In reply to the chapter, “An Astonishing Legacy”
Page 63, line 4
“The temples are the link between man and godhood.”
The book often makes error by changing a word or two. The temples can become, not are the link. -If the temples were automatically the link, Mormons would be similar to those who believe in instant salvation. Every temple blessing is contingent on continued faithfulness. Temple goers do not have it made unless they remain true and faithful to the teachings of Christ.
Page 63, lines 7-10
“Strangely enough, these magnificent sanctuaries [LDS temples] are used mainly ‘to redeem the dead.’ . . . The Bible clearly teaches that death is final, and that those who die have no further chance to be saved.”
The Bible teaches just the opposite. The LDS scriptural basis states, “For this cause was the gospel preached also to them that are dead” (I Pet. 4:6). Peter also told us that Christ himself took the gospel to spirits beyond the grave (I Pet. 3:18-20).
Page 63, line 24
“If ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your sins . . . [and] whither I go ye cannot come,” the Savior said (John 8:21-24).
This is correctly quoted, but it was not meant to cover the billions who did not know Christ, let alone what he taught. The beauty of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is that it is implementing our Heavenly Father’s plan to save all God’s children who want to be saved. This, according to the book, is satanic. But reason dictates that this is one of the things that allows the LDS Church to claim to have the complete truths of God.
God’s official Church must have a plan and program to implement Christ’s atonement by offering salvation to all God’s children. This is what Mormonism and the temples are about.
Page 63, line 26
“Mormonism teaches that, just as the Serpent told Eve, ‘You won’t really die’ ” (Gen. 3:4).
This is not true. Of course Mormons believe everyone dies. When Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit (Genesis 2:17; 3:6), they and all their posterity inherited death. Satan’s words (which are different from those the authors quote) show that Satan lied and is the father of lies.
Page 64, line 5 and 34
“What many Mormons themselves don’t realize is that most of the Temple rituals are performed for disembodied spirits.”[1]
Almost every Mormon knows this.
Only a few lines later the authors quote Joseph Smith saying the Latter-day Saints’ “greatest responsibility . . . is to seek after our dead,” a statement heard often in the LDS sermons and writings, and not a point “most” Latter-day Saints are unaware of.
Page 64, line 24; page 65, line I
“Although the Bible specifically warns us to avoid genealogies, the Mormons are obsessed with them,” the authors claim referring to I Tim. 1:4 and Titus 3:9.
The genealogies these new Christian converts were warned against by Paul were those of Greek mythology and fictitious genealogies that were in circulation because Herod had destroyed the Hebrew records. (See Adam dark. The New Testament of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, p. 538.) Why do so many chapters in the Bible deal completely with genealogy? Why are there so many “begats”? Why do Gospel writers emphasize Christ’s genealogy? (Matt. 1:1-16; Luke 3:23-38.) “All Israel were reckoned by genealogies; and . . . they were written in the book of the kings of Israel and Judah” (I Chr. 9:1).
Page 66, lines 13-15 and most of the page
“Else what shall they do who are baptized for the dead? If the dead rise not at all, why then are they baptized for the dead?” (the authors’ rendering of I Cor. 15:29). This passage of scripture means pagans did work for the dead, the book maintains.
Mormons quote this passage to show early Christians believed in baptisms for the dead. No documentation to any biblical scholars or theologians is given in The God Makers to support the authors’ interpretation. The book maintains that since the verse says “why are ‘they’ baptized for the dead,” ‘they’ must be pagans. The book misses the point that Paul is referring to the Christian practice of baptizing for the dead to help prove that there is a resurrection. It would be illogical for Paul to tell Christians to believe in the resurrection by using as an argument that “pagans” were baptizing for the dead. Rev. J. R. Dummelow, a respected commentator of the Bible, has also stated, “The Resurrection alone gives motive for baptism for the dead” (A Commentary on the Holy Bible, p. 919).
Page 67, most of the page
The LDS doctrine of “seeking after the dead.” is “very much like” pagan practices of ancestor worship, the book claims.
First, similarity does not mean sameness. Second, it’s not fair to call those Buddhists and Confucianists who practice ancestor worship, pagan. Third, LDS genealogical research and temple work for the dead has not the remotest connotation of ancestor worship.
Page 68, most of the page
Under the heading “Prisoners at Large, ” the book scoffs at the idea that the dead who “are supposed to be in a Mormon purgatory called the ‘spirit prison’ . . . could at the same time be present in Mormon temples, seeking the living and calling upon them to save them.”
Although such sacred occurrences are rarely claimed by Latter-day Saints, they present no problem.
Actually the term “spirit prison” is biblical. “Christ . . . also . . . went and preached to the spirits in prison” (I Peter 3:18-19).
The authors also claim a contradiction because Church President Joseph Fielding Smith taught that the “unrighteous shall have to spend their time” in prison during the Millennium.
There is no contradiction when one understands that the LDS work for the dead is for those who didn’t have a chance to accept Christ in mortality. Latter-day Saints claim work in behalf of the dead is in fulfillment of, “Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet,” before the Lord’s second coming. “And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers” (Mal. 4:5-6). LDS doctrine declares that Elijah returned the rights of temple and genealogy work to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery on April 3, 1836 (D&C 110). (See page 60, line 33 and page 78, lines 6-20 for additional response to this point.)
Page 70, lines 26 and 27 and most of the page
“Mormons glory in the tales of . . . spirit appearances.”
Seldom are such stories related by Latter-day Saints. Such rare instances are former mortals (now spirits) who initiate the visit. In the Bible, spirits who lived previously sometimes appeared including visits to Mary, Elizabeth and Joseph. If the authors say any visitations from those who have died are impossible, they must discard their belief in the Bible. See next two items.
Page 71, line 20 and most of page
Paul is referred to as saying that Satan can transform himself into an angel of light (2 Cor. 11:14). The authors deduce from this that since many of the appearances of beings who have appeared to Joseph Smith and others in Mormonism were usually associated with light, the Mormon supernatural manifestations are of Satan.
There are dozens and dozens of scriptures that refer to God and Christ with the word “light.” For example:
- Christ is the light of the world. (John 1:7-9)
- “God is light.” (I John 1:5)
- “[God is the] Father of lights.” (Jas. 1:17)
- Moses and the burning bush is another godly example.
- When the Lord came at the time of Paul’s conversion, “There shined round about him a light from heaven” (Acts 9:4).
- Satan, in the cited example, disguised himself as an angel, a heavenly being, to attempt to give himself credibility. But this does not mean that all appearances of a being clothed in light are satanic.
Page 72, lines 15-19
“The Latter-day Saints are encouraged to have encounters with the alleged spirits of the dead in and out of the temple. It is their belief that these encounters, though absolutely forbidden in the Bible, are the most sacred evidences that Mormonism is the only true religion.”
I have never read or heard this in the Church. The authors correctly say that to attempt communication with the dead is condemned in the Bible, but they wrongly conclude that this means spirits appearing in temples must be of the devil. There is no doctrine or practice in Mormonism even suggesting an attempt to contact a deceased person. To even suggest this is false. If on occasion those who were once mortals initiate an appearance to a mortal, it is a completely different thing. The angels, Moses and Elijah, appeared to Christ and Peter, James and John on the Mount of Transfiguration (Matt. 17:3). An angel appeared to Samson’s mother (Jud. 13:3).
Page 72, line 28, page 73, lines 4,12-13, page 76, lines 23-27, page 263, lines 19-25
“The god of ghouls is named ‘Mormo,’ and in Chinese ‘Mormon’ means ‘gates of hell.'”[2]
The attorneys to whom one of the authors took this evidence in order to initiate a class action suit against the LDS Church considered this “the flimsiest of circumstantial evidence,” and would not touch the case.
It should also be noted there are inconsistencies between the film version of The God Makers and the book. On page 72 of The God Makers book, it reads:
Opening a copy of Anton LaVey’s Satanic Bible to the page listing “Infernal Names,” Ed says, “Look at this. The god of the ghouls is named ‘Mormo,’ His followers would be Mormons.”
The film shows pages 144 and 145 of LaVey’s Satanic Bible with the name “Mormo” circled in red ink. (Note, there are 26 additional names on page 146.) Nothing appears in the film but the names. There is no reference in Satanic Bible that ties in these names with Mormons as the authors state. As Ed Decker displays this in the movie, he states:
“Here, in Anton LaVey’s ‘Satanic Bible, ‘ under the section called Infernal Names, I want to show you something. Here we have the god ‘Mormo,’ who is king of the ghouls, god of the living dead, and those people that follow him are called ‘Mormons.’ ” (transcribed verbatim).
The so-called “Infernal Names” first appear in LaVey’s Satanic Bible on pages 58 through 60. On page 59 is found the following:
“Mormo — (Greek) King of the Ghouls, consort of Hecate”
Thus, The God Makers book states that Mormo’s “followers would be Mormons’ while the film’s soundtrack of Ed Decker states, “. . . and those people that follow him are called Mormons.” This is not accurate or consistent! The LaVey book does not say the followers of Mormo are Mormons. The LaVey book says Mormo is from Greek mythology. It is also interesting that The God Makers book did not give the page numbers or any other information on the LaVey book that would allow the reader to check out this information. I am indebted to Arthur M. Wood for pointing out to me the foregoing and locating the Satanic Bible by LaVey for me.
Concerning the charge that “Mormon” in Chinese means “gates of hell” Arthur Wood also pointed out the following:
I have spoken with two individuals with whom I am acquainted who speak Cantonese (as would be used in Hong Kong). I am advised that while there are similar sounds—two words which could be stretched to come out that way—the word “Mormon” means a religion, and is so understood. One of them furnished me with a page of A Daily Use English-Chinese Dictionary, published by the World Book Company. In this dictionary “Mormon” is defined as a church. The word “Mormo” is not given at all.
There are thousands of examples of words that mean one thing in one language and something different in another. After World War II, Germans sometimes threw away packages arriving from the U.S. marked “Gift.” In the German language “Gift” means “poison.” A few other words that mean one thing in English and something else in German are:
| Die | (the) | Rat | (advice) | an | (at) | ||
| Strand | (beach) | Bank | (bench) | Rock | (coat) | ||
| Tot | (dead) | fern | (far) | fest | (firm) | ||
| Sale | (rooms) | Held | (hero) | spat | (late) | ||
| Links | (left) | Post | (mail) | Mark | (coin) | ||
| Buro | (office) | bald | (soon) | stark | (strong) | ||
| Band | (volume) |
Page 74, line I
‘7 am the God of this world, ” replies Lucifer (to Adam and Eve), the authors point out and then say (line 12) that Mormons worship him.
Latter-day Saints shun Lucifer (the devil) believing Satan to be real. There is no way for any temple-goer not to know that in the enactment of the temple scene Satan was rejected by Adam and Eve and by God himself. The temple makes very clear that Lucifer is the enemy of God, as do the Bible, the Book of Mormon, the Doctrine and Covenants, and the Pearl of Great Price. “And he became Satan, yea, even the devil, the father of all lies” (Moses 4:4). See accompanying list.
DEVIL
| Gen. 3:1(1-3) | now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the |
| Gen. 3:14(14-15) | the Lord God said unto the serpent, because thou hast |
| I Chr. 21:1 | and Satan stood up against Israel, and provoked David |
| Job 1:6(6-9) | and Satan came also among them. |
| Job 2:1(1-4) | and Satan came also among them to present himself |
| Isa. 14:12(12-15) | fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How |
| Matt. 4:3(3-10) | and when the tempter came to him, he said, if thou be |
| Matt. 4:10 | get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, thou shalt |
| Matt. 10:28 | fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body |
| Matt. 12:28 | but if I cast out devils by the Spirit of God, then |
| Mark 3:15 | power to heal sicknesses, and to cast out devils |
| Mark 4:15 | Satan cometh immediately, and taketh away the word |
| Luke 4:2(1-13) | being forty days tempted of the devil. And in those |
| Luke 10:18 | I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven. |
| Luke 12:5 | fear him, which…hath power to cast into hell; yea |
| Luke 22:31(31-32) | behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may |
| John 8:44 | ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your |
| John 12:31 | now shall the prince of this world be cast out. |
| John 13:27 | after the sop Satan entered into him. Then said Jesus |
| John 14:30 | for the prince of this world cometh, and hath nothing |
| Rom. 16:20 | God of peace shall bruise Satan under your feet |
| 1 Cor. 7:5 | that Satan tempt you not for your incontinency. |
| 2 Cor. 4:4 | the God of this world hath blinded the minds of them |
| 2 Cor. 11:3 | the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your |
| 2 Cor. 11:14(13-15) | Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. |
| 2 Thes. 2:3(3-4) | man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition |
| Heb. 2:14 | him that had the power of death, that is, the devil |
| James 4:7 | resist the devil, and he will flee from you. |
| IPet. 5:8 | your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh |
| I Jn. 3:8 | that he might destroy the works of the devil. |
| Jude 1:6 | the angels which kept not their first estate…he hath |
| Rev. 12:7(7-9) | and the dragon fought and his angels |
| Rev. 12:9(7-9) | the devil,… Satan, which deceiveth the whole world |
| Rev. 20:2(1-6) | the dragon, that old serpent…is the devil, and Satan |
| Rev. 20:7(1-10) | when..thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loose |
| I Ne. 13:6 | great and abominable church.. .devil…foundation of |
| I Ne. 14:3(3-7) | abominable church…founded by the devil and his |
| I Ne. 15:24 | the fiery darts of the adversary overpower them unto |
| 1 Ne. 22:26(15,26) | because of the righteousness…Satan has no power |
| 2 Ne. 1:18(17-18) | led according to the will and captivity of the devil. |
| 2 Ne. 2:18(17-18) | that old serpent…the devil…the father of all lies |
| 2 Ne. 9:8(6-12) | that angel who fell …and became the devil, to rise |
| 2 Ne. 9:16 | they who are filthy are the devil and his angels; and |
| 2 Ne. 24:12(12-20) | how art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the |
| 2 Ne. 26:22 | combinations…according to..combinations of the devil |
| 2 Ne. 30:18 | Satan shall have power over… hearts of… men no more |
| Jacob 7:18 | he had been deceived by the power of the devil, and |
| 1:25 | and that which is evil cometh from the devil. |
| Mosiah 2:32(32-39) | arise contentions..and ye list to obey the evil spirit |
| Mosiah 16:5(4-5) | an enemy to God. ..also is the devil an enemy to God. |
| Alma 12:5(3-6) | now this was a plan of thine adversary, and he hath |
| Alma 30:60 | thus we see that the devil will not support his |
| Alma 34:23 | the devil, who is an enemy to all righteousness. |
| 3 Ne. 18:18 | for Satan desireth to have you, that he may sift you |
| Ether 15:19 | Satan had full power over the hearts of the people |
| Moro. 7:12(10-12) | for the devil is an enemy unto God, and fighteth again |
| D&C 1:35 | the devil shall have power over his own dominion. |
| D&C 3:8 | supported you against …fiery darts of the adversary |
| D&C 10:10(10-12) | Satan hath put it into their hearts to alter the words |
| D&C 10:12 | the devil has sought to lay a cunning plan, that he |
| D&C 10:20(20-27) | Satan, ..stirreth them up to iniquity against that |
| D&C 10:33 | Satan thinketh to overpower your testimony in this |
| D&C 10:63(56-63) | Satan doth stir up the hearts of the people to content |
| D&C 20:20 | by… transgression… man became sensual and devilish |
| D&C 24:13 | require not miracles, ..except casting out devils |
| D&C 29:28 | everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his |
| D&C 29:36(36-45) | Adam, being tempted of the devil…the devil was |
| D&C 29:37 | thrust down, and thus came the devil and his angels |
| D&C 29:39 | it must needs be that the devil should tempt the |
| D&C 43:31(30-33) | Satan shall be bound, and when he is loosed again he |
| D&C 45:55 | Satan shall be bound, that he shall have no place in |
| D&C 50:3(3,7) | Satan hath sought to deceive you, that he might |
| D&C 50:7(6-9) | deceived some, which has given the adversary power |
| D&C 52:14 | Satan is abroad in the land, and he goeth forth |
| D&C 63:28 | Satan putteth it into their hearts to anger against |
| D&C 64:17 | Satan seeketh to destroy his soul; but when these |
| D&C 76:28(28-36) | we beheld Satan, that old serpent, even the devil, who |
| D&C 76:44(44-47) | to reign with the devil and his angels in eternity |
| D&C 76:85(33,44,85) | they who shall not be redeemed from the devil until |
| D&C 78:10(10-12) | Satan seeketh to turn their hearts away from the truth |
| D&C 82:5(4-6) | the adversary spreadeth his dominions, and darkness |
| D&C 88:110(110-116) | Satan shall be bound…for the space of a thousand |
| D&C 93:39 | wicked one…taketh away light and truth, through |
| D&C 104:9(9-10) | ye cannot escape the buffetings of Satan until the day |
| D&C 128:20 | detecting the devil when he appeared as an angel of |
| D&C 132:26 | shall be delivered unto the buffetings of Satan unto |
| D&C 132:57 | for Satan seeketh to destroy; for I am the Lord thy |
| Moses 1:12(12-22) | Satan came tempting him, saying: Moses, ..worship me. |
| Moses 4:4(1-6) | became Satan…the devil…to deceive and to blind men |
| Moses 4:6(1-7) | Satan…knew not the mind of God…sought to destroy |
| Moses 5:13(13,23-24) | Satan came… saying: I am also a son of God; and he |
| Abr. 3:28(27,28) | the second was angry, and kept not his first estate |
| TS-H 1:20 | as though the adversary was aware, at a very early |
Source: A Topical Guide to the Scriptures of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, pp. 87-89.
Page 74, line 5
“The average Mormon will invariably try to deny the polytheistic nature of his religion.”
Since LDS people worship God the Father, they are monotheistic. The dictionary defines polytheists as those who worship many Gods, which Latter-day Saints do not. Mormons in a broad sense, but not exactly, could be called henotheistic, a term not used in the book. The dictionary defines henotheism as worship of one God without denying the existence of others. Actually, the Bible speaks of a “God of gods and Lord of lords” (Dent. 10:17). Paul also taught that although there are many gods, mortals of this earth should worship only “God the Father” (I Cor. 8:6).
Page 74, line 23
“In Mormonism, Lucifer is not a fallen angel.”
This is completely incorrect. In LDS scripture God said, “Satan rebelled against me . . . I caused that he should be cast down” (Moses 4:3) and “that angel who fell . . . became the devil, to rise no more” (2 Nephi 9:8). Biblical scripture also states Lucifer is a fallen angel (Isaiah 14:12).
See list of scriptures for page 74, line 1.
Page 74, line 34, page 75, lines 1-15, and page 76, line 6
The authors now speak of the temple clothing and wrongly state that Lucifer directed Adam and Eve to make for themselves aprons similar to the one worn by himself (Satan).
Again, this is not true. The authors have changed what actually happens in the temple in order to suggest that Satan’s apron is similar to Adam and Eve’s aprons. The temple ceremony repeats the biblical account in which Adam and Eve do as the Bible in Genesis 3:7 says, “And the eyes of them both [Adam and Eve] were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons.”
This portion of the temple ceremony is basically the story found in the first few chapters of Genesis, but this is not mentioned by the book.
Page 75, lines 15-30, also page 78
“The Bible indicates that God refused to accept Adam and Eve’s fig-leaf aprons as a covering for their nakedness. Instead, He clothed them in the skins of animals,” report the authors.
This is much different from the Bible account and temple ordinances which in no way indicate that God refused to accept Adam and Eve’s aprons. Such aprons were neither functional nor durable. The Bible says, “unto Adam also and to his wife did the Lord God make coats of skin, and clothed them” (Genesis 3:21).
Page 76, line 4
“[Temple goers] are clothed in the symbol [apron] of Lucifer’s power.”
Making a false statement over and over does not make it true. (See page 74, line 34 for previous reply.)
Page 76, line 10
“Thundering with rage, Elohim [God] curses Lucifer [the serpent] to crawl on his belly, eat dust,” the authors “reveal” about the temple ceremony.
The authors fail to mention that God’s words to the serpent are straight from Genesis 3:14. “Thundering with rage” may be colorful, but it is a gross exaggeration.
Page 76, line 11
“But He [Elohim] remains silent concerning the symbol [the fig-leafed apron] of Satan’s power and priesthoods,” the book charges in describing a scene in the temple.
In Genesis the Lord is silent about it too. That’s because equating the fig-leafed apron with Satan’s apron is a completely false assertion.
Page 76, lines 16-28
“Lucifer arrogantly defies the Mormon ‘God’ to his face. . . He then goes about his business, apparently unaffected by Elohim’s curse . . .. One can only wonder who ‘Elohim’ really is, since His rebellious son, Lucifer, is obviously so much stronger than He.”
Again the LDS temple rites are incorrectly represented. In the portrayal of man’s earthly journey, Satan appears in two scenes, and in both he is dismissed against his will by the power of God. True, prior to the dismissal he “arrogantly defies God,” which is exactly in character scripturally. See Revelation 12:7-9; Moses 4:1-3; Abraham 3:27-28; D&C 76:25.
Page 76, line 30 to page 77, line 17
“Having taught that hell is agreeable, [Joseph] Smith describes heaven as a place of everlasting burnings . . . . ” Then the Book of Mormon is quoted as saying there is a hell, trying to show that Mormons don’t believe what the Book of Mormon teaches.
The authors certainly know that Mormons believe in a hell, but the LDS definition of hell is not the endless inhumane, forever-burning kind of suffering that some interpret from the Bible. Earlier Mormons were charged with arrogantly claiming to be the only ones who go to heaven. Now the complaint is that the Mormon concept of hell is not harsh enough. First the authors accuse the LDS teaching about heaven of being too narrow-minded and now they accuse the LDS concept of hell of being too broad-minded.
Latter-day Saints actually teach that almost all God’s children receive a degree of salvation, the highest reward being reserved for only the most faithful of those who keep God’s commandments. Joseph Smith was merely explaining that hell is not the inhumane place that some claim it to be. Where is the mercy and grace of God in a neverending “burning” kind of punishment?
The idea of everlasting burnings in connection with heaven in LDS theology is merely in keeping with the idea of “light” and “fire” at times being associated with God. Examples are Moses and the burning bush and Christ appearing in the bright light, as at the conversion of Paul. See explanation page 71, line 20.
Page 77, lines 4 and 23; page 78
“At the very heart of Mormon doctrine is the teaching that there is no hell.” On page 76, line 34, the book said “Joseph Smith . . . taught that hell is agreeable. “
The book goes from an “agreeable” hell to no hell at all, in one page!
Dozens of Book of Mormon and other LDS scriptures make the opposite point. There is a difference between defining hell as less than final, as LDS doctrine teaches, and saying “there is no hell,” or there is an “agreeable hell,” as is wrongly claimed.
Page 78, lines 6-20
“If, as the Book of Mormon itself teaches, Satan is luring unsuspecting souls into hell by saying it doesn’t exist and that they will be able to repent and join the Mormon Church even after they die, then it is clear that Mormonism, which teaches this, is Satan’s religion.”
The authors do not mention that the Book of Mormon passage they quote refers to wicked members of the Church, who will not get a second chance to accept the gospel in the next life.
Yes, the Book of Mormon teaches that one of Satan’s tactics is to say hell doesn’t exist, but neither the Book of Mormon nor LDS doctrine say that wicked Church members who die and go to the “spirit prison” can “join the Mormon Church after they die.”
In the Book of Mormon passage the authors quote, Nephi is clearly referring to one of the ways Satan uses to sidetrack Church members by saying, “All is well in Zion” (see page 77, lines 10-13 of the book). The Church teaches that those who reject the gospel in mortality will not be qualified to accept it in the next life.
The authors are probably aware that the LDS teaching of having a chance to accept the gospel of Christ in the next life is for those who did not have a chance in this earthly life. Many of God’s children have lived when the gospel was not available, or have lived in countries where they couldn’t hear it. Those are they that the grace of Christ permits to hear the fullness of the gospel in the spirit world (I Pet. 4:6).
The book has again taken liberty to misinterpret LDS doctrine to create “contradictions” and use false premises for their reasoning. Anything can be proven with logic if one alters the premises as the authors do.
This section of the book is ironically called “The Classic Shell-Game Switch.” But who is doing the switching?
Page 78, line 29 (concluding paragraph of chapter)
“Is the Mormon God really Lucifer?”
The implication here is preposterous. See page 74, line I for previous discussion. If Mormonism is of the devil then how does one explain that the whole purpose of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is to proclaim that Jesus Christ is real and that he lives? Not too many pages can be read in the Book of Mormon and other LDS scriptures or in talks by Church leaders in which Christ is not attested to. What is logical to believe? That a church which testifies of Christ, which shares Christ’s teachings, is of Satan?
On page 61, lines 13-17, the book stated, “Thousands of Mormon families seem among the finest in America. They live entire generations with hardly a visible blemish to tarnish the accepted image of the perfect home life and Church.” Not only does this “seem” to be true, it is true.
[1] The LDS concept of disembodied spirits merely means the spirits of those who have lived who are awaiting resurrection.
[2] Mormon” isn’t even the proper label for the LDS Church. Actually the name Mormon comes from a prophet of the 4th century A.D., who compiled records in America which became the Book of Mormon, hence the nickname “Mormon Church” which the authors choose to use about 80 percent of the time in their book instead of the LDS Church, or The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the official title.
