MY CONVERSION from Mormonism By Einar Anderson
The Bible declares that the devil is a created being, while Christ is God the Son and therefore He is eternal having neither beginning of days nor end of life. “ Thou [Satan] wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou wast created, till iniquity was found in thee” (Ezek. 28:15). “ For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his [Christ’s] shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Coun sellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace” (Isa. 9:6). “ All things were made by him [Christ] ; and without him was not any thing made that was made” (John 1:3). The Holy Spirit Mormonism teaches that the Holy Spirit is a substance or fluid: “ Jesus Christ, a little babe like all the rest of us have been, grew to be a man, was filled with a divine substance or fluid, called the Holy Spirit, by which he comprehended and spake the truth in power and author ity, and by which he controlled the ele ments and imparted health and life to those who were prepared to partake of the same” (Key to Theology, Fifth ed., p. 38; Parley P. Pratt, author, printed by the Deseret News Pub. Co. in 1898). “ The purest, most refined and subtle of all these substances, and the one least understood, or even recognized, by the less informed among mankihd, is that substance called the Holy Spirit” (Key to Theology, Parley P. Pratt, 9th ed., 1913, Deseret Book Company, Salt Lake City, Utah). The Bible teaches that the Holy Spirit is a Person and not a substance or fluid: “ But Peter said, Ananias, why hath Satan filled thine heart to lie to the Holy Ghost, and to keep back part of the price of the land? Whiles it remained, was it not thine own? and after it was sold, was it not in thine own power? Why hast thou conceived this thing in thine heart? thou has not lied unto men, but unto God” (Acts 5:3, 4) ; “ As they min istered to the Lord, and fasted, the Holy Ghost said, Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them . . . So they, being sent forth by the Holy Ghost, departed unto Seleu- cia; and from thence they sailed to Cyprus” (Acts 13:2-4). See also John 16:13-15. Christ Married? Mormonism teaches that Christ was married: “ We say it was Jesus Christ who was married, to be brought into the relation whereby he could see his seed, before he was crucified” (From a lec ture by Orson Hyde, delivered at the general conference in the Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Oct. 6, 1851. Journal of Discourses, Vol. 2, p. 82). In the June issue, Mr. Anderson will continue his exposé of the teachings of Mormonism, corroborating all of his statements with direct quotation from the writings of the Mormon leaders. T H E K I N G ' S B U S I N E S S
Part Three in the Moving Personal Testimony of a Business Man A FTER having related my own per sonal experience of conversion •from Mormonism, in which I was
of the human family; and when he took a tabernacle, it was begotten by his Father in heaven, after the same man ner as the tabernacles of Cain, Abel, and the rest of the sons and daughters of Adam and Eve.” (President and Prophet Brigham Young in The Journal of Dis courses, Vol. 1, p. 50, col. 2, ll. 39-50). “When the time came that his First born, the Saviour, should come into the world and take a tabernacle, the Father came himself and favored that Spirit with a tabernacle instead of letting any other man do it” (Discourses of Brigham Young, selected and arranged by Apostle John A. Widtsoe, p. 77, ll. 8-11). . “His [Jesus Christ’s] unique status in the flesh as the offspring of a mortal mother and of an immortal, or resur rected and glorified, Father” (The Ar ticles of Faith, by Apostle James. E. Talr mage, 1925 ed., p. 172, last line, and p. 173, ll. 1-2). This is a quotation from a statement signed by “ The First Presi dency and the Council of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Salt Lake City, Utah, June 30, 1916.” “ Now remember, from this time forth, and for ever, that Jesus Christ was not begotten by the Holy Ghost. I will repeat a little anecdote. I was in conversation with a certain learned professor upon this subject, when I replied to this idea —‘if the Son was begotten by the Holy Ghost, it would be very dangerous to baptize and confirm females, and give the Holy Ghost to them, lest he should beget children to be palmed upon the Elders by the people, bringing the Eld ers into great difficulties.’ ” ( Sermon by President and Prophet Brigham Young, in The Journal of Discourses, Vol. 1, p. 51, col. 1, ll. 16-51, and col. 2, ll. 1-9). Satan Mormonism teaches that Christ and the devil are brothers: “ And he became Satan, Yea, even the devil, the father of all lies, to deceive and to blind men, and to lead them cap tive at his will, even as many as would not harken to my voice” (Pearl of Great Price, p. 8). “ Thus we see that Lucifer, the son of the morning, is our elder brother and the brother of Jesus Christ, but he rebelled against God and was cast down from heaven with his angels.” (Address delivered in the Tabernacle at Salt Lake City, TJtah, Sunday, January 15, 1928, by Elder Andrew Jenson; re ported by Joseph Anderson, Sect. S, Des eret News, Saturday, January 21,1928 — Church Department).
reared from childhood, I now desire to explain, at least in part, what Mormon ism teaches. The books held sacred by the Mor mons, in addition to the Bible, are the Book of Mormon, Doctrine and Cove nants, and The Pearl of Great Price. For the teachings of this religion, we shall not give our opinions, hut actual quotations from the writings of their leaders. God First, Mormons believe and teach that God is an exalted man, and polygamous. “ God Himsef was as we are now, and is an exalted man” (Joseph Smith, Jr., in Journal of Discourses, Vol. 6, p. 1). “ Now hear it, O inhabitants of the earth, Jew and Gentile, saint and sinner! When our father Adam came into the garden of Eden, he came into it with a celestial, body, and brought Eve, one of his wives, with him. He helped to make and organ ize the world. He is Michael, the Arch angel, the Ancient of Days, about whom holy men have written and spoken—He is our Father and our God, and the only God with whom we have to do.” (Prophet Brigham Youn'g in a sermon in Journal of Discourses, Vol 1). “ As man is, God once was; as God is, man may become” (Couplet by President Lorenzo Snow). “ In the heaven where our spirits were born, there are many Gods, each of whom has his own wife, or wives, which were given to him previous to his re demption, while yet in his mortal state” (Apostle Orson Pratt, in The Seer, Vol. 1). “ In the beginning, the head of the Gods called a council of the Gods; and they came together and concocted a plan to create the world and people it” (Prophet Joseph Smith in Journal of Discourses, Vol. 6). However, the Bible teaches that God is not a man: “ God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent” (Num. 23:19); “ I am God, and not man” (Hos. 11:9); “ God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth” (John 4:24). See also Isaiah 45:5 and Psalm 90:2. The Virgin Birth Mormonism denies the virgin birth of Christ. “When the Virgin Mary con ceived the child Jesus, the Father had begotten him in his own likeness. He was not begotten by the Holy Ghost. And who is the Father? He is the first Page Fourteen
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