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Criticism of Mormonism/Books/Mormon America: The Power and the Promise/Index: Difference between revisions
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===Chapter 1: Sealed with Blood===
===Chapter 1: Sealed with Blood===
{| valign="top" border="1" style="width:100%; font-size:85%"
{{BeginClaimsTable}}
!width="5%"|Page
|
!width="40%"|Claim
====3====
!width="30%"|Response
||
!width="25%"|[[Use of sources]]
*April 11, 1844: Joseph Smith organized the Council of Fifty to plan political future and had them anoint him “King, Priest and Ruler over Israel on Earth"
|-
||
|3||April 11, 1844: Joseph Smith organized the Council of Fifty to plan political future and had them anoint him “King, Priest and Ruler over Israel on Earth"||[[The Council of Fifty]]||
*[[The Council of Fifty]]
||
*{{CriticalWork:Quinn:Mormon Hierarchy|pages=127-128, 643}}
*{{CriticalWork:Quinn:Mormon Hierarchy|pages=127-128, 643}}
*Robert Bruce Flanders, ''Nauvoo: Kingdom on the Mississippi'', pp. 292-294
*Robert Bruce Flanders, ''Nauvoo: Kingdom on the Mississippi'', pp. 292-294
|-
|-
|3||Joseph Smith petitioned Congress for authorization to raise and lead a 100000-man army to subdue the western territories from Texas to Oregon, and that anyone who would “attempt to hinder or molest the said Joseph Smith” would be subject to two years’ imprisonment.|| ||
|
====3====
||
*Joseph Smith petitioned Congress for authorization to raise and lead a 100000-man army to subdue the western territories from Texas to Oregon, and that anyone who would “attempt to hinder or molest the said Joseph Smith” would be subject to two years’ imprisonment.
||  
||
*{{CriticalWork:Quinn:Mormon Hierarchy|pages=123-123, 360-362}}
*{{CriticalWork:Quinn:Mormon Hierarchy|pages=123-123, 360-362}}
|-
|-
|10||The temple rituals had many similarities to the Masonic rituals that the prophet had just learned||[[Temple endowment and Freemasonry]]
|
====10====
||
*The temple rituals had many similarities to the Masonic rituals that the prophet had just learned.
||
*[[Temple endowment and Freemasonry]]
|-
|-
|12||1842: Disagreement between JS and John C. Bennett was “their competition for nineteen-year-old Nancy Rigdon as plural wife...Smith excommunicated Bennett."
|
====12====
||
*1842: Disagreement between JS and John C. Bennett was “their competition for nineteen-year-old Nancy Rigdon as plural wife...Smith excommunicated Bennett."
|-
|-
|13||On March 11, 1844, Council of Fifty was formed as a theocratic policymaking body “shadow government” (Flanders – RLDS historian) that functioned sporadically in Utah into the 1870’s||[[The Council of Fifty]]||
|
====13====
||
*On March 11, 1844, Council of Fifty was formed as a theocratic policymaking body “shadow government” (Flanders – RLDS historian) that functioned sporadically in Utah into the 1870’s.
||
*[[The Council of Fifty]]
||
*{{CriticalWork:Quinn:Mormon Hierarchy|pages=127-128, 643}}
*{{CriticalWork:Quinn:Mormon Hierarchy|pages=127-128, 643}}
|-
|-
|13||Two of the original 53 members of the Council of Fifty  “apparently were known counterfeiters."||[[The Council of Fifty]] {{nw}}||
|
====13====
||
*Two of the original 53 members of the Council of Fifty  “apparently were known counterfeiters."
||
*[[The Council of Fifty]] {{nw}}
||
*{{CriticalWork:Quinn:Mormon Hierarchy|pages=127-128, 643}}
*{{CriticalWork:Quinn:Mormon Hierarchy|pages=127-128, 643}}
|-
|-
|13||Joseph Smith was anointed “King, Priest and Ruler over Israel on Earth."||[[The Council of Fifty]] ||
|
====13====
||
*Joseph Smith was anointed “King, Priest and Ruler over Israel on Earth."
||
*[[The Council of Fifty]]
||
*D. Michael Quinn, April 11, 1844.
*D. Michael Quinn, April 11, 1844.
|-
|-
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|-
|-
-->
-->
|15||The Council of Fifty, "supposedly a civic body," took ecclesiastical action excommunicating Law and Foster.||[[The Council of Fifty]]{{nw}} ||
|
====15====
||
*The Council of Fifty, "supposedly a civic body," took ecclesiastical action excommunicating Law and Foster.
||
*[[The Council of Fifty]]{{nw}}  
||
*{{CriticalWork:Quinn:Mormon Hierarchy|pages=127-128, 643}}
*{{CriticalWork:Quinn:Mormon Hierarchy|pages=127-128, 643}}
|-
|-
|16||Quinn re. Expositor: “He could not allow the Expositor to publish the secret international negotiations masterminded by Mormonism’s earthly king.”||[[Nauvoo Expositor]] ||
|
====16====
||
*Quinn re. Expositor: “He could not allow the Expositor to publish the secret international negotiations masterminded by Mormonism’s earthly king.”
||
*[[Nauvoo Expositor]]  
||
*Authors' quoting the opinion of ''another'' author, D. Michael Quinn
*Authors' quoting the opinion of ''another'' author, D. Michael Quinn
|-
|-
|16||“With the backing of his Council, Smith ordered that the new press be smashed and all possible copies of the press run destroyed.” (p16)||[[Nauvoo Expositor]] ||
|
*The statement is deliberately structured by the authors to lead the reader to an incorrect, and more sinister, conclusion. See [[../#Quote mining, selective quotation and distortion|Quote mining, selective quotation and distortion]]
====16====
||
*{{AuthorQuote|With the backing of his Council, Smith ordered that the new press be smashed and all possible copies of the press run destroyed.}}
||
*[[Nauvoo Expositor]]  
||
*The statement is structured by the authors to lead the reader to an incorrect, and more sinister, conclusion. See [[../#Quote mining, selective quotation and distortion|Quote mining, selective quotation and distortion]]
*{{CriticalWork:Quinn:Mormon Hierarchy|pages=645}}
*{{CriticalWork:Quinn:Mormon Hierarchy|pages=645}}
|-
|-
|17||Someone slipped a six-shooter into his cell that he later fired into the attacking mob||[[Joseph Smith as a martyr]]
|
====17====
||
*Someone slipped a six-shooter into his cell that he later fired into the attacking mob.
||
*[[Joseph Smith as a martyr]]
|}
|}


===Chapter 2: Beginnings: A Very American Gospel===
===Chapter 2: Beginnings: A Very American Gospel===
{| valign="top" border="1" style="width:100%; font-size:85%"
{{BeginClaimsTable}}
!width="5%"|Page
|
!width="40%"|Claim
====21====
!width="30%"|Response
||
!width="25%"|[[Use of sources]]
*Swedenborgianism, with its concepts of eternal marriage and a three-tiered heaven.
|-
||
|21||Swedenborgianism, with its concepts of eternal marriage and a three-tiered heaven.||[[Swedenborg and three degrees of glory]]||
*[[Swedenborg and three degrees of glory]]
||
*Source not provided
*Source not provided
|-
|-
|23||Lucy Mack Smith, "described Joseph Jr.’s youthful fascination with Indians in the years just prior to his translation of the Book of Mormon: ...Joseph would occasionally give us some of the most amusing recitals..."||[[Joseph Smith's "amusing recitals" of ancient American inhabitants]]||
|
*There is no mention of the fact that Joseph was receiving this information from Moroni during this period. See Lucy’s history prior to this statement.||
====23====
||
*Lucy Mack Smith, "described Joseph Jr.’s youthful fascination with Indians in the years just prior to his translation of the Book of Mormon: ...Joseph would occasionally give us some of the most amusing recitals..."
||
*[[Joseph Smith's "amusing recitals" of ancient American inhabitants]]
*There is no mention of the fact that Joseph was receiving this information from Moroni during this period. See Lucy’s history prior to this statement.
||
*Lucy Mack Smith, ''Biographical Sketches'', 1853. p. 85.
*Lucy Mack Smith, ''Biographical Sketches'', 1853. p. 85.
|-
|-
|25||Seer stones illegal – 1826 Smith “found guilty” of disorderly conduct for money-digging||[[Joseph Smith's 1826 glasslooking trial]]||
|
====25====
||
*Seer stones illegal – 1826 Smith “found guilty” of disorderly conduct for money-digging.
||
*[[Joseph Smith's 1826 glasslooking trial]]
||
*{{CriticalWork:Quinn:Magic World View|pages=}}  
*{{CriticalWork:Quinn:Magic World View|pages=}}  
|-
|-
|25||Isaac Hale objected to marriage of Emma to Joseph because of “disreputable occupation of looking for treasure with magic stones rather than working the land like a respectable farmer"||[[Joseph Smith and money digging]]||
|
====25====
||
*Isaac Hale objected to marriage of Emma to Joseph because of “disreputable occupation of looking for treasure with magic stones rather than working the land like a respectable farmer."
||
*[[Joseph Smith and money digging]]
||
*{{CriticalWork:Quinn:Magic World View|pages=}}  
*{{CriticalWork:Quinn:Magic World View|pages=}}  
*Although Quinn is cited as the source, the statement of Isaac Hale was originally published in {{CriticalWork:Howe:Mormonism Unvailed|pages=}}. For details, see: [[The Hurlbut affidavits#Isaac Hale]]
*Although Quinn is cited as the source, the statement of Isaac Hale was originally published in {{CriticalWork:Howe:Mormonism Unvailed|pages=}}. For details, see: [[The Hurlbut affidavits#Isaac Hale]]
|-
|-
|26||During the translation, Joseph would work on one side of the blanket "with the Urim and Thummin{{cs}} as a kind of magic spectacles, his favorite seer stone, the golden plates, and the hat, while the scribe worked on the other.||[[Book of Mormon translation method]]||
|
====26====
||
*During the translation, Joseph would work on one side of the blanket "with the Urim and Thummin{{cs}} as a kind of magic spectacles, his favorite seer stone, the golden plates, and the hat, while the scribe worked on the other.
||
*[[Book of Mormon translation method]]
||
*{{CriticalWork:Quinn:Magic World View|pages=}}  
*{{CriticalWork:Quinn:Magic World View|pages=}}  
|-
|-
|26||"Smith would bury his face with the seer stone in the hat and then dictate words to the scribe."||[[Joseph Smith and seer stones]]||
|
====26====
||
* Joseph would "bury his face with the seer stone in the hat and then dictate words to the scribe."
||
*[[Joseph Smith and seer stones]]
||
*{{CriticalWork:Quinn:Magic World View|pages=}}  
*{{CriticalWork:Quinn:Magic World View|pages=}}  
|-
|-
|29||View of the Hebrews...containing considerable material on the subject, as well as a description of ancient Central American Indian ruins||[[Book of Mormon and View of the Hebrews]]||
|
*The statement is incorrect. See [[../#Quote mining, selective quotation and distortion|Quote mining, selective quotation and distortion]]  
====29====
||
*{{AuthorQuote|View of the Hebrews...containing considerable material on the subject, as well as a description of ancient Central American Indian ruins."
||
*[[Book of Mormon and View of the Hebrews]]
*{{FalseStatement}} See [[../#Quote mining, selective quotation and distortion|Quote mining, selective quotation and distortion]]  
||
*No source provided.
|-
|-
|31||Book of Abraham used to justify policy toward blacks||[[Blacks and the priesthood/Repudiated ideas]] {{nw}}
|
====31====
||
*Book of Abraham used to justify policy toward blacks.
||
*[[Blacks and the priesthood/Repudiated ideas]] {{nw}}
|-
|-
|31||Joseph Smith used seer stone in 1836 to try and find treasure under a house in Salem, Mass.||[[Joseph Smith's "treasure hunting" trip to Salem]]||
|
*The statement is incorrect and pejorative. See [[../#Quote mining, selective quotation and distortion|Quote mining, selective quotation and distortion]]  
====31====
||
*Joseph Smith used seer stone in 1836 to try and find treasure under a house in Salem, Mass.
||
*[[Joseph Smith's "treasure hunting" trip to Salem]]
*The statement is incorrect and pejorative. See [[../#Quote mining, selective quotation and distortion|Quote mining, selective quotation and distortion]]
||
*{{s||DC|111|}}
*{{s||DC|111|}}
|-
|-
|34||Danites were pledged to “plunder, lie, and even kill if deemed necessary."||[[Danites]]||
|
====34====
||
*Danites were pledged to “plunder, lie, and even kill if deemed necessary."
||
*[[Danites]]
||
*Source not specified.
*Source not specified.
|}
|}


===Chapter 3: The American Exodus===
===Chapter 3: The American Exodus===
{| valign="top" border="1" style="width:100%; font-size:85%"
{{BeginClaimsTable}}
!width="5%"|Page
!width="40%"|Claim
!width="30%"|Response
!width="25%"|[[Use of sources]]
|-
<!--
<!--
|40||A warrant was issued to arrest Brigham Young on a charge of sheltering counterfeiters.
|40||A warrant was issued to arrest Brigham Young on a charge of sheltering counterfeiters.
|-
|-
-->
-->
|42||There is historical evidence that Joseph Smith blessed his son, Joseph III that he would become his successor.||[[Mark Hofmann]] {{nw}}||
|
====42====
||
*There is historical evidence that Joseph Smith blessed his son, Joseph III that he would become his successor.
||
*[[Mark Hofmann]] {{nw}}
*Mark Hofmann produced a forgery that was claimed to be the blessing given by Joseph Smith to his son Joseph Smith III.
*Mark Hofmann produced a forgery that was claimed to be the blessing given by Joseph Smith to his son Joseph Smith III.
||
|-
|-
<!--
<!--
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|-
|-
-->
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|54||Mountain Meadows massacre||[[Mountain Meadows Massacre]]
|
====54====
||
*Mountain Meadows massacre.
||
*[[Mountain Meadows Massacre]]
|}
|}


===Chapter 4: Polygamy Then and Now===
===Chapter 4: Polygamy Then and Now===
{| valign="top" border="1" style="width:100%; font-size:85%"
{{BeginClaimsTable}}
!width="5%"|Page
|
!width="40%"|Claim
====58====
!width="30%"|Response
||
!width="25%"|[[Use of sources]]
*Joseph started polygamy and had a large number of wives.
|-
||
|58||Joseph started polygamy and had a large number of wives||[[Joseph Smith and polygamy]]||
*[[Joseph Smith and polygamy]]
*{{CriticalWork:Brodie:No Man Knows|pages=}}  
||
*{{CriticalWork:Brodie:No Man Knows|pages=}} {{attn}}
*{{CriticalWork:Compton:Sacred Loneliness|pages=}}
*{{CriticalWork:Compton:Sacred Loneliness|pages=}}
|-
|-
|58||Brodie’s research was largely substantiated by later scholarship||[[No Man Knows My History: The Life of Joseph Smith]]||
|
====58====
||
*The authors claim that Fawn Brodie’s research was largely substantiated by later scholarship.
||
*Actually, many of Brodie's claims have been losing ground in light of more recent scholarship. For example, see how Brodie's claims about [[Joseph Smith and polygamy/Children of polygamous marriages|Joseph Smith's alleged children through polygamous marriages]] have been refuted as the result of modern DNA research.
*Actually, many of Brodie's claims have been losing ground in light of more recent scholarship. For example, see how Brodie's claims about [[Joseph Smith and polygamy/Children of polygamous marriages|Joseph Smith's alleged children through polygamous marriages]] have been refuted as the result of modern DNA research.
*[[No Man Knows My History: The Life of Joseph Smith]]
||
|-
|-
|58||There were at least five cases of women who rejected his polygamous proposals||[[Joseph Smith and polygamy]]||
|
====58====
||
*There were at least five cases of women who rejected his polygamous proposals.
||
*[[Joseph Smith and polygamy]]
||
|-
|-
|58||At least 11 of Joseph's wives married to another man. Mormon apologists have attempted to justify polygamy in part because it sheltered single women beyond marriageable age, the facts show otherwise. The vast majority of plural wives were younger than the first wife, often nubile teenagers.||[[Joseph Smith and polygamy]]||
|
====58====
||
*At least 11 of Joseph's wives married to another man. Mormon apologists have attempted to justify polygamy in part because it sheltered single women beyond marriageable age, the facts show otherwise. The vast majority of plural wives were younger than the first wife, often nubile teenagers.
||
*[[Joseph Smith and polygamy]]
||
|-
|-
|59||Possibly a few exceptional cases involving his closest associates taking wives who already had husbands||[[Joseph Smith and polyandry]]
|
====59====
||
*Possibly a few exceptional cases involving his closest associates taking wives who already had husbands.
||
*[[Joseph Smith and polyandry]]
|-
|-
|59||Smith often asked close friends for their wives and daughters||[[Joseph Smith and polygamy]]||
|
====59====
||
*It is claimed that Joseph Smith "often" asked close friends for their wives and daughters.
||
*[[Joseph Smith and polygamy]]
||
|-
|-
|59||Some of the marriages were the result of pressure or spiritual coercion from the prophet||[[Joseph Smith and polygamy]]||
|
====59====
||
*Some of the marriages were the result of pressure or spiritual coercion from the prophet.
||
*[[Joseph Smith and polygamy]]
||
|-
|-
<!--
<!--
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|-
|-
-->
-->
|60||The “comely sixteen-year-old Fanny Alger” became Joseph's plural wife in 1833||[[Joseph Smith and polygamy/Marriages to young women]]||
|
====60====
||T
*The “comely sixteen-year-old Fanny Alger” became Joseph's plural wife in 1833.
||
*[[Joseph Smith and polygamy/Marriages to young women]]
||
|-
|-
|60||W.W. Phelps introduced an anti-polygamy resolution in Oliver Cowdery's handwriting while Joseph was away, which was adopted by the Church||[[1835 Doctrine and Covenants denies polygamy]]||
|
====60====
||
*W.W. Phelps introduced an anti-polygamy resolution in Oliver Cowdery's handwriting while Joseph was away, which was adopted by the Church.
||
*[[1835 Doctrine and Covenants denies polygamy]]
||
*{{CriticalWork:Brodie:No Man Knows|pages=185}}
*{{CriticalWork:Brodie:No Man Knows|pages=185}}
|-
|-
|60||Scriptural resolution in D&C against polygamy Phelps/Cowdery “became a scriptural revelation in the Doctrine and Covenants.” This remained until removed in 1876 and replaced by Section 132||[[1835 Doctrine and Covenants denies polygamy]]||
|
====60====
||
*Scriptural resolution in D&C against polygamy Phelps/Cowdery “became a scriptural revelation in the Doctrine and Covenants.” This remained until removed in 1876 and replaced by Section 132.
||
*[[1835 Doctrine and Covenants denies polygamy]]
||
|-
|-
<!--
|
|61||Smith conducted marriage for Newell Knight against law, since the woman was not yet divorced from her non-Mormon husband. Smith said "Gentile law has no power to call me to account for it."|| ||
====61====
||
*Smith conducted marriage for Newell Knight against law, since the woman was not yet divorced from her non-Mormon husband. Smith said "Gentile law has no power to call me to account for it."
||
*{{FalseStatement}}: No law was broken, and marriage certificates were issued by the state of Ohio; no license was required.
* Any religious leader had a right to perform marriages in Ohio.
*[[Polygamy book/Illegal marriages in Ohio|Ohio marriages illegal?]]
*{{CrossRef:Abanes:One Nation|pages=129, 529n14-15}}
||
*{{CriticalWork:Quinn:Mormon Hierarchy|pages=623}}
*{{CriticalWork:Quinn:Mormon Hierarchy|pages=623}}
{{CriticalWork:Van Wagoner:Mormon Polygamy|pages=623}}
*{{CriticalWork:Van Wagoner:Mormon Polygamy|pages=623}}
|-
|-
-->
|
|61||His youngest bride, in some ways typical, was fourteen-year-old Helen Mar Kimball||[[Joseph Smith and polygamy/Marriages to young women]]||
====61====
||
*His youngest bride, in some ways typical, was fourteen-year-old Helen Mar Kimball.
||
*Note the author's pejorative opinion: "in some ways typical."
*Note the author's pejorative opinion: "in some ways typical."
*[[Joseph Smith and polygamy/Marriages to young women]]
||
*{{CriticalWork:Compton:Sacred Loneliness|pages=486-534}}
*{{CriticalWork:Compton:Sacred Loneliness|pages=486-534}}
|-
|-
|62||Helen had not grasped that marriage in time would eventually have a sexual component.||[[Mormon America: The Power and the Promise#The nature of Helen Mar Kimball's marriage?|The nature of Helen Mar Kimball's marriage?]] ||
|
*The statement is not supported by the source. Compton never states anything about a "sexual component."
====62====
||
*Helen had not grasped that marriage in time would eventually have a sexual component.
||
*{{FalseStatement}} The statement is not supported by the source. Compton never states anything about a "sexual component."
*[[Mormon America: The Power and the Promise#The nature of Helen Mar Kimball's marriage?|The nature of Helen Mar Kimball's marriage?]]  
||
*{{CriticalWork:Compton:Sacred Loneliness|pages=486-534}}
*{{CriticalWork:Compton:Sacred Loneliness|pages=486-534}}
|-
|-
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|-
|-
-->
-->
|66||The Book of Mormon was "conventionally monogamous:" "Behold, David and Solomon truly had many wives and concubines, which thing was abominable before me, Saith the Lord…Hearken to the word of the Lord: For there shall not any man among you have save it be one wife; and concubines he shall have none" (Jacob 2:24, 27)||[[Book of Mormon condemns polygamy]]||
|
====66====
||
*The Book of Mormon was "conventionally monogamous:" "Behold, David and Solomon truly had many wives and concubines, which thing was abominable before me, Saith the Lord…Hearken to the word of the Lord: For there shall not any man among you have save it be one wife; and concubines he shall have none" (Jacob 2:24, 27)
||
*[[Book of Mormon condemns polygamy]]
||
*{{s||Jacob|2|24-27}}
*{{s||Jacob|2|24-27}}
*''Encyclopedia of Mormonism''
*''Encyclopedia of Mormonism''
|-
|-
|67||Swedenborg taught “spiritual wifery” in marriage for eternity. Swedenborg was discussed in Smith’s hometown newspaper||[[Swedenborg and three degrees of glory]] {{nw}}||
|
====67====
||
*Swedenborg taught “spiritual wifery” in marriage for eternity. Swedenborg was discussed in Smith’s hometown newspaper.
||
*[[Swedenborg and three degrees of glory]] {{nw}}
||
*{{CriticalWork:Quinn:Magic World View|pages=115, 153, 176, 217-219, 487n}}
*{{CriticalWork:Quinn:Magic World View|pages=115, 153, 176, 217-219, 487n}}
|-
|-
|67||1842 declaration of monogamy in the ''Times and Seasons'' was signed by Emma and two of Smith’s wives Eliza Snow and Sarah Cleveland.
|
====67====
||
*1842 declaration of monogamy in the ''Times and Seasons'' was signed by Emma and two of Smith’s wives Eliza Snow and Sarah Cleveland.
||
*Newell and Avery, ''Mormon Enigma'', pp. 128-129.
*Newell and Avery, ''Mormon Enigma'', pp. 128-129.
|-
|-
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===Chapter 7: Mormons, Inc.===
===Chapter 7: Mormons, Inc.===
{| valign="top" border="1" style="width:100%; font-size:85%"
{{BeginClaimsTable}}
!width="5%"|Page
|
!width="40%"|Claim
====115====
!width="30%"|Response
||
!width="25%"|[[Use of sources]]
*{{AuthorQuote|"Outsider's money estimates always raise disclaimers from officialdom, presumably because of the danger that fat-looking figures might weaken members' tithing compliance."}}
|-
||  
|115||"Outsider's money estimates always raise disclaimers from officialdom, presumably because of the danger that fat-looking figures might weaken members' tithing compliance."|| ||
||
*Author's opinion
*Author's opinion
|}
|}


===Chapter 10: Families Forever===
===Chapter 10: Families Forever===
{| valign="top" border="1" style="width:100%; font-size:85%"
{{BeginClaimsTable}}
!width="5%"|Page
|
!width="40%"|Claim
====160====
!width="30%"|Response
||
!width="25%"|[[Use of sources]]
*The author's claim that LDS believe that even God himself is married.
|-
||
|160||Even God himself is married||[[Was Jesus Christ married?]] ||
*[[Was Jesus Christ married?]]  
||
*No source given
*No source given
|-
|-
|161||Couples are "sealed forever" through secret ritual in a Mormon temple||[[Topical Guide/Doctrinal issues/Marriage and Sexuality/Celestial Marriage|Celestial Marriage]]
|
====161====
||
*Couples are "sealed forever" through secret ritual in a Mormon temple.
||
*[[Topical Guide/Doctrinal issues/Marriage and Sexuality/Celestial Marriage|Celestial Marriage]]
|}
|}


===Chapter 19: Are Mormons Christian? Are Non-Mormons Christian?===
===Chapter 19: Are Mormons Christian? Are Non-Mormons Christian?===
{| valign="top" border="1" style="width:100%; font-size:85%"
{{BeginClaimsTable}}
!width="5%"|Page
|
!width="40%"|Claim
====320====
!width="30%"|Response
||
!width="25%"|[[Use of sources]]
*The people of the New World were visited by the "Mormon Jesus."
|-
||
|320||The people of the New World were visited by the "Mormon Jesus."||[[Latter-day Saints aren't Christians]]||
*[[Latter-day Saints aren't Christians]]
*The statement is pejorative. See [[../#Quote mining, selective quotation and distortion|Quote mining, selective quotation and distortion]]
*The statement is pejorative. See [[../#Quote mining, selective quotation and distortion|Quote mining, selective quotation and distortion]]
||
|}
|}


===Dissenters and Exiles===
===Dissenters and Exiles===
{| valign="top" border="1" style="width:100%; font-size:85%"
{{BeginClaimsTable}}
!width="5%"|Page
|
!width="40%"|Claim
====352====
!width="30%"|Response
||
!width="25%"|[[Use of sources]]
*{{AuthorQuote|"The church has often swatted down intellectuals individually"}}
|-
||
|352||"The church has often swatted down intellectuals individually"||[[Excommunication of scholars]] ||
*[[Excommunication of scholars]]  
||
*Quote by Lavina Fielding Anderson
*Quote by Lavina Fielding Anderson
|-
|-
|354||The Church operates a clipping service called the "Strengthening Church Members Committee" to monitor individual members, which Lavina Fielding Anderson refers to as "an internal espionage system."||[[Strengthening Church Members Committee]]||
|
====354====
||
*The Church operates a clipping service called the "Strengthening Church Members Committee" to monitor individual members, which Lavina Fielding Anderson refers to as "an internal espionage system."
||
*[[Strengthening Church Members Committee]]
||
*Lavina Fielding Anderson
*Lavina Fielding Anderson
|-
|-
|354||The LDS system of internal discipline "operates more like a small cult than a major denomination."||[[LDS Church is a cult]] ||
|
====354====
||
*The LDS system of internal discipline "operates more like a small cult than a major denomination."
||
*The statement is pejorative. See [[../#Quote mining, selective quotation and distortion|Quote mining, selective quotation and distortion]]
*[[LDS Church is a cult]]  
||
*Author's opinion
*Author's opinion
*The statement is pejorative. See [[../#Quote mining, selective quotation and distortion|Quote mining, selective quotation and distortion]]
|-
|-
|354||The LDS Church penalizes members for "merely criticizing officialdom or for publishing truthful&mdash;if uncomfortable&mdash;information," and "shroud their procedures with secrecy."||[[Excommunication]] {{nw}}
|
====354====
||
*The LDS Church penalizes members for "merely criticizing officialdom or for publishing truthful&mdash;if uncomfortable&mdash;information," and "shroud their procedures with secrecy."
||
*[[Excommunication]] {{nw}}
|-
|-
|354||The LDS Church prosecutes "many more of its members" than other religious groups||[[Excommunication]] {{nw}}
|
====354====
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*The LDS Church prosecutes "many more of its members" than other religious groups.
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*[[Excommunication]] {{nw}}
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==Further reading==
==Further reading==
{{FAIRAnalysisWiki}}
{{FAIRAnalysisWiki}}

Revision as of 06:51, 23 February 2009


A work by author: Richard N. Ostling and Joan K. Ostling

Index to claims made in Mormon America: The Power and the Promise

This is an index of claims made in this work with links to corresponding responses within the FAIRwiki. An effort has been made to provide the author's original sources where possible.

Introduction: A New World Faith

Page Claim Response Author's sources

xv
  • The authors mention a temple of secret rituals with precincts forbidden to tourists and TV cameras.
  • No source provided.

xviii
  • It is claimed that LDS believe that the Garden of Eden was literally located around Independence, Missouri.
  • No source provided.

xix
  • The authors claim that God told Joseph to "revise significant portions of the Bible that Smith taught had been corrupted by Jews and Christians."
  • No source provided.

xix
  • The book claims that there is no forum for public debate and that there is no church legislature to set policy.
  • No source provided.

xxv
  • They abstain from alcohol and tobacco, as many other groups do, but also from caffeinated beverages.
  • No source provided

Chapter 1: Sealed with Blood

Page Claim Response Author's sources

3
  • April 11, 1844: Joseph Smith organized the Council of Fifty to plan political future and had them anoint him “King, Priest and Ruler over Israel on Earth"

3
  • Joseph Smith petitioned Congress for authorization to raise and lead a 100000-man army to subdue the western territories from Texas to Oregon, and that anyone who would “attempt to hinder or molest the said Joseph Smith” would be subject to two years’ imprisonment.

10
  • The temple rituals had many similarities to the Masonic rituals that the prophet had just learned.

12
  • 1842: Disagreement between JS and John C. Bennett was “their competition for nineteen-year-old Nancy Rigdon as plural wife...Smith excommunicated Bennett."

13
  • On March 11, 1844, Council of Fifty was formed as a theocratic policymaking body “shadow government” (Flanders – RLDS historian) that functioned sporadically in Utah into the 1870’s.

13
  • Two of the original 53 members of the Council of Fifty “apparently were known counterfeiters."

13
  • Joseph Smith was anointed “King, Priest and Ruler over Israel on Earth."
  • D. Michael Quinn, April 11, 1844.

15
  • The Council of Fifty, "supposedly a civic body," took ecclesiastical action excommunicating Law and Foster.

16
  • Quinn re. Expositor: “He could not allow the Expositor to publish the secret international negotiations masterminded by Mormonism’s earthly king.”
  • Authors' quoting the opinion of another author, D. Michael Quinn

16
  •  Author's quote: With the backing of his Council, Smith ordered that the new press be smashed and all possible copies of the press run destroyed.

17
  • Someone slipped a six-shooter into his cell that he later fired into the attacking mob.

Chapter 2: Beginnings: A Very American Gospel

Page Claim Response Author's sources

21
  • Swedenborgianism, with its concepts of eternal marriage and a three-tiered heaven.
  • Source not provided

23
  • Lucy Mack Smith, "described Joseph Jr.’s youthful fascination with Indians in the years just prior to his translation of the Book of Mormon: ...Joseph would occasionally give us some of the most amusing recitals..."
  • Lucy Mack Smith, Biographical Sketches, 1853. p. 85.

25
  • Seer stones illegal – 1826 Smith “found guilty” of disorderly conduct for money-digging.

25
  • Isaac Hale objected to marriage of Emma to Joseph because of “disreputable occupation of looking for treasure with magic stones rather than working the land like a respectable farmer."

26
  • During the translation, Joseph would work on one side of the blanket "with the Urim and Thummin [check spelling] as a kind of magic spectacles, his favorite seer stone, the golden plates, and the hat, while the scribe worked on the other.

26
  • Joseph would "bury his face with the seer stone in the hat and then dictate words to the scribe."

29
  • {{AuthorQuote|View of the Hebrews...containing considerable material on the subject, as well as a description of ancient Central American Indian ruins."
  • No source provided.

31
  • Book of Abraham used to justify policy toward blacks.

31
  • Joseph Smith used seer stone in 1836 to try and find treasure under a house in Salem, Mass.

34
  • Danites were pledged to “plunder, lie, and even kill if deemed necessary."
  • Source not specified.

Chapter 3: The American Exodus

Page Claim Response Author's sources

42
  • There is historical evidence that Joseph Smith blessed his son, Joseph III that he would become his successor.
  • Mark Hofmann  [needs work]
  • Mark Hofmann produced a forgery that was claimed to be the blessing given by Joseph Smith to his son Joseph Smith III.

54
  • Mountain Meadows massacre.

Chapter 4: Polygamy Then and Now

Page Claim Response Author's sources

58
  • Joseph started polygamy and had a large number of wives.

58
  • The authors claim that Fawn Brodie’s research was largely substantiated by later scholarship.

58
  • There were at least five cases of women who rejected his polygamous proposals.

58
  • At least 11 of Joseph's wives married to another man. Mormon apologists have attempted to justify polygamy in part because it sheltered single women beyond marriageable age, the facts show otherwise. The vast majority of plural wives were younger than the first wife, often nubile teenagers.

59
  • Possibly a few exceptional cases involving his closest associates taking wives who already had husbands.

59
  • It is claimed that Joseph Smith "often" asked close friends for their wives and daughters.

59
  • Some of the marriages were the result of pressure or spiritual coercion from the prophet.

60

 T
  • The “comely sixteen-year-old Fanny Alger” became Joseph's plural wife in 1833.

60
  • W.W. Phelps introduced an anti-polygamy resolution in Oliver Cowdery's handwriting while Joseph was away, which was adopted by the Church.

60
  • Scriptural resolution in D&C against polygamy Phelps/Cowdery “became a scriptural revelation in the Doctrine and Covenants.” This remained until removed in 1876 and replaced by Section 132.

61
  • Smith conducted marriage for Newell Knight against law, since the woman was not yet divorced from her non-Mormon husband. Smith said "Gentile law has no power to call me to account for it."
  •  The author's claim is false: No law was broken, and marriage certificates were issued by the state of Ohio; no license was required.
  • Any religious leader had a right to perform marriages in Ohio.
  • Ohio marriages illegal?
  • This claim is also made in One Nation Under Gods:

61
  • His youngest bride, in some ways typical, was fourteen-year-old Helen Mar Kimball.

62
  • Helen had not grasped that marriage in time would eventually have a sexual component.

66
  • The Book of Mormon was "conventionally monogamous:" "Behold, David and Solomon truly had many wives and concubines, which thing was abominable before me, Saith the Lord…Hearken to the word of the Lord: For there shall not any man among you have save it be one wife; and concubines he shall have none" (Jacob 2:24, 27)

67
  • Swedenborg taught “spiritual wifery” in marriage for eternity. Swedenborg was discussed in Smith’s hometown newspaper.

67
  • 1842 declaration of monogamy in the Times and Seasons was signed by Emma and two of Smith’s wives Eliza Snow and Sarah Cleveland.
  • Newell and Avery, Mormon Enigma, pp. 128-129.

Chapter 7: Mormons, Inc.

Page Claim Response Author's sources

115
  •  Author's quote: "Outsider's money estimates always raise disclaimers from officialdom, presumably because of the danger that fat-looking figures might weaken members' tithing compliance."
  • Author's opinion

Chapter 10: Families Forever

Page Claim Response Author's sources

160
  • The author's claim that LDS believe that even God himself is married.
  • No source given

161
  • Couples are "sealed forever" through secret ritual in a Mormon temple.

Chapter 19: Are Mormons Christian? Are Non-Mormons Christian?

Page Claim Response Author's sources

320
  • The people of the New World were visited by the "Mormon Jesus."

Dissenters and Exiles

Page Claim Response Author's sources

352
  •  Author's quote: "The church has often swatted down intellectuals individually"
  • Quote by Lavina Fielding Anderson

354
  • The Church operates a clipping service called the "Strengthening Church Members Committee" to monitor individual members, which Lavina Fielding Anderson refers to as "an internal espionage system."
  • Lavina Fielding Anderson

354
  • The LDS system of internal discipline "operates more like a small cult than a major denomination."
  • Author's opinion

354
  • The LDS Church penalizes members for "merely criticizing officialdom or for publishing truthful—if uncomfortable—information," and "shroud their procedures with secrecy."

354
  • The LDS Church prosecutes "many more of its members" than other religious groups.

Further reading

Template code Inserts this reference Click to edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: 8: The Mormon Proposition}} To learn more box:responses to: 8: The Mormon Proposition edit
{{To learn more box:''Under the Banner of Heaven''}} To learn more about responses to: Under the Banner of Heaven edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Robert Price}} To learn more about responses to: Robert Price edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Ankerberg and Weldon}} To learn more about responses to: Ankerberg and Weldon edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Ashamed of Joseph}} To learn more about responses to: Ashamed of Joseph edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Beckwith and Moser}} To learn more about responses to: Beckwith and Moser edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Beckwith and Parrish}} To learn more about responses to: Beckwith and Parrish edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Benjamin Park}} To learn more about responses to: Benjamin Park edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Bible versus Joseph Smith}} To learn more about responses to: Bible versus Joseph Smith edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Bible versus Book of Mormon}} To learn more about responses to: Bible versus Book of Mormon edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: ''Big Love''}} To learn more about responses to: Big Love edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Brett Metcalfe}} To learn more about responses to: Brett Metcalfe edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Bill Maher}} To learn more about responses to: Bill Maher edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Bruce H. Porter}} To learn more about responses to: Bruce H. Porter edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Carol Wang Shutter}} To learn more about responses to: Carol Wang Shutter edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: CES Letter}} To learn more about responses to: CES Letter edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Charles Larson}} To learn more about responses to: Charles Larson edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Christopher Nemelka}} To learn more about responses to: Christopher Nemelka edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Colby Townshed}} To learn more about responses to: Colby Townshed edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Contender Ministries}} To learn more about responses to: Contender Ministries edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Crane and Crane}} To learn more about responses to: Crane and Crane edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: D. Michael Quinn}} To learn more about responses to: D. Michael Quinn edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Dan Vogel}} To learn more about responses to: Dan Vogel edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: David John Buerger}} To learn more about responses to: David John Buerger edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: David Persuitte}} To learn more about responses to: David Persuitte edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Denver Snuffer}} To learn more about responses to: Denver Snuffer edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Dick Bauer}} To learn more about responses to: Dick Bauer edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Duwayne R Anderson}} To learn more about responses to: Duwayne R Anderson edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Earl Wunderli}} To learn more about responses to: Earl Wunderli edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Ed Decker}} To learn more about responses to: Ed Decker edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Erikson and Giesler}} To learn more about responses to: Erikson and Giesler edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Ernest Taves}} To learn more about responses to: Ernest Taves edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Fawn Brodie}} To learn more about responses to: Fawn Brodie edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: George D Smith}} To learn more about responses to: George D Smith edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Grant Palmer}} To learn more about responses to: Grant Palmer edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Hank Hanegraaff}} To learn more about responses to: Hank Hanegraaff edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Hurlbut-Howe}} To learn more about responses to: Hurlbut-Howe edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: James Brooke}} To learn more about responses to: James Brooke edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: James Spencer}} To learn more about responses to: James Spencer edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: James White}} To learn more about responses to: James White edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Jerald and Sandra Tanner}} To learn more about responses to: Jerald and Sandra Tanner edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Jesus Christ-Joseph Smith or Search for the Truth DVD}} To learn more about responses to: Jesus Christ-Joseph Smith or Search for the Truth DVD edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: John Dehlin}} To learn more about responses to: John Dehlin edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Jonathan Neville}} To learn more about responses to: Jonathan Neville edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Kurt Van Gorden}} To learn more about responses to: Kurt Van Gorden edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Laura King Newell and Valeen Tippetts Avery}} To learn more about responses to: Laura King Newell and Valeen Tippetts Avery edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Loftes Tryk aka Lofte Payne}} To learn more about responses to: Loftes Tryk aka Lofte Payne edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Luke WIlson}} To learn more about responses to: Luke WIlson edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Marquardt and Walters}} To learn more about responses to: Marquardt and Walters edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Martha Beck}} To learn more about responses to: Martha Beck edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Mcgregor Ministries}} To learn more about responses to: Mcgregor Ministries edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: McKeever and Johnson}} To learn more about responses to: McKeever and Johnson edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: New Approaches}} To learn more about responses to: New Approaches to the Book of Mormon edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Richard Abanes}} To learn more about responses to: Richard Abanes edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Richard Van Wagoner}} To learn more about responses to: Richard Van Wagoner edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Richard and Joan Ostling}} To learn more about responses to: Richard and Joan Ostling edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Rick Grunger}} To learn more about responses to: Rick Grunger edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Robert Ritner}} To learn more about responses to: Robert Ritner edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Rod Meldrum}} To learn more about responses to: Rod Meldrum edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Roger I Anderson}} To learn more about responses to: Roger I Anderson edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Ronald V. Huggins}} To learn more about responses to: Ronald V. Huggins edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Sally Denton}} To learn more about responses to: Sally Denton edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Simon Southerton}} To learn more about responses to: Simon Southerton edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Thomas Murphy}} To learn more about responses to: Thomas Murphy edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Todd Compton}} To learn more about responses to: Todd Compton edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Vernal Holley}} To learn more about responses to: Vernal Holley edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Walter Martin}} To learn more about responses to: Walter Martin edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Wesley Walters}} To learn more about responses to: Wesley Walters edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Will Bagley}} To learn more about responses to: Will Bagley edit
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