Introduction. [Return to top]

This web page will be one long page rather than several pages 'linked' together. This makes it easier to download for use offline. No graphics are used on this page since they would slow it down.

The hyperlinks in this document are red and will behave like any other hyperlink.

The information on this page is designed for using hyperlinks. Do not attempt to read from beginning to end like a normal document.

Throughout the text you will come across links which will take you to different parts of the document, in general these are self explanatory, for example [Return to top] will obviously take you to the top of the document.
You will also come across [Return]. This will return you to the place where you were reading before you clicked on a link.

Due to the nature of this page, it will NEVER be complete but will be added to as and when I have more information to place on it - and the time to do so!

I welcome any additional information (plus references) to add to this page. Please be aware. The truth of any information given to the author will be verified before being added. Should you find any information on this page which you believe to be untrue, please contact me.

Call back often to download the most up-to-date version, (see copyright information below).

Please note, this page is copyrighted (©). Anyone wishing to use the page is requested to contact the author.

The purpose of this page is to provide a "database" for those wishing to witness to Mormons; hopefully they will find the information they need.

I pray any Mormon reading this information will not try to 'rationalise' or 'Mormonise' it but rather will see for themselves that all is not well in Mormonism and that far from being "the restored Christian Church" it is in fact a cult.

I do not hate any Mormon and do not consider myself their enemy.

The apostle Paul once had to ask the rhetorical question "Am I become your enemy because I tell you the truth"? I would ask that same question. Thank you.

Church Founder. [Return to top]

The Mormon Church was founded by Joseph Smith Junior. Born to Joseph and Lucy Mack Smith on December 23, 1805 in the town of Sharon, Windsor County, Vermont. The Smith family moved to the town of Palmyra in Upper New York State where they lived some years before moving, again, to the nearby town of Manchester where they had purchased 100 acres of land to farm.

Foundational Pillars. [Return to top]

Joseph Smith claimed that two years after they had moved to Manchester he had his first encounter with heavenly beings, this was during a revival in his area. His first encounter, now known as 'Joseph Smith's First Vision', is one of the foundational pillers of Mormonism. The other foundational piller, in my opinion, is the 'Book of Mormon'. The reason I refer to both of these as 'foundational pillers' is as follows, they are:
(a) Foundational, - Since both are claimed to have been used to "restore the true church" on earth.
(b) Pillers, - Since the whole of Mormonism depends upon them being true.

Church Names. [Return to top]

The Mormon Church was formed with six people on April 6, 1830. At that time it was known as 'The Church of Christ', it is claimed this name was revealed to Joseph Smith.
The Mormon Church claims that if a church does not have the name of Christ embedded in its name, it obviously cannot belong to Christ.
At General Conference May 3, 1834 the name of the church was changed - by unanimous vote - to 'The Church of the Latter-day Saints', dropping the Name of Christ. Many Mormons were furious about this .......... And so.
On April 26, 1838 Joseph Smith claimed another revelation from God, changing the church's name, again, to 'The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints'. The name it still uses.
But from May 3, 1834 until April 26, 1838, a period just short of 4 years, the official name of the Mormon Church did not contain the name of Christ.

Change of Direction. [Return to top]

For many years the LDS Church was quite happy to be seen as different. They were quite happy to call themselves 'Mormons'. Now, however, they have had a change of heart - now they shy away from the title 'Mormon' preferring instead the name 'Christian'. The Church no longer wants to be 'different' but rather, one of the Christian family, indeed they are spending vast amounts of money in order to present themselves as a Christian Church to the world.
The truth is they do not uphold even one Christian doctrine. Most cults have at least one doctrine which agrees with mainstream Christianity - though usually tenuously, but with Mormonism there is not even one (not that I can think of, you may know better).
Mormons consider themselves to be the ONLY TRUE church - all other churches are, in their opinion, corrupt and without authority from God. This swing toward being seen as just another Christian denomination is part of their quest for general acceptance; just another coat of varnish on the facade intended for public viewing.

A Comparison between the God of the Bible and the Mormon god.. [Return to top]

Look at the Mormon teachings concerning God, which outsiders - and even some Mormons - are unaware of. The text in the grid below is just a brief introduction to the subject matter.

The Holy Spirit and The Holy Ghost. [Return to top]

In Mormonism 'Holy Spirit' and 'Holy Ghost' are not references to the same person even though the Greek word (pneuma) is used for both names in the Bible and it is from this Greek word we get the English words 'spirit' and 'ghost', which mean the same and are used interchangeably.

To the Mormon the Holy Spirit is not a person but a substance which fills the immensity of space through which their 'flesh-and-bone' God, who is not omnipresent, fulfills His will.

The Holy Ghost is a God (though Mormons cannot understand how this could be, since he has not had a body with which to 'work out His salvation' in order to attain God hood, as they believe Jesus did).

This God is a Spirit person; a Spirit man. He cannot change his shape to any other shape. Like the Mormon God and the Mormon Jesus, the Mormon Holy Ghost is not omnipresent.

When Mormons say they believe in the Trinity what they mean is they believe in three separate Gods who are one in purpose not one God. Their First Article of Faith is therefore deceptive since it gives the impression that Mormons accept the Christian doctrine of the trinity.

Joseph Smith's First Vision Story. [Return] [First Vision Story Problems] [Return to top]

Joseph Smith claimed he had a vision, now known as his First Vision (below), this vision is of extreme importance to the LDS Church - indeed it has been called the foundation of that Church. This vision is claimed to have occured in the year 1820 during a revival in the area where Joseph Smith lived. It is an historical fact that there was a revival in that area in the year 1824, it's well documented, however there is no historical support for an 1820 revival.
Critics of the church believe that when Joseph Smith wrote today's accepted version of the First Vision Story, which he did in 1838, he had in mind the 1824 revival, but placed it in the year 1820 in order to fit into a timescale which would allow for other events such as his second vision in 1823; his four years of waiting before he could obtain the plates and, of course, allowing time to translate those plates into what was to become The Book of Mormon.

The lack of historical evidence for an 1820 revival is only one of many problems for this story - which has become the very foundation of the Mormon Church. In the First Vision Story, printed below, I have coloured certain parts of the text in blue, these "blue text" areas represent problems for Joseph Smith's First Vision Story and therefore the entire Mormon Church.

2. In this history I shall present the various events in relation to this Church, in truth and righteousness, as they have transpired, or as they at present exist, being now the eighth year since the organization of the said Church.

3. I was born in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and five, on the twenty-third day of December, in the town of Sharon, Windsor county, State of Vermont. ...My father, Joseph Smith, Sen., left the State of Vermont, and moved to Palmyra, Ontario (now Wayne) county, in the State of New York, when I was in my tenth year, or thereabouts. In about four years after my father's arrival in Palmyra, he moved with his family into Manchester in the same county of Ontario -

4. His family consisting of eleven souls, namely, my father, Joseph Smith; my mother, Lucy Smith (whose name, previous to her marriage, was Mack, daughter of Solomon Mack); my brothers, Alvin (who died November 19th, 1823, in the 27th year of his age), Hyrum, myself, Samuel Harrison, William, Don Carlos; and my sisters, Sophronia, Catherine, and Lucy.

5. Some time in the second year after our removal to Manchester, there was at the place where we lived an unusual excitement on the subject of religion. It commenced with the Methodists, but soon became general among all the sects in that region of country. Indeed, the whole district of country seemed affected by it, and great multitudes united themselves to the different religious parties, which created no small stir and division amongst the people, some crying, "Lo, here!" and others "Lo, there!" Some were contending for the Methodist faith, some for the Presbyterian, and some for the Baptist.

6. For, notwithstanding the great love which the converts to these different faiths expressed at the time of their conversion, and the great zeal manifested by the respective clergy, who were active in getting up and promoting this extraordinary scene of religious feeling, in order to have everybody converted, as they were pleased to call it, let them join what sect they pleased; yet when the converts began to file off, some to one party and some to another, it was seen that the seemingly good feelings of both the priests and the converts were more pretended than real; for a scene of great confusion and bad feeling ensued - priest contending against priest, and convert against convert; so that all their good feelings one for another, if they ever had any, were entirely lost in a strife of words and a contest about opinions.

7. I was at this time in my fifteenth year. My father's family was proselyted to the Presbyterian faith, and four of them joined that church, namely, my mother, Lucy; my brothers Hyrum and Samuel Harrison; and my sister Sophronia.

8. During this time of great excitement my mind was called up to serious reflection and great uneasiness; but though my feelings were deep and often poignant, still I kept myself aloof from all these parties, though I attended their several meetings as often as occasion would permit. In process of time my mind became somewhat partial to the Methodist sect, and I felt some desire to be united with them; but so great were the confusion and strife among the different denominations, that it was impossible for a person young as I was, and so unacquainted with men and things, to come to any certain conclusion who was right and who was wrong.

9. My mind at times was greatly excited, the cry and tumult were so great and incessant. The Presbyterians were most decided against the Baptists and Methodists, and used all the powers of both reason and sophistry to prove their errors, or, at least, to make the people think they were in error. On the other hand, the Baptists and Methodists in their turn were equally zealous in endeavoring to establish their own tenets and disprove all others.

10. In the midst of this war of words and tumult of opinions, I often said to myself: What is to be done? Who of all these parties are right; or, are they all wrong together? If any one of them be right, which is it, and how shall I know it?

11. While I was laboring under the extreme difficulties caused by the contests of these parties of religionists, I was one day reading the Epistle of James, first chapter and fifth verse, which reads: If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.

12. Never did any passage of scripture come with more power to the heart of man than this did at this time to mine. It seemed to enter with great force into every feeling of my heart. I reflected on it again and again, knowing that if any person needed wisdom from God, I did; for how to act I did not know, and unless I could get more wisdom than I then had, I would never know; for the teachers of religion of the different sects understood the same passages of scripture so differently as to destroy all confidence in settling the question by an appeal to the Bible.

13. At length I came to the conclusion that I must either remain in darkness and confusion, or else I must do as James directs, that is, ask of God. I at length came to the determination to "ask of God," concluding that if he gave wisdom to them that lacked wisdom, and would give liberally, and not upbraid, I might venture.

14. So, in accordance with this, my determination to ask of God, I retired to the woods to make the attempt. It was on the morning of a beautiful, clear day, early in the spring of eighteen hundred and twenty. It was the first time in my life that I had made such an attempt, for amidst all my anxieties I had never as yet made the attempt to pray vocally.

15. After I had retired to the place where I had previously designed to go, having looked around me, and finding myself alone, I kneeled down and began to offer up the desire of my heart to God. I had scarcely done so, when immediately I was seized upon by some power which entirely overcame me, and had such an astonishing influence over me as to bind my tongue so that I could not speak. Thick darkness gathered around me, and it seemed to me for a time as if I were doomed to sudden destruction.

16. But, exerting all my powers to call upon God to deliver me out of the power of this enemy which had seized upon me, and at the very moment when I was ready to sink into despair and abandon myself to destruction - not to an imaginary ruin, but to the power of some actual being from the unseen world, who had such marvelous power as I had never before felt in any being - just at this moment of great alarm, I saw a pillar of light exactly over my head, above the brightness of the sun, which descended gradually until it fell upon me.

17. It no sooner appeared than I found myself delivered from the enemy which held me bound. When the light rested upon me I saw two personages, whose brightness and glory defy all description, standing above me in the air. One of them spake unto me, calling me by name and said, pointing to the other - This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him!

18. My object in going to inquire of the Lord was to know which of all the sects was right, that I might know which to join. No sooner, therefore, did I get possession of myself, so as to be able to speak, than I asked the personages who stood above me in the light, which of all the sects was right -- and which I should join. [notice the hyphen in this verse, five words from the end.]

19. 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.

"20. He again forbade me to join with any of them; and many other things did he say unto me, which I cannot write at this time. When I came to myself again I found myself lying on my back, looking up to heaven. When the light had departed, I had no strength; but soon recovering in some degree, I went home. And as I leaned up to the fireplace, my mother inquired what the matter was. I replied, "Never mind, all is well - I am well enough off." I then said to my mother, "I have learned for myself that Presbyterianism is not true."...

Problems With Joseph Smith's First Vision Story. [Return to F.V. Story]

Look closely at Joseph's own account.
Joseph was born at the very end of 1805, December 23. Just 9 days before 1806. Since he is vague about the times he moved (in my tenth year or thereabouts etc.) let us take his birth date as 1805/1806
He moved to the town of Palmyra when he was in his 10th year, or thereabouts (verse 3). This brings us to the year 1815/1816.
Four years later he, along with his family, moved again. To the town of Manchester (still verse 3). That brings us to the year 1819/1820.
Now read verse 5. Joseph says that in the second year after they had moved to Manchester the revival (religious excitement) began, but we are now in the year 1821/1822. One or two years too late!

In verse 4 of his story, Joseph Smith lists the family members who moved from Palmyra to Manchester, the last person on his list is his youngest sister Lucy.
Lucy Smith was born on July 18, 1821 in the town of Palmyra!
This means two things.
1. The Smith family were still living in Palmyra in the year 1821,
2. It is impossible for Lucy to have moved to Manchester two years before an 1820 revival (i.e. 1818).

In 1970 Brigham Young University (a Mormon University), microfilmed the road tax lists of the Palmyra township for the Smith's era.
All male property owners over the age of 21 were required to pay a tax in order to maintain the roads in their area.
Joseph Smith Sr. is listed among the property owners who were required to keep the roads in 'Road District 26' (Palmyra District) repaired from April 1817 to April 1822. If the Smith's no longer lived in Palmyra they would no longer be paying road taxes for that area.
Therefore, any move to Manchester had to be after April 1822.

Its name was changed from 'Farmington' to 'Burt' on March 31, 1821 but that name did not last too long, for on April 16, 1822 it was changed again to 'Manchester'.
So you see, if the Smith family moved to Manchester it had to be after April 16, 1822 - which of course, it was.

The information concerning the purchase of land is given on page 70. The same information is contained in Comprehensive History of the Church, Volume 1 page 31.

The land in question was part of Lot number 1, it was actually one third of Lot number 1, which was 300 acres in total. The land was being sold by the heirs of Nicholas Everson.

The Property Assessment Records show that all 300 acres of Lot number 1 were still owned by the Everson family in July 1820, for they paid the tax due on all 300 acres.

However, in the Summer of 1821 the records show 100 acres of Lot number one taxed to Joseph Smith Sr. at a tax of $7 per acre ($700), this was the basic tax rate for land.

The following Summer, 1822, Joseph Smith Sr. was again billed at the basic land rate of $700.

But in 1823 the assessed value went up from $700 to $1000. Indicating that between the Summers of 1822 and 1823 a cabin was built on the land.

The Rev. Stockton was the first of the two ministers to take up his post in that region, he took over on February 18 1824. He visited the area a few months earlier, during which he buried Alvin Smith, that visit might have taken place to get things sorted out before his arrival, or he may have been there to be interviewed for the job.
The Rev. George Lane arrived in July 1824 but due to ill health he left the ministry in January 1825.

Therefore any revival in which both these men took part must have been in the second half of the year 1824.

Joseph Smith's mother, in her book Sketches, informs us that she joined the Presbyterian Church following the death of her son Alvin.

To state the obvious: if Lucy joined during the revival and following the death of Alvin, then the revival could not have been in 1820 - it had to be later than November 1823, the date of Alvin's death.

According to Joseph's Story (v. 5), in the year 1820 "great multitudes united themselves to the different religious parties." Therefore if we look at the membership records of those churches we should see a large number of people joining in that year, right? Wrong!

In the year 1820 nothing unusual is recorded, the Methodist Church LOST six members and the Baptists gained six.

What about the year 1824? What do the records show? In 1824 the Lord did indeed save many souls in that area. The Baptists gained 94 people; The Presbyterians 99 and the Methodists 208.

The Presbyterian records also show that Lucy Smith and her two sons Hyrum and Samuel were active in that church until 1828. It was about September of that year that they started to fall away, and at the end of March 1830 they were suspended as members. (Western Presbyterian Church of Palmyra, Sessions Records Vol. 2)

If, immediately after a vision (be it in 1820 or 1824), Joseph Smith told his mother "I have learned for myself that presbyterianism is not true" as he claimed in verse 20 of his First Vision Story, why would she then join that very church and remain an active member until 1828? It makes no sense.

It is important to remember that the First Vision Story was not published until the year 1842; twenty-two years after the supposed vision.

Also, the official version, as given in this article, is not the only version but merely the final version. In all there are about 13 different versions of the story.
Two of the older versions are of particular importance, the first is recorded in Joseph Smith's 1832 diary, written in his own handwriting. The second was recorded in Joseph Smith's 1835 diary under the date Monday November 9.

"I commenced giving him a relation of the circumstances connected with the coming forth of the Book of Mormon, as follows - being wrought up in my mind, respecting the subject of religion and looking at the different systems taught the children of men,
I knew not who was right or who was wrong and I considered it of the first importance that I should be right... being thus purplexed in mind I retired to the silent grove...
I called upon the Lord for the first time, in the place above stated or in other words I made a fruitless attempt to pray, my toung seemed to be swolen in my mouth, so that I could not utter, I heard a noise behind me... I sprung to my feet but saw no person or thing...
I kneeled again my mouth was opened and my toung liberated, and I called on the Lord in mighty prayer, a piller of fire appeared above my head, it presently rested down upon me and filled me with joy unspeakable, a personage appeared in the midst of this pillar of flame which was spread all around and yet nothing consumed, another personage soon appeared like unto the first, he said unto me thy sins are forgiven thee, he testifyed unto me that Jesus Christ is the Son of God; and I saw many angels in this vision I was about 14 years old when I received this first communication:

Between 1832 and 1835 Joseph has added the silent grove and hinted at the evil power, but still there was nothing said about a revival.

The pillar of light had now become fire. One person, followed by another, appeared in this fiery pillar. This second person tells Joseph that:

- this would seem to indicate that neither of these persons was God the Father or The Lord Jesus Christ, otherwise the statement made would have been worded differently.

Joseph says he was about 14 years old when he received this first communication. He also saw many angels in this vision.

As you can see, in the three years from 1832 to 1835 Joseph Smith made numerous changes to his story. Now, if we go on another three years we see that Joseph, in 1838, has refined his story to what is taught as truth by the Mormon Church today. This story was then published in 1842.

But even this 'refined' version was not refined enough for the leaders of the Church who were to follow when Joseph was killed. The reader will remember that in verse 18 of the story I pointed out a hyphen in the middle of the verse. What is it doing there? The answer is this, it is replacing a sentence which once appeared at that place in parenthesis.

When the 1838 official version of the First Vision was first published in 1842 it appeared in the Mormon Newspaper 'Times and Seasons' and in the place where that hyphen now appears it then read:

Why should these 15 words be removed? Because earlier in his story (verse 10) Joseph Smith said he had wondered which church was right, "or are they all wrong together" a contradiction in Joseph's story which they could not permit, so the Mormon leadership simply removed the offending words. These 15 words have now been reinserted - thereby reinserting the orininal conflict between verses 10 and 18.

Mormon Scriptures: An Overview. [Return to top]

The Mormon Church recognises four books as Scripture:

1. The King James version of the Bible - where it suits them! Otherwise it is deemed to be 'wrongly translated'.

2. The Book of Mormon - Joseph Smith's first written work, claimed to be a translation of ancient gold plates.

3. Doctrine and Covenants - a book containing [mostly] so called revelations received by Joseph Smith. This volume was preceded by a much smaller volume known as The Book of Commandments.

4. The Pearl of Great Price - a small volume containing:

                                                                                        a). The Book of Moses
                                                                                        b). The Book of Abraham
                                                                                        c). Joseph Smith - Matthew
                                                                                        d). Joseph Smith - History
                                                                                        e). Articles of faith of the LDS Church

It has also been claimed by a number of Mormon Prophets that the sermons, and other statements of the prophet, are to be considered scripture.

The doctrines of the LDS Church have changed over the years, although the church normally disputes this point. When they acknowledge changes these are normally claimed to have occurred as the result of 'further revelation' - very convenient!

However, there are some early doctrines which the church now publicly deny ever having taught, the two best known examples being:

1. The Adam-God doctrine. Taught for approximately 22 years by Brigham Young the second prophet of the church.
2. Blood Atonement. Whereby people were put to death to atone for their sins since it is taught by the church that certain sins are beyond the saving power of the Blood of the Lord Jesus Christ.

The Bible - King James Version [Return to top]

Whilst paying lip service to the Bible, in reality Mormons do not place too much faith in it. They are quite prepared to believe any biblical text which appears to support their position, but biblical text which contradicts their belief system is simply ignored, or they try to "Mormonise" it - make it fit into their system. They will frequently misquote the Bible. It pays to read for yourself any verse(s) they are quoting - and the context in which that verse is found.

Joseph Smith claimed he had a revelation from God to correct the Bible, this "corrected version" is printed by the Reorganised Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints whose headquarters are in Independance, Missouri.

The name of this version is "The Inspired Version" (I.V.) or "The Joseph Smith Version" (JSV). The Utah church claim they do not use the JSV. because Joseph Smith never got a chance to complete his translation before he was killed.

This is nonsense. In the History of the [Mormon] Church, under the date February 2, 1833 we find this statement, attributed to Joseph Smith:

"I completed the translation and review of the New Testament, on the 2nd. of February, 1833, and sealed it up, no more to be opened till it arrived in Zion." (History of the Church Vol. 1, p. 324.)

"We this day finished the translation of the Scriptures, for which we return gratatude to our Heavenly Father..." (Ibid p.368.)

Besides, surely a partly corrected Bible would be better than one which has had no corrections?

Book of Mormon. [Return] [Return to top]

The first edition of this book was published in 1830. It is claimed to be a translation of ancient records which were engraved onto gold plates by people known as "Nephites".

The Nephites are supposed to have been decended from a party of Jewish people who left Jerusalem (about 600 BC) and sailed to the new world. This group was led by "Lehi" a devout Jew who had lived all his days (prior to emagrating) in Jerusalem. One of Lehi's son's is called Nephi and another Laman. After arriving in the land now known as America Laman forsook God and was cursed with a dark skin, he seperated from the rest of the family and his descendents are called "Lamanites", Mormons believe the American Indian is descended from the Lamanites.

Nephi remained true to God and the good people in the Book of Mormon are named after him - "Nephites". Following his resurrection it is claimed Jesus visited these people; had Nephite deciples and preached His Gospel to the Nephite nation.

Eventually the God fearing Nephites were destroyed by the heathen Lamanites, the last Nephite warrior alive, Moroni, buried the plates in a hillside which the Nephites called Comorah, the Smith family lived near this hill.

Joseph Smith claimed to have been visited by Moroni, now an angel, who told him about the gold plates but laid down certain rules about Joseph obtaining them, see Moroni's Visit. Eventually Joseph got the plates and from them translated the Book of Mormon. Unlike the Bible, there are no "get-out" clauses regarding the Book of Mormon. It is deemed to be absolutely correct. This in spite of the thousands of changes made to it in its relitivly short existance.

It is strange that a Mormon will believe there have been major changes to the Bible - but are unable to produce any evidence - yet, at the same time, believe the Book of Mormon to be totally correct in spite of abundant evidence regarding the changes made to it. Quite apart from the changes to the Book of Mormon there are many other aspects of the book which raise major problems, indeed, I see this as an area of this page where I shall be continually adding. There are just so many problems with the Book of Mormon.

But let's begin by looking at some of the more relevent changes, the change being in red bold type.

In spite of the fact that Mormon missionaries have for years used the lie that archaeological evidence has proved the Book of Mormon true and Mormon writers continue to spread that same "faith promoting" lie the plain simple fact is - there is absolutely no archaeological evidance which supports the Book of Mormon.

In fact the opposite is true; as time goes on and we gain more and more knowledge, the Book of Mormon becomes ever more ridiculous. Read below what some Mormon scholars (not just writers, but people who are actually qualified to speak on the subject) have to say.

“The first myth we need to eliminate is that Book of Mormon archaeology exists. Titles on books full of archaeological half-truths, dilettante on the peripheries of American archaeology calling themselves Book of Mormon archaeologists regardless of their education, and a Department of Archaeology at BYU devoted to the production of Book of Mormon archaeologists do not insure that Book of Mormon archaeology really exists. If one is to study Book of Mormon archaeology, then one must have a corpus of data with which to deal. We do not. The Book of Mormon is really there so one can have Book of Mormon studies, and archaeology is really there so one can study archaeology, but the two are not wed. At least they are not wed in reality since no Book of Mormon location is known with reference to modern topography. Biblical archaeology can be studied because we do know where Jerusalem and Jericho were and are, but we do not know where Zarahemla and Bountiful (nor any other location for that matter) were or are. It would seem then that a concentration on geography should be the first order of business, but we have already seen that twenty years of such an approach has left us empty-handed.”   
LDS scholar Dee F. Green, editor of (Brigham Young) University Archaeological Society Newsletter. 1958-1961 Article in the 1969 Mormon periodical, Dialogue, A Journal of Mormon Thought,

“Various individuals unconnected with these institutionalized activities have also wrestled with the archaeological problem. Few of the writings they have produced are of genuine consequence in archaeological terms. Some are clearly on the oddball fringe: others have credible qualifications. Two of the most prolific are Professor Hugh Nibley and Milton R. Hunter, however, they are not qualified to handle the archaeological materials their works often involve.”    Mormon archaeologist John L. Sorenson,

Now let's look at that archaeological evidence:

Book of Mormon versus Mormonism not yet ready, call back.. [Return to top]

Mormon Scripture versus Mormon Scripture, not yet ready, call back.. [Return to top]

Doctrine and Covenants. [Return to top]

This volume superceeded The Book of Commandments which was published in 1833 and contained 65 of Joseph Smith's 'revelations'. When The Doctrines and Covenants (D&C) was published in 1835 these 65 revelations were reprinted in the new volume; however many changes and additions to those revelations were made without mention, (click here to see an example).

This gives the impression that the church's newer teachings, which were incorporated into the D&C, were part of the original 'revelations'.

Whilst the Mormon Church advertises its use of the Bible and the Book of Mormon (not mentioning its belief that the Bible is considered unreliable). It never advertises its use of The Doctrine and Covenants and The Pearl of Great Price. Could this be because it does not want too many people to be aware of the fact that polygamy is still taught in the D&C?
Or that these two 'hidden' Scriptures are the ones upon which their church doctrine is built?
Or that these two volumes not only contradict the Bible and Book of Mormon, but also contradict each other - in fact, The Pearl of Great Price contradicts itself!
Or one of the numerous other reasons why they do not want the contents of these two 'scriptures' to become public knowledge

The Bible and the Book of Mormon are the public showpieces because the Mormon Church wants to be considered Christian and these two books teach Christian doctrine.

Please understand! I do not accept The Book of Mormon as God's word, I believe it to be the invention of Joseph Smith (or possibly Sidney Rigdon), nevertheless, by-and-large its teaching is basic Christian doctrine and therefore, along with the Bible, gives uninformed persons the impression that the Mormon church is indeed just another branch of the Christian Church.

Mormon Prophets. [Return to top]

At the present time Gordon B. Hinckley is the Mormon prophet, he is the 15th since the beginning of the church. The others were as follows plus the years they were alive, the years they were the prophet and their age when they became prophet.

Mormon god had sex with Mary to produce Jesus. [Return to Top]

Whilst they do not shout it from the rooftops the Mormon Church, nevertheless, teach that their flesh and bone god came to this earth and had sexual intercourse with Mary - the prefix, 'virgin' clearly does not apply here.

Mormon Missionaries will say their church does not teach this doctrine. In truth, some of them don't even know about it, the others are lying! Therefore, the evidence below sometimes comes as a shock to these young men (Elders!!) and young women.

Since I am not using any sort of graphic on this web page the following text from The Family Home Evening Manual is typed. I have formatted it to look like the original - it's a pretty good match. Should you wish to see the orginal I can email you the jpeg images.

Family Home Evening. [Return to top]

The Mormon Church claims to be family orentated, part of this is the Family Home Evening where Mormon families stay at home on a Monday evening and follow the instructions in The Family Home Evening Manual, which is produced, and provided by, the church.

The following pages, 125-126 are from the 1972 Family Home Evening Manual. The title of this lesson is "Whom Say Ye That I Am?" The relevent text is in blue and some of it also bold.
Any comments made by me are in red and contained within [square brackets].

SUGGESTIONS FOR FAMILY INVOLVEMENT

A Game

Introduce tonight's home evening with the game on the next page. Divide your family into two teams. Cut the game in two along the dotted line. Each team goes off by itself to consult and play the game. One member of a team should read each statement. The team should decide upon the answers and circle whether the statement is true or false.

After the answers are marked, the team proceeds on the maze in the direction indicated by the answers. "True" goes left and "False" goes right. Be careful, with one incorrect answer you may arrive at a dead end.

In What Way is Jesus God's Only Son?

Read or tell the following story.

JENNY'S QUESTION

The Markham family had been to Sunday School and was driving home. Brother Markham asked each of his four children what they had learned that day. Each of the children related a story or a teaching that he had learned.

When Jenny was asked what she had learned, she replied,
"Daddy, I'm confused. The teacher talked about Jesus' [sic] being God's only son. I thought all of us were God's children.

Ask, Have you ever wondered about this question?
How would you answer Jenny? Discuss this with the family, letting each have a chance to express himself.

Now read to the family how a modern prophet answered jenny's question.

A MODERN PROPHET'S ANSWER

...I want the little folks to hear what I am going to tell you.
I am going to tell you a simple truth, yet it is one of the greatest truths and one of the most simple facts ever revealed to the children of men.

You all know that your fathers are indeed your fathers and that your mothers are indeed your mothers - you all know that don't you? You cannot deny it. Now we are told in scriptures that Jesus Christ is the only begotten Son of God in the flesh.

Well, now for the benefit of the older ones, how are children begotten? I answer just as Jesus Christ was begotten of his father. The difference between Jesus Christ and other men is this: Our fathers in the flesh are mortal men, who are subject unto death: but the father of Jesus Christ in the flesh is the God of Heaven.

Therefore Jesus, as he declared, received the power of life from his Father and was never subject unto death but had life in himself as his father had life in himself. Because of this power he overcame death and the grave and became master of the resurrection and the means of salvation to us all.

We must come down to the simple fact that God Almighty was the Father of His Son Jesus Christ. Mary, the virgin girl who had never known mortal man, was his mother. God by her begot His son Jesus Christ, and he was born into the world with power and intelligence like that of his father,...

Now! My little friends, I will repeat again in words as simple as I can, and you talk to your parents about it, that God, the Eternal Father, is literally the father of Jesus Christ. (Joseph F. Smith, Box Elder Stake Conference Dec. 20, 1914 as quoted in Brigham City Box Elder News, 28 Jan. 1915, pp. 1-2.)

An Illustration and Discussion to Help
Further Answer Jenny's Questions:

At this point, discuss in your own words how Jesus was the only begotten Son of God. You might do this by using the following illustration on a chalkboard or piece of paper.

[At this point on the page there is a simple drawing, (you may wish to draw it yourself to get a better idea of what I'm trying to explain): it shows a drawing of a stick man , then a + sign then a stick woman. Below the man it says "Daddy" and below the woman, "Mommy".

Lines go down from the words 'Daddy' and 'Mommy' in a large 'V' shape, but they do not touch at the bottom, instead, a stick drawing of a little girl (presumably Jenny) is positioned between the bottoms of the lines and below the little girl is the word "You".

So the child is told, "Daddy plus Mommy equals You." Fair enough!

Below that drawing is another, it looks like this:

Again there is a large V shape with its bottom bit missing. The two converging lines come down from "Our Heavenly Father" and "Mary" and point to "Jesus". The message intended for the youngster is very clear.

The text then continues:]

All boys and girls have a mother and father on earth. Your mother and father, of course, are mother and I. Jesus is the only person ever born on this earth that is different. Jesus had a mother on earth. What was her name? (Mary.) But who was his real father? (Heavenly Father.) So you see, Jesus is the only person who had our Heavenly Father as the father of his body.

[The remainder of the text on the page is the rules of the game refered to at the beginning of this article, the game is designed to have the children give the "right" [the Mormon]answers, or they get lost in a maze.

Since the above article is specifically designed for teaching young children it cannot be argued that it does not mean what it appears to say, that there is really a deeper meaning. For that is not how you teach children!]

Example of changes to BOC / D&C The following is only one of many deceptive changes made to Mormon Scriptures. The blue text is words changed and the red text is words added.

A Book of Commandments - Chapter 7	Doctrine and Covenants - Section 8
Book of Commandments Chapter VII	Doctrine and Covenants Section 8
A Revelation given to Oliver, in Harmony, Pennsylvania, April, 1829.	Revelation given through Joseph Smith the Prophet to Oliver Cowdery, at Harmony, Pennsylvania, April 1829. HC 1:36-37. In the course of the translation of the Book of Mormon, Oliver, who continued to serve as scribe, writing at the Prophet's dictation, desired to be endowed with the gift of translation. The Lord responded to his supplication by granting this revelation.
7:1 Oliver, verily, verily I say unto you, that assuredly as the Lord liveth, which is your God and your Redeemer, even so sure shall you receive a knowledge of whatsoever things you shall ask in faith, with and honest heart, believing that you shall receive a knowledge concerning the engravings of old records, which are ancient, which contain those parts of my scripture of which have been spoken, by the manifestation of my Spirit; yea, behold I will tell you in your mind and in your heart by the Holy Ghost, which shall come upon you and which shall dwell in your heart.	8:1 Oliver Cowdery, verily, verily, I say unto you, that assuredly as the Lord liveth, who is your God and your Redeemer, even so surely shall you receive a knowledge of whatsoever things you shall ask in faith, with an honest heart, believing that you shall receive a knowledge concerning the engravings of old records, which are ancient, which contain those parts of my scripture of which has been spoken by the manifestation of my Spirit. 8:2 Yea, behold, I will tell you in your mind and in your heart, by the Holy Ghost, which shall come upon you and which shall dwell in your heart.
7:2 Now, behold this is the Spirit of revelation:--behold this is the Spirit by which Moses brought the children of Israel through the Red sea on dry ground: therefore, this is thy gift; apply unto it and blessed art thou, for it shall deliver you out of the hands of your enemies, when, if it were not so, they would slay you and bring your soul to destruction.	8:3 Now, behold, this is the spirit of revelation; behold, this is the spirit by which Moses brought the children of Israel through the Red Sea on dry ground. 8:4 Therefore this is thy gift; apply unto it, and blessed art thou, for it shall deliver you out of the hands of your enemies, when, if it were not so, they would slay you and bring your soul to destruction.
7:3 O remember, these words and keep my commandments. Remember this is your gift. Now this is not all, for you have another gift, which is the gift of working with the rod: behold it has told you things: behold there is no other power save God, that can cause this rod of nature, to work in your hands, for it is the work of God; and therefore whatsoever you shall ask me to tell you by that means, that will I grant unto you, that you shall know.	8:5 Oh, remember these words, and keep my commandments. Remember, this is your gift. 8:6 Now this is not all thy gift; for you have another gift, which is the gift of Aaron; behold, it has told you many things; 8:7 Behold, there is no other power, save the power of God, that can cause this gift of Aaron to be with you. 8:8 Therefore, doubt not, for it is the gift of God; and you shall hold it in your hands, and do marvelous works; and no power shall be able to take it away out of your hands, for it is the work of God. 8:9 And, therefore, whatsoever you shall ask me to tell you by that means, that will I grant unto you, and you shall have knowledge concerning it.
7:4 Remember that without faith you can do nothing. Trifle not with these things. Do not ask for that which you ought not. Ask that you may know the mysteries of God, and that you may translate all those ancient records, which have been hid up, which are sacred, and according to your faith shall it be done unto you.	8:10 Remember that without faith you can do nothing; therefore ask in faith. Trifle not with these things; do not ask for that which you ought not. 8:11 Ask that you may know the mysteries of God, and that you may translate and receive knowledge from all those ancient records which have been hid up, that are sacred; and according to your faith shall it be done unto you.
7:5 Behold it is I that have spoken it, I am the same which spake unto you from the beginning:--Amen.	8:12 Behold, it is I that have spoken it; and I am the same that spake unto you from the beginning. Amen.

Adam/God Doctrine not yet ready. However the article titled "ADAM! The God of Brigham Young (and the early LDS Church)." found on my website has lots of information on this subject. Go to Reading Room and look under the 'General' heading. call back. [Return to top]

Blood Atonement not yet ready, call back. [Return to top]

Pearl of Great Price not yet ready, call back. [Return to top]