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Joseph Smith's First Vision/Were all the churches of the day claimed to be "an abomination"
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Contents
Was Joseph Smith told that "all the churches of the day were an abomination?"
Questions
One critic claims,
According to Mormon scripture, the founder of your church (Joseph Smith) was told by God in 1820 that all the churches of the day were "an abomination."
To see citations to the critical sources for these claims, click here
Answer
Joseph did not claim that the churches of the day were "an abomination." He was told that their creeds were an abomination. According to Joseph Smith's history, he was told the following by Jesus Christ during the First Vision:
I was answered that I must join none of them, for they were all wrong; and the Personage who addressed me said that all their creeds were an abomination in his sight; that those professors were all corrupt; that: “they draw near to me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me, they teach for doctrines the commandments of men, having a form of godliness, but they deny the power thereof.”