "Chapter 11: A Peculiar People"
- Response to claims made in Mormon America "Chapter 12: Rituals Sacred and Secret"
- Response to claims made in Mormon America "Chapter 13: Two by Two"
- Response to claims made in Mormon America "Chapter 14: Saintly Indoctrination"
- Response to claims made in Mormon America "Chapter 15: Faithful History"
- Response to claims made in Mormon America "Chapter 16: The Gold Bible"
- Response to claims made in Mormon America "Chapter 17: Discovering 'Plain and Precious Things'"
- Response to claims made in Mormon America "Chapter 18: 'How God Came to Be God'"
- Response to claims made in Mormon America "Chapter 19: Are Mormons Christians? Are Non-Mormons Christians?"
- Response to claims made in Mormon America "Chapter 20: Rivals and Antagonists"
- Response to claims made in Mormon American "Chapter 21: Dissenters and Exiles"
- Response to claims made in Mormon America "Chapter 22: Mormonism in the Twenty-first Century"
- Quote mining, misrepresentation and manipulation in Mormon America: The Power and the Promise
N
Response to claims made in Nauvoo Polygamy: "... but we called it celestial marriage" by George D. Smith
Jump to details:
- Response to claims made in Nauvoo Polygamy, "Preface"
- Response to claims made in Nauvoo Polygamy, "Chapter 1" (pp. 1-25)
- Response to claims made in Nauvoo Polygamy, "Chapter 1" (pp. 26-51)
- Response to claims made in Nauvoo Polygamy, "Chapter 2" (pp. 52-158)
- Response to claims made in Nauvoo Polygamy, "Chapter 2" (pp. 81-158)
- Response to claims made in Nauvoo Polygamy, "Chapter 3" (pp. 159-240)
- Response to claims made in Nauvoo Polygamy, "Chapter 4" (pp. 241-324)
- Response to claims made in Nauvoo Polygamy, "Chapter 5"
- Response to claims made in Nauvoo Polygamy, "Chapter 6"
- Response to claims made in Nauvoo Polygamy, "Chapter 7"
- Response to claims made in Nauvoo Polygamy, "Chapter 8"
- Nauvoo Polygamy: Use of sources
- Nauvoo Polygamy: Loaded and prejudicial language
- Nauvoo Polygamy: Presentism
- Nauvoo Polygamy: Mind reading
- Nauvoo Polygamy: Censorship
- Nauvoo Polygamy: Romance
- Nauvoo Polygamy: Assumptions and presumptions
- Nauvoo Polygamy: Magick
- About this work
- Reviews of this Work
O
Response to claims made in One Nation Under Gods by Richard Abanes
Summary: In early 2002 a new book entitled One Nation under Gods (ONUG) appeared on bookshelves, promising to tell the "real" history of the Mormon Church. The author attempts to pull disparate sources together to paint a picture that, when compared to objective reality, more closely resembles a Picasso than a Rembrandt—skewed and distorted—obscuring and maligning the actual doctrines and beliefs as understood and practiced by members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for more than 150 years. FairMormon's original review of One Nation Under Gods was of the original 2002 hardback edition. The author has responded that there were editorial problems with this edition. We acknowledge that corrections were made in the paperback edition released in 2003 in response to some of the original reviews. Consequently, all previous FairMormon reviews have been edited for accuracy and tone, and the paperback edition of this work has been evaluated on its own merits. (It should be noted that the corrected paperback edition bears no markings indicating that it is a second edition or an updated edition; it simply appears as a paperback edition of the original.) This is an index of claims made in this work with links to corresponding responses. An effort has been made to provide the author's original sources where possible. In the subarticles linked below the hardback edition is represented by "HB" and the paperback edition by "PB."
Jump to details:
- Response to claims made in One Nation Under Gods, "Introduction: A Thread of Prophecy"
- Response to claims made in One Nation Under Gods, "Chapter 1: Vagabond Visionaries"
- Response to claims made in One Nation Under Gods, "Chapter 2: Moroni, Magic, and Masonry"
- Response to claims made in One Nation Under Gods, "Chapter 3: From Profit to Prophet"
- Response to claims made in One Nation Under Gods, "Chapter 4: Smith's Golden Book"
- Response to claims made in One Nation Under Gods, "Chapter 5: People of Zion"
- Response to claims made in One Nation Under Gods, "Chapter 6: No Rest for the Righteous"
- Response to claims made in One Nation Under Gods, "Chapter 7: Woe In Ohio"
- Response to claims made in One Nation Under Gods, "Chapter 8: Big Trouble In Little Missouri"
- Response to claims made in One Nation Under Gods, "Chapter 9: March to Martyrdom"
- Response to claims made in One Nation Under Gods, "Chapter 10: A New Beginning"
- Response to claims made in One Nation Under Gods, "Chapter 11: Bloody Brigham"
- Response to claims made in One Nation Under Gods, "Chapter 12: Wars and Rumors of Wars"
- Response to claims made in One Nation Under Gods, "Chapter 13: Unholy Matrimony"
- Response to claims made in One Nation Under Gods, "Chapter 14: The Politics of Compromise"
- Response to claims made in One Nation Under Gods, "Chapter 15: Making the Transition"
- Response to claims made in One Nation Under Gods, "Chapter 16: Mormon Racism: Black Is Not Beautiful"
- Response to claims made in One Nation Under Gods, "Chapter 17: Is Mormonism Christian"
- Response to claims made in One Nation Under Gods, "Chapter 18: Cover-Ups, Conspiracies, and Controversies"
- Response to claims made in One Nation Under Gods, "Postscript" (paperback only)
- Response to claims made in One Nation Under Gods, "Appendix A: Abraham's Book?"
- Response to claims made in One Nation Under Gods, "Appendix B: Failed Joseph Smith Prophecies"
- Response to claims made in One Nation Under Gods, "Appendix C: Recommended Resources"
P
Response to claims made in Passing the Heavenly Gift by Denver C. Snuffer
Summary: This account of Church history contains numerous inaccuracies, distortions, and misrepresentations of the data.
Jump to details:
- Response to Passing the Heavenly Gift: Introduction to the volume's claims
- Response to Passing the Heavenly Gift: Claims about priesthood ordination
- Response to Passing the Heavenly Gift: Claims about Brigham Young and apostles not being witnesses of Christ
- Response to Passing the Heavenly Gift: Claims regarding source of Brigham Young and apostles' authority after Joseph Smith's death
- Response to Passing the Heavenly Gift: Claims regarding when Joseph Smith received priesthood authority
- Response to Passing the Heavenly Gift: Claims that authority could only be transmitted in a completed temple
- Response to Passing the Heavenly Gift: Claims that the Saints sinned and Joseph gave his life
- Response to Passing the Heavenly Gift: Claims that the Saints did not build the Nauvoo Temple quickly enough
- Response to Passing the Heavenly Gift: Claims that the Saints in Nauvoo were punished because they were slothful in building the temple
- Response to Passing the Heavenly Gift: Response to claims made in Conclusion
- Response to Passing the Heavenly Gift: Appendix 1 & 2—Comparing the size and cost of the Kirtland and Nauvoo temples
- Interpreter: A Journal of Mormon Scripture, "Passing Up The Heavenly Gift (Part One of Two)"
- Interpreter: A Journal of Mormon Scripture, "Passing Up The Heavenly Gift (Part Two of Two)"
- Reviews of this work
S
Same-Sex Dynamics Among Nineteenth-Century Americans: A Mormon Example by D. Michael Quinn
- Index of claims—
Brief Summary: Responses to specific critical or unsupported claims made in Same-Sex Dynamics Among Nineteenth-Century Americans: A Mormon Example. (Click here for full article)∗ ∗ ∗
- Index of claims—
Studies of the Book of Mormon by B.H. Roberts
Summary: The content of this book is not written by a critic, but its purpose and audience are often misrepresented by critics in an effort to make it appear that Roberts lost his testimony of the Book of Mormon.- Index of claims—
Brief Summary: Responses to specific critical or unsupported claims made in Studies of the Book of Mormon indexed by page number. (Click here for full article)∗ ∗ ∗
- Index of claims—
T
The "Book of Lehi" by Christopher Nemelka
Summary: The author claims to have been commanded to translate the sealed portion of the Book of Mormon, as well as the lost 116 pages. As part of his 'prophetic call,' the author produced what he claims is a translation of the lost 116 pages, or "Book of Lehi." This portion of Mormon's abridgement (from Lehi to King Benjamin, roughly) was lost by Martin Harris after the manuscript was loaned to him by Joseph Smith.The Changing World of Mormonism by Jerald and Sandra Tanner
- Index of claims—
Brief Summary: Responses to specific critical or unsupported claims made in The Changing World of Mormonism indexed by page number. (Click here for full article)∗ ∗ ∗
- Index of claims—
The Counterfeit Gospel of Mormonism by Norman L. Geisler
The Kingdom of the Cults by Walter Martin, Hank Hanegraaff (editor)
- Index of claims—
Brief Summary: A claim-by-claim examination of the chapter dealing with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. (Click here for full article)∗ ∗ ∗
- Index of claims—
The Lion of the Lord by Stanley P. Hirshson
- Index of claims—
Brief Summary: Responses to specific critical or unsupported claims made in The Lion of the Lord indexed by page number. (Click here for full article)∗ ∗ ∗
- Index of claims—
The Mormon Hierarchy: Origins of Power by D. Michael Quinn
- Index of claims—
Brief Summary: Responses to specific critical or unsupported claims made in The Mormon Hierarchy: Origins of Power indexed by page number. (Click here for full article)∗ ∗ ∗
- Index of claims—
The Mormon Hierarchy: Extensions of Power by D. Michael Quinn
- Index of claims—
Brief Summary: Responses to specific critical or unsupported claims made in The Mormon Hierarchy: Extensions of Power indexed by page number. (Click here for full article)∗ ∗ ∗
- Index of claims—
U
Works critical of the Church of Jesus Christ
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Criticism of Mormonism/Books
Prologue
Response to claim: It is claimed that the Church purchased more than four hundred Hofmann forgeries and then "squirreled" them "away in a vault to keep them from the public eye"
The author(s) of Under the Banner of Heaven make(s) the following claim:
It is claimed that the Church purchased more than four hundred Hofmann forgeries and then "squirreled" them "away in a vault to keep them from the public eye."
FAIR's Response
- Mind reading: author has no way of knowing this.
- For a detailed response, see: Mark Hofmann and Church treatment of Hofmann forgeries
Notes
Chapter 1
Response to claim: 3 - The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints "presents itself as the world's only true religion"
The author(s) of Under the Banner of Heaven make(s) the following claim:
It is claimed that the Church "presents itself as the world's only true religion."Author's sources:
- Richard N. and Joan K. Ostling, Mormon America: The Power and the Promise, (New York:HarperCollins Publishers, 2000), . ( Index of claims )
- D. Michael Quinn, The Mormon Hierarchy: Extensions of Power (Signature Books, 1997), ( Index of claims )
FAIR's Response
Response to claim: 5 - Latter-day Saints consider themselves to be God's "favored children"
The author(s) of Under the Banner of Heaven make(s) the following claim:
The author claims that Latter-day Saints (sometimes called "Mormons") consider themselves to be God's "favored children." The book then quotes the phrase: "a peculiar treasure unto me above all people."Author's sources:
- Richard N. and Joan K. Ostling, Mormon America: The Power and the Promise, (New York:HarperCollins Publishers, 2000), . ( Index of claims )
- D. Michael Quinn, The Mormon Hierarchy: Extensions of Power (Signature Books, 1997), ( Index of claims )
FAIR's Response
- The scripture that is quoted is Exodus 19꞉5:
Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is mine:
- As noted in the chapter introduction from the LDS edition of the King James Bible: "The Lord covenants to make Israel a peculiar treasure, a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation." It is unclear why the author uses this scripture to support his claim that Latter-day Saints consider themselves to be God's "favored children."
Response to claim: 5 - Church leaders have "worked very hard to persuade both the modern church membership and the American public that polygamy was a quaint, long-abandoned idiosyncrasy"
The author(s) of Under the Banner of Heaven make(s) the following claim:
Author's quote: Church leadership has worked very hard to persuade both the modern church membership and the American public that polygamy was a quaint, long-abandoned idiosyncrasy practiced by a mere handful of nineteenth-century Mormons.Author's sources:
- Richard N. and Joan K. Ostling, Mormon America: The Power and the Promise, (New York:HarperCollins Publishers, 2000), . ( Index of claims )
- D. Michael Quinn, The Mormon Hierarchy: Extensions of Power (Signature Books, 1997), ( Index of claims )
FAIR's Response
Fact checking results: This claim is false
The following is from the introduction to the official Priesthood and Relief Society lesson manual for 2008-2009, Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Joseph Smith:This book deals with teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith that have application to our day...This book also does not discuss plural marriage. The doctrines and principles relating to plural marriage were revealed to Joseph Smith as early as 1831. The Prophet taught the doctrine of plural marriage, and a number of such marriages were performed during his lifetime. Over the next several decades, under the direction of the Church Presidents who succeeded Joseph Smith, a significant number of Church members entered into plural marriages. In 1890, President Wilford Woodruff issued the Manifesto, which discontinued plural marriage in the Church (see Official Declaration 1). The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints no longer practices plural marriage. (emphasis added)
Response to claim: 5 - Religious literature does not mention Joseph Smith's marriage to "at least thirty-three women, and probably as many as forty-eight"
The author(s) of Under the Banner of Heaven make(s) the following claim:
Religious literature does not mention Joseph's marriage to "at least thirty-three women, and probably as many as forty-eight."Author's sources:
- Richard N. and Joan K. Ostling, Mormon America: The Power and the Promise, (New York:HarperCollins Publishers, 2000), . ( Index of claims )
- D. Michael Quinn, The Mormon Hierarchy: Extensions of Power (Signature Books, 1997), ( Index of claims )
FAIR's Response
Fact checking results: This claim is false
The details of Joseph's polygamy are not generally taught in LDS Sunday School classes, but some "religious literature" does mention Joseph's plural marriages.[1]Response to claim: 5-6 - Joseph Smith's youngest wife was "just fourteen years old when Joseph explained to her that God had commanded that she marry him or face eternal damnation"
The author(s) of Under the Banner of Heaven make(s) the following claim:
The author claims that LDS literature does not mention that Joseph's youngest wife was "just fourteen years old when Joseph explained to her that God had commanded that she marry him or face eternal damnation."Author's sources:
- Richard N. and Joan K. Ostling, Mormon America: The Power and the Promise, (New York:HarperCollins Publishers, 2000), . ( Index of claims )
- D. Michael Quinn, The Mormon Hierarchy: Extensions of Power (Signature Books, 1997), ( Index of claims )
FAIR's Response
- Helen Mar Kimball's story is here told only with reference to a second-hand, dubious, hostile anti-Mormon version instead of Helen's numerous first-hand accounts.
Response to claim: 6 - Joseph Smith is claimed to have taught that "a man needed at least three wives to attain the 'fullness of exaltation' in the afterlife"
The author(s) of Under the Banner of Heaven make(s) the following claim:
Joseph Smith is claimed to have taught that "a man needed at least three wives to attain the 'fullness of exaltation' in the afterlife." The author provides the following quote to support this claim:"all those who have this law revealed unto them must obey the same...and if ye abide not that covenant, then are yet damned; for no one can reject this covenant and be permitted to enter into my glory."
Author's sources:
- D&C 132
FAIR's Response
- The full quote from D&C 132꞉3-4:
3 Therefore, prepare thy heart to receive and obey the instructions which I am about to give unto you; for all those who have this law revealed unto them must obey the same. 4 For behold, I reveal unto you a new and an everlasting covenant; and if ye abide not that covenant, then are ye damned; for no one can reject this covenant and be permitted to enter into my glory.
Response to claim: 6n - "Mormons esteem three books of scripture above all others"
The author(s) of Under the Banner of Heaven make(s) the following claim:
Author's quote: Latter-day Saints esteem three books of scripture above all othersAuthor's sources: #Richard N. and Joan K. Ostling, Mormon America: The Power and the Promise, (New York:HarperCollins Publishers, 2000), . ( Index of claims )
- D. Michael Quinn, The Mormon Hierarchy: Extensions of Power (Signature Books, 1997), ( Index of claims )}
FAIR's Response
Fact checking results: This claim is false
Members of the Church use four books of scripture: the Holy Bible, the Book of Mormon, the Doctrine and Covenants, and the Pearl of Great Price.This type of error demonstrates how poor Krakauer's grounding in LDS thought and history is.
Response to claim: 7 - Polygamy continued to be practiced after the Manifesto was issued
The author(s) of Under the Banner of Heaven make(s) the following claim:
Polygamy continued to be practiced after the Manifesto was issued.Author's sources:
- Richard N. and Joan K. Ostling, Mormon America: The Power and the Promise, (New York:HarperCollins Publishers, 2000), . ( Index of claims )
- D. Michael Quinn, The Mormon Hierarchy: Extensions of Power (Signature Books, 1997), ( Index of claims )
FAIR's Response
Fact checking results: This claim is based upon correct information - The author is providing knowledge concerning some particular fact, subject, or event
Notes
- ↑ For example, the practice of plural marriage is detailed in canonized scripture (D&C 132) which every member is encouraged to study. The study manual for Sunday School lessons based on this scripture reads, in part, "The Prophet Joseph Smith and those closest to him, including Brigham Young and Heber C. Kimball, were challenged by this command, but they obeyed it." [Lesson 31: “Sealed … for Time and for All Eternity”, Doctrine and Covenants and Church History Gospel Doctrine Teacher’s Manual, 176 (emphasis added). off-site] CES manuals for college/university students also discuss Joseph and plural marriage; see, for example, "Chapter 20: Doctrinal Developments at Nauvoo," Church History in the Fulness of Times Institute Student Manual: Religion 341 through 343, 2nd edition, (Intellectual Reserve, Inc., 1989-2003).(off-site.
Chapter 4
Response to claim: 45: Latter-day Saints are raised to "obey figures of Mormon authority unquestioningly"
The author(s) of Under the Banner of Heaven make(s) the following claim:
The author claims that Latter-day Saints are raised to "obey figures of Mormon authority unquestioningly, and to believe that LDS doctrine is the law of God."
FAIR's Response
Obey Brigham unquestioningly?- Compare with similar treatment in Will Bagley, Blood of the Prophets: Brigham Young and the Massacre at Mountain Meadows (University of Oklahoma Press, 2002), 9.
The Church of Jesus Christ and independent thought
Summary: It is claimed that the Church teaches that we should not exercise independent thought. "When our leaders speak, the thinking has been done."
Jump to details:
- Question: For Latter-day Saints, when our leaders speak, has the thinking been done?
- Question: Why did President Tanner say: "When the prophet speaks the debate is over"?
- LDS Newsroom: "Belief in prophets and apostles at the head of the Church does not mean that members blindly follow their leaders"
Response to claim: 45 - A fourteen-year-old Latter-day Saint girl was forced to wear robes by her kidnapper that "resembled the sacred robes she had donned with her family when they entered the Mormon temple"
The author(s) of Under the Banner of Heaven make(s) the following claim:
The author claims that a fourteen-year-old Latter-day Saint girl was forced to wear robes by her kidnapper that "resembled the sacred robes she had donned with her family when they entered the Mormon temple."
FAIR's Response
Fact checking results: This claim is false
A fourteen-year-old LDS girl's experience with the temple would have only involved performing baptisms for the dead, and would not have required the wearing of any "sacred robes."
Response to claim: 45 - The "words of Joseph Smith" are taught as having been "handed down by God Himself"
The author(s) of Under the Banner of Heaven make(s) the following claim:
The author claims that the "words of Joseph Smith" are taught as having been "handed down by God Himself."
FAIR's Response
That depends upon which of Joseph's words are being referred to.
Notes
Chapter 6
Response to claim: 69 - The author claims that Native Americans are, according to the Book of Mormon, descended from the lost tribes of Israel
The author(s) of Under the Banner of Heaven make(s) the following claim:
Native Americans are, according to the Book of Mormon, descended from the lost tribes of Israel.
FAIR's Response
Fact checking results: This claim is false
Book of Mormon peoples are distinct from the lost ten tribes (2 Nephi 29꞉13, 3 Nephi 17꞉4). The author again betrays his superficial grasp of LDS thought and theology.
Notes
Chapter 17
Response to claim: 194 - The author claims that there is evidence which suggest that Samuel H. Smith was poisoned by Hosea Stout
The author(s) of Under the Banner of Heaven make(s) the following claim:
Author's quote: ...[there is] compelling circumstantial evidence [which] suggests that [Samuel H. Smith] succumbed from poison administered by Hosea Stout....Author's sources:
- D. Michael Quinn, The Mormon Hierarchy: Origins of Power (Signature Books, 1994), {{{pages}}}. [ATTENTION!]
FAIR's Response
- For a detailed response, see: Murder of Samuel H. Smith?
Notes
Chapter 18
Response to claim: 221 - The author claims that William Aden was killed on 10 September 1857 in relation to the Mountain Meadows Massacre
The author(s) of Under the Banner of Heaven make(s) the following claim:
William Aden was killed on 10 September 1857.
FAIR's Response
Fact checking results: This claim is false
Aden was killed 2-3 days before the massacre.[1]
Response to claim: 221n - The author claims that Brigham Young's letter instructing the Latter-day Saints to leave the immigrants alone didn't appear until decades later and that there is question about its provenance and authenticity
The author(s) of Under the Banner of Heaven make(s) the following claim:
Brigham Young's letter instructing the Latter-day Saints to leave the immigrants alone didn't appear until decades later; there is question about its provenance and authenticity.
FAIR's Response
Fact checking results: This claim is false
- For a detailed response, see: Brigham's letter mysteriously "lost"?
Notes
- ↑ Craig L. Foster, "Doing Violence to Journalistic Integrity (Review of: "Under the Banner of Heaven: A Story of a Violent Faith by Jon Krakauer)," FARMS Review 16/1 (2004): 149–174. off-site
Reviews of this work
"The Justin Wise Dialogues" by Ron Hellings
Summary: Ron Hellings provides an imagined dialogue which highlights some of the many problems with this anti-Mormon work.
Craig L. Foster, "Doing Violence to Journalistic Integrity"
Craig L. Foster, The FARMS Review, (2004)The noted author Paul Fussell once commented, "If I didn't have writing, I'd be running down the street hurling grenades in people's faces."1 Perhaps the same could be said about Jon Krakauer. Both he and his works are complex, introspective, and, without doubt, "in your face" and controversial. Krakauer is fascinated by people who are on the edge physically and emotionally, those who push the limits to the extreme. His writing reflects this fascination as he tries to define for his reading audience what it is like to go to extremes. Krakauer has succeeded where many others have failed because he is, without argument, a gifted writer. His text flows seamlessly, creating a literary picture that touches a reader to the very core.Krakauer has used his writing talents to look at the fringes of the Latter-day Saint community in his book Under the Banner of Heaven, in which he examines the double murders committed in 1984 by the ex-Mormon brothers Ron and Dan Lafferty and explores the fundamentalist communities of Colorado City-Hildale on the Utah-Arizona border and Bountiful in British Columbia.2 His accounts of murder and seduction are mixed with events and teachings in Latter-day Saint history in an attempt to portray these fringe elements as murderous and libidinous offspring of a religion steeped in its own history of violence and quirkiness.
Click here to view the complete article
Paul McNabb, editor's introduction to Richard E. Turley, "Faulty History: A Review of Under the Banner of Heaven: A Story of Violent Faith"
Paul McNabb, editor's introduction to Richard E. Turley, FAIR PapersIn July 2003, popular author Jon Krakauer released a book arguing that religious faith in general, and the faith of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in particular, often motivates violence in its believers. Since its organization in 1830, The Church of Jesus Christ has been the subject of many lurid and sensational publications, each purporting to reveal the true and sordid fact of the lives of Latter-day Saint leaders and members. Despite the claims of objectivity and historical accuracy, such publications consistently display the same pattern: an agenda-driven effort selectively drawing on rumor and half-truths, clothed in the trappings of historical scholarship.Unfortunately for those wanting to know more about Latter-day Saint history or the possible relationship between religious belief and violence, Krakauer's Under the Banner of Heaven: A Story of Violent Faith suffers from these same fatal flaws.
Click here to view the complete article
Allen Wyatt, ""The Krakauer Journal""
Allen Wyatt, FAIR PapersI read Under the Banner of Heaven in July 2003, shortly after it first came out. In the course of my reading, I kept notes on assertions made by the author and my reactions to those assertions. This article is a recounting of my notes. Taken in total, they can serve as a snapshot of one person’s view of the book.Those familiar with LDS history will recognize the outrageousness of many of the assertions, and the biased language used by the author to frame religious belief–particularly the religious belief practiced by faithful LDS–in an egregiously unflattering manner.
Click here to view the complete article
BYU Studies, "Jon Krakauer. Under the Banner of Heaven: A Story of Violent Faith (review)"
Laurie F. Maffly-Kipp, BYU Studies 43/4 (2004)Click here to view the complete article
The FAIR Blog responds to these questions
Stephen Smoot,"Learning About the Founding of Mormonism from Jon Krakauer (And Other Fallacies)", FAIR Blog, (July 30, 2012)
Jon Krakauer has penned a popular, yet highly questionable book on Mormonism. The punchline to Krakauer’s book is something along the lines of: “Mormonism, an inherently violent faith, is a shining example of how religious fundamentalism is dangerous, and will lead to killing people.”There are so many problems with Krakauer’s book that to enumerate them here would take some considerable time.
Click here to view the complete article
"Understanding Mormon Disbelief: Why do some Mormons lose their testimony and what happens to them when they do?" by Open Stories Foundation
Summary: Responses to a "study" which claims to illuminate the reasons for Mormon disaffection.V
Visions of Glory by John Pontius
Summary: This work, which purports to give an account of near death experiences (NDE) and visions of the last days contains some true principles, but violates Church doctrine in both content and approach. It also contains some ideas that contradict LDS doctrine on key points.
W
Who Really Wrote the Book of Mormon? The Spalding Enigma by Wayne Cowdery, Howard Davis, and Donald Scales
Summary: This book attempted to revive the moribund Spalding manuscript theory for the Book of Mormon. Cowdery et al. claimed to have discovered Spalding's handwriting in the Book of Mormon original manuscript. In addition to the insurmountable historical problems with the Spalding theory, the supposed "Spalding" handwriting has likewise been found in documents produced in June 1831--fifteen years after Spalding's death.
Analysis of articles critical of Mormonism
Summary: FairMormon analyzes and offers a claim-by-claim analysis and response to articles critical of Mormonism.
Jump to Subtopic:
- Response to "Changing Dramatis Personae in Early Mormonism", a work by author: Ronald V. Huggins
- Response to "LDS Church Authority and New Plural Marriages, 1890–1904", a work by author D. Michael Quinn
- Response to "Reinventing Lamanite Identity", a work by Brent Lee Metcalfe