The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, better known as the Mormon church, began with six members in 1830 and today claims more than 2,500,000. Many Mormon young people give two years of their lives to propagating the faith; there are currently about 12,000 of these missionaries actively at work.
Mormons claim to be the “restored” church of Jesus Christ and hold that all other ecclesiastical bodies are in error. They also say that they accept the Bible as “the word of God as far as it is translated correctly” (Articles of Faith, 8). Many people have the impression that the Mormon teachings are not basically different from those of historic Christianity. Is this true? Let us ask the Mormons ten questions, get answers from their own writings, and compare these answers with the teachings of the Bible.
1. Is the Bible the final source of authority for Mormonism? The answer is a decisive no. To begin with, Mormons claim that there are many translation errors in the Bible as we have it today—though they will not make the same admission about the Book of Mormon. Joseph Smith, the founder of Mormonism, felt he should revise the Bible on a number of points, and among the things he added to it is a prediction of his own appearance (Genesis 50:33 in the Inspired Version of the Holy Scriptures).
The inadequacy of the Bible is clearly expressed by a statement in First Nephi 13:28 (Book of Mormon) to the effect that many “plain and precious things” have been taken away from the Bible since it was first written. Accordingly, Mormons have added to it three other sacred books: The Book of Mormon, Doctrine and Covenants, and The Pearl of Great Price. Joseph Smith once said, “I told the brethren that the Book of Mormon was the most correct of any book on earth, and the keystone of our religion, and a man would get nearer to God by abiding by its precepts, than by any other book” (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, p. 194). “Any other book” certainly includes the Bible. Doctrine and Covenants contains additional “revelations” allegedly given through Joseph Smith and Brigham Young, among them the “inspired” instructions about two practices that are very important in present-day Mormonism: baptism for the dead and celestial marriage. The Pearl of Great Price is a smaller volume containing the opening chapters of Smith’s revision of the Bible (“The Book of Moses”), the “Book of Abraham,” which is a polytheistic rewriting of the first chapters of Genesis, and other writings.
Mormon writers base their teachings primarily on the Mormon Scriptures rather than on the Bible, which they relegate to an inferior place of authority. They believe that the president of the church is able to receive further revelations from God, and that these revelations could conceivably alter even the doctrines contained in their Scriptures. It is clear, then, that Mormonism is not a part of the Christian Church, for its chief source of authority is books other than the Bible.
2. Does Mormonism teach the spirituality of God? No; it teaches that both the Father and the Son have material bodies. “The Father has a body of flesh and bones as tangible as man’s; the Son also; but the Holy Ghost has not a body of flesh and bones, but is a personage of Spirit” (Doctrine and Covenants 130:22). In Articles of Faith, for many years a standard Mormon doctrinal textbook, Joseph Talmage says, “It is clear that the Father is a personal being, possessing a definite form, with bodily parts and spiritual passions” (p. 41).
This teaching implies that there must be female gods as well as male gods. John A. Widtsoe, a prominent Mormon author, puts it this way: “There are males and females in heaven. Since we have a Father, who is our God, we must also have a mother, who possesses the attributes of Godhood” (A Rational Theology, p. 69).
Surely scriptural teaching about the omnipresence of God (e.g., 1 Kings 8:27; Ps. 139:7–12; Acts 17:27, 28) rules out this view of Deity. Jesus’ words to the Samaritan woman are plain: “God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship in spirit and truth” (John 4:24, ASV).
3. Does Mormonism believe in one God? There has been a development in Mormon teachings on this point. The Book of Mormon, first published in 1830, clearly teaches the unity of God: “And now, behold, this is … the only and true doctrine of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, which is one God, without end” (II Nephi 31:21). But later Joseph Smith himself, the “translator” of the Book of Mormon, denied that Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are one God; they are three distinct gods, he asserted. In fact, in a sermon he said, “I will preach on the plurality of gods.… The doctrine of a plurality of gods is as prominent in the Bible as any other doctrine: (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, p. 370). Since, according to Mormon teaching, the latest “revelation” is the most authoritative, we conclude that Mormonism today teaches a plurality of gods.
Brigham Young, second president of the Mormon church, said, “How many Gods there are, I do not know. But there never was a time when there were not Gods and worlds …” (Discourses of Brigham Young, p. 22). From Widtsoe’s Rational Theology we learn that the gods are in an order of progression, that they vary in their stages of development (“God,” “angel,” and similar terms denote “beings of varying degrees of development”), and that God the Father is simply the supreme god—that is, the god who has reached the highest stage (pp. 66 ff.).
How can this be squared with biblical teaching on the absolute sovereignty and uniqueness of God? “Thus saith Jehovah the King of Israel … I am the first, and I am the last; and besides me there is no God” (Isa. 44:6). The entire Old Testament was directed against the polytheistic religions of Israel’s pagan neighbors; how can Mormonism justify its return to the polytheism so decisively rejected by the prophets?
4. Does Mormonism teach that men may become gods? Yes. To begin with, it insists that all the gods were once men. They first existed as spirits, came to an earth to receive bodies, and then, after passing through a period of probation on earth, were advanced to god-hood. The gods all moved through the cycle: spirit—man—god.
Man may pass through the same cycle. Joseph Smith once said, “Here, then, is eternal life—to know the only wise and true God; and you have got to learn how to be gods yourselves …” (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, p. 346). From Doctrine and Covenants (132:19, 20) we learn that men who marry according to the new and everlasting covenant whereby they are sealed to their wives for eternity will after this life become gods. Man first exists as a spirit creature without a body; he then comes to earth to receive a physical body from his earthly parents; and after a period of probation on earth he dies, only to be raised again. If he has faithfully observed the precepts of the Mormon religion, he will be raised as a god. Lorenzo Snow, first president of the Mormon church, put it succinctly: “As man is, God once was; as God is, man may become.”
In Mormon theology, then, man is exalted to potential deity. All ultimate differentiation between God and man is wiped away. How utterly different from all this is the God-concept found in the Scriptures!
5. Does Mormonism accept the fall of man? Yes and no. It accepts the fall as a historical event but reinterprets it so that it becomes really a “fall upward.” In the Book of Mormon we read: “And now, behold, if Adam had not transgressed he would not have fallen, but he would have remained in the Garden of Eden.… And they would have had no children.… Adam fell that men might be; and men are, that they might have joy” (II Nephi 2:22–25).
How is this explained? Eve first disobeyed God by eating the forbidden fruit. At this point Adam found himself in a dilemma. God had previously commanded Eve and him to multiply and replenish the earth. But now, since Eve had fallen into a state of mortality and he himself was still in a state of immortality, they could not remain together. If they did not, however, they would not be able to fulfill God’s command to replenish the earth. But to yield to Eve’s request to eat the fruit would be disobedience also. Adam made his choice; he “deliberately and wisely decided to stand by the first and greater commandment; and, therefore, with understanding of the nature of his act, he also partook of the fruit” (Talmage, Articles of Faith, p. 65). Joseph Fielding Smith, current president of the Council of Twelve Apostles and a likely choice for next president of the church, puts it as follows: “The fall of man came as a blessing in disguise, and was the means of furthering the purposes of the Lord in the progress of man, rather than a means of hindering them” (Doctrines of Salvation, I, 114).
Obviously, such a view would have a great effect upon the rest of Mormon theology. By repudiating the deep seriousness of Adam’s sin, Mormons minimize the importance of the work of Christ. If man is not really a fallen creature, he does not need a Saviour.
How different is the Bible’s evaluation of Adam’s fall: “As through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin … through one trespass the judgment came unto all men to condemnation …” (Rom. 5:12, 18).
6. Does Mormonism teach equal opportunity for all races? As we have seen, Mormons teach that before men come to this earth, they exist as spirits. This pre-existent life is a time of probation, progression, and schooling, and not all spirits do equally well during it. Joseph Fielding Smith has this to say about the conduct of spirits in the pre-existent state:
There is a reason why one man is born black and with other disadvantages, while another is born white with great advantages. The reason is that we once had an estate before we came here, and were obedient, more or less, to the laws that were given us there. Those who were faithful in all things there received greater blessing here, and those who were not faithful received less [Doctrines of Salvation, I, 61].
Bruce McConkie gives a plain summary of what the Mormon Scriptures say on this matter:
Those who were less valiant in pre-existence and who thereby had certain spiritual restrictions imposed upon them during mortality are known to us as the negroes. Such spirits are sent to earth through the lineage of Cain, the mark put upon him for his rebellion against God and his murder of Abel being a black skin (Moses 5:16–41; 7:8, 12, 22). Noah’s son Ham married Egyptus, a descendent of Cain, thus preserving the negro lineage through the flood (Abra. 1:20–27).
Negroes in this life are denied the priesthood; under no circumstances can they hold this delegation of authority from the Almighty (Abra. 1:20–27). The gospel message of salvation is not carried affirmatively to them (Moses 7:8, 12, 22), although sometimes negroes search out the truth, join the Church, and become by righteous living heirs of the celestial kingdom of heaven.…
The present status of the negro rests purely and simply on the foundation of pre-existence. Along with all races and peoples he is receiving here what he merits as a result of the long pre-mortal probation in the presence of the Lord [Mormon Doctrine, pp. 476, 477].
McConkie adds, however, that “certainly the negroes as children of God are entitled to equality before the law and to be treated with all the dignity and respect of any member of the human race” (p. 477). At this time Negroes may not be priests in the Mormon church; it may be, however, that a future revelation will remove this disadvantage and give them full equality. Many Mormon leaders have expressed the hope that such a revelation will be given soon.
7. Does Mormonism teach the unique incarnation of Christ? No. It does teach that Christ existed as a spirit person before he came to earth and that when he came to earth he received a physical body through Mary. However, this experience was not unique. All the gods first existed as spirits and then came to various earths to receive bodies. Christ’s experience was similar to that of every other god, and of many men.
It is important to remember that though Mormons may confess the deity of Jesus Christ, they do not mean by that confession what historic Christianity means by it. For them the difference between Christ and man is only a difference of degree.
8. Does Mormonism teach the vicarious atonement of Christ? Mormon writers do say that Adam’s fall required an atonement. Since the fall brought physical death into the world, Christ had to make an atonement to deliver us from death by providing for all men the right to be raised from the dead. This is a general salvation, a potential saving of all men from death through resurrection. When Mormons claim, as they sometimes do, that Christ died to save everybody, it is this salvation that they mean.
But Mormons also speak of individual salvation; by this they mean escape from hell and entrance into one of the three Mormon heavens. Since individual salvation depends on individual obedience, Christ’s atonement is not determinative for it (Talmage, pp. 86–91). Individual salvation is determined by meritorious action.
In this view, Christ’s death is a vicarious atonement only in a very restricted sense. Christ died to enable all people to rise from the dead. But his death does not save a person from sin; it only gives man an opportunity to save himself.
9. Does Mormonism teach the biblical view of the way of salvation? One of the great biblical doctrines is justification by faith; a man is saved from sin and adopted as God’s child, not because of his own works or merit, but solely by grace. Man “is justified by faith apart from the works of the law” (Rom. 3:28). But Mormonism rejects this. In fact, James Talmage calls justification by faith a “pernicious doctrine,” and adds, “The sectarian dogma of justification by faith alone has exercised an influence for evil” (op. cit., p. 479). Although Mormons admit that one must have faith in Christ, this faith must be accompanied by faith in Joseph Smith. Very revealing is this statement from Doctrine and Covenants (135:3): “Joseph Smith, the Prophet and Seer of the Lord, has done more, save Jesus only, for the salvation of men in this world, than any other man that ever lived in it.”
The main emphasis in Mormon soteriology, however, is on works. Individual salvation—entrance into one of the three heavens—depends on one’s merits. The more complete one’s obedience to the rules of the church, the higher place he will occupy in the life to come. Speaking of the highest degree of salvation, Joseph Fielding Smith says, “Very gladly would the Lord give to every one eternal life, but since that blessing can come only on merit—through the faithful performance of duty—only those who are worthy shall receive it” (Doctrines of Salvation, II, 5).
Surely this is not the Christian Gospel. It is the Galatian heresy all over again—that is, that a man is saved by faith plus meritorious works. About this heresy Paul uttered some of his strongest words: “Ye are severed from Christ, ye who would be justified by the law; ye are fallen away from grace” (Gal. 5:4).
10. Does Mormonism teach that all men will be saved? Very nearly. Mormons do believe there is a place of final punishment; but very few people will go there, only the so-called sons of perdition, whose sins have placed them beyond the “present possibility of repentance and salvation” (Talmage, p. 409).
The highest of the three Mormon heavens, the celestial kingdom, will be for those who have been most faithful on earth; here those who were celestially married on earth (married for eternity in a Mormon temple) will continue to live with their spouses and will continue to procreate children. The second heaven, the terrestrial kingdom, is for those who were less earnest and valiant in their service of God. This kingdom has room for those who reject the Gospel while they are on earth but who later accept it when Christ preaches to them in the spirit world. In other words, those who reject Christ in this life have a “second chance” to accept him after death. The lowest of the three heavens is the telestial kingdom, for people who live wicked lives on earth and are cast into hell when they die, but who are released from punishment after a period of suffering. Hell is thus seen as a kind of purgatory, with a door at each end.
The Bible does not permit the view that people who have deliberately rejected the Gospel in this life will be given a second chance. “It is appointed unto men once to die, and after this cometh judgment” (Heb. 9:27). Neither does Scripture let us think of hell as a school from which one may graduate into heaven. Jesus said with finality, “These shall go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life” (Matt. 25:46).
On each of these ten questions the teaching of the Mormon church is contrary to Scripture. Although there is much in Mormonism that we may admire—the tremendous welfare program, the ability to get members involved in the work of the church, the willingness to sacrifice—we cannot classify Mormon teachings with those of historic Christianity. The Christ of Mormonism is not the Christ of Scripture.
Milton D. Hunnex is professor and head of the department of philosophy at Willamette University, Salem, Oregon. He received the B.A. and M.A. degrees from the University of Redlands and the Ph.D. in the Inter-collegiate Program in Graduate Studies, Claremont, California. He is author of “Philosophies and Philosophers.”
