My Convers ion f rom M ormonism
who seeks for it in his or her own behalf and guidance, is a fundamental principle of the Mormon faith” (What the Mor mons Believe, by President Charles W. Penrose, p. 14). “And because my words shall hiss forth—many of the Gentiles [anyone that is not a Mormon] shall say: A Bible! A Bible! We have got a Bible, and there cannot be any more Bible. Thou fool, that shall say; a Bible, we have got a Bible, and we need no more Bible. Have ye obtained a Bible save it were by the Jews? Wherefore, because ye have a Bible ye need not suppose that it contains all my words; neither need ye suppose that I have not caused more to be written” (Book of Mormon — 2 Nephi, 29 :3, 6, 10). Mormon leaders have undermined the faith of their people in the reliability of the Bible by casting aspersions upon its translation, and even in.some cases, its divine inspiration. In his book Divine Authority of the Book of Mormon, Apos tle Orson Pratt stated: “ If it be ad mitted that the apostles and evangelists did write the books of the New Testa ment, that does not prove of itself that they were divinely inspired at the time they wrote.” And from this same book, “ Add all this imperfection to the uncer tainty of the translation and who in his right mind could for one moment sup pose the Bible in its present form to be a perfect guide? Who knows that even one verse of the whole Bible has escaped pollution, so as to convey the same sense now that it did in the original?” The Bible teaches that it is God’s com plete revelation to man: “ God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the ptophets, Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds” (Heb. 1:1, 2). “ For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book [the Bible], If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book: And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book” (Rev. 22:18, 19). M an's Pre-existence Mormonism believes in and teaches the pre-existence of man: “ Life’s mean ing can be best unravelled by searching man’s inmost nature. In that pursuit, the most fundamental discovery is the eter nal existence of man—that man lived be fore he came upon earth. In that pre existent life he thought, acted ai\d pro gressed, even as, in a different degree and under a different environment, he does upon earth” (Life’s Meaning, by John A. Widtsoe, p. 1). The Bible teaches that man did not pre-exist, but that God created man: “ So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them” - (Gen. 1:27). T H E K I N G ’ S B U S I N E S S
By Einar Anderson
Part Five in the'Moving Personal Testimony of a Business Man G OD, in His great love and mercy, saved my soul some years ago and delivered me from the false teach ings and practices of Mormonism, in which I had been reared. I have at tempted to tell this story briefly in these articles, beginning with the March 1948 issue, and I have gone quite fully into Mormon teachings, quoting directly, with book and page number, from their own leaders. This I believe shows more clearly than anything else how erroneous are their beliefs, when compared with the pure Word of God. Naturally, I could continue with this exposé for many months, but I close with this article. Anyone wishing help in these matters is at liberty to write me in care of The King’s Business. Secret Services, Oaths, Etc. Mormonism teaches the use of secret temple services, oaths, covenants, seal ings, etc. “ Temples or other Sacred Places are required for the administra tion of the ordinances pertaining to the salvation of the dead, and in certain or dinances for the living.” “ The magnitude and grandeur of the sacred labors ac complished in the Temples of the present dispensation, for the salvation of both the living and the dead, give assurance of .the Lord’s gracious acceptance” (The Articles of Faith by Talmage, 19i l ed. pp. 153, and 155). The Bible teaches that sacred temples, along with their oaths and other rites, are an abomination to God, and He has nothing to do with them as they are of Satanic origin: “ And this is the con demnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For every one that doeth evil hatéth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved” (John 3:19, 20). “ In secret have I [Christ] said noth ing” (John 18:20)- “And have no fellow ship with the unfruitful works of dark ness, but rather reprove them. For it is a shame even to speak of those things which are done of them in secret” (Eph. 5:11, 12). “ God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands” (Acts 17:24). “What? know ye not that your body [a saved' person’s body] is the temple [not the Mormon’s temples] of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which you have of God, and ye are not your own?” (1 Cor. 6:19). Page Fourteen
Fatherhood of God and Brotherhood of Man
Mormonism teaches the Fatherhood of God and the Brotherhood of man: “ Gods, angels and men are all of one species, one race, one great family, widely dif fused among the planetary systems, as colonies, kingdoms, nations, etc.” (Key to Theology by Parley P. Pratt, 9th ed. 1943). “ But men are not pawns; they are the very children of God, begotten in the spirit world” (Universal Salvation, by John A. Widtsoe, Centennial Series, No. 11 ). The Bible teaches that God is not the Father of all men and that all men are not brothers; that God is only the Father of saved people and only the saved are brothers: “ Ye [the unsaved] are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do” (John 8:44). “ In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil” (1 John 3:10). Marriage in Heaven? Mormonism teaches that people con tinue to rear children after they leave this earth: “ Except a man and his wife enter into an everlasting covenant and be married for eternity, while in this probation, by the power and authority of the Holy Priesthood, they will cease to increase when they die, that is, they will not have any children after the resur rection. But those who are married by the power and authority of the Priest hood in this life, and continue without committing the sin against the Holy Ghost, will continue to increase and have children in the celestial glory” (Priest hood and Church Government, published by the Deseret Book Co., 1939, p. 43). “ The eternal union of the sexes, in and after the resurrection, is mainly for the purpose of renewing and continuing the work of procreation” (Key to Theology, by Parley P. Pratt, 9th ed., 1943, p. 167). The Bible teaches that there will be no marriage or giving in marriage when people leave this earth: “ Therefore in the resurrection whose wife of them is she? for seven had her to wife. And Jesus answering said unto them, The children of this world marry, and are given in marriage: But they which shall be accounted worthy to obtain that world, and the resurrection from the dead, neither marry, nor are given in marriage” (Luke 20:33-35). The Bible Not a Complete Revelation? Mormonism teaches that God has given and does give revelations beside the Bible: “ Present and continuous reve lation from God to the Church through its. earthly head, and to every member
Made with FlippingBook HTML5