Mormonism 101, Revised and Expanded Edition: Examining the Religion of the Latter-day Saints

Mormonism 101 provides an elementary introduction to what the Mormon church officially believes. (The authors recognize that Mormons themselves may not adhere to the Church of Latter Day Saints official doctrine.) The book was decently comprehensive for an introduction.

Each chapter began by naming the topic at hand and then laying out the Mormon's belief on the issue from their primary sources. The second part of the chapters transition in to a comparison against Christianity. The comparison to the Bible/Christianity is because Mormons often claims to be Christian, but just of a different denomination. This book shows how that cannot be - both from a Christian and Mormon perspective.

Positives:

-- each chapter begins by defining some "Mormonese" terms. Usually terms that are used in Christianity, but to which Mormons gives a different definition.

--each chapter ends with three questions to the reader. These are usually in the vein of what if a Mormon asked you X and asks you to back up what you say (intended to spark discussion, if used in a group, or make sure you grasped what the chapter covered

--a final note to summarize the chapter is found after the questions

-- footnotes are at the end of each chapter instead of at the end of the book (which I prefer page-bottom footnotes, chapter-end are leagues preferable to book-end footnotes!)

--end of the book contains an appendix that explains logical fallacies, and gives examples of when the reader has encountered them in the book.

It is very clear in the reading of this work that this is an intellectual discussion about the doctrines held by the Church of Latter Day Saints. The tone is completely respectful throughout, no name calling, no bashing, and the authors make it clear they are tackling MormonISM not Mormons (many of whom are their personal friends).

It should be noted that this book is from a Protestant perspective. There are a few doctrines that Catholics and Mormons have similarity on, but even if a Catholic reader of this book were to take issue with those chapters (even though those doctrines aren't intended to address any aspect of Catholicism) the majority of the book should still prove largely helpful in discerning the great ways in which the Church of the Latter Day Saints err - this primarily happens through church leadership drastically changing doctrine over time, showing a doctrine to be taught about inconsistently within their own texts, and even some historical inaccuracies that have now been uncovered.

Overall this is a helpful work, and I recommend it to those seeking to better understand Mormonism, especially from a Christian perspective.

I received a complimentary ebook in exchange for my honest review.

Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are Christians, many of them say. Should Mormonism be viewed as just another Christian denomination?

McKeever and Johnson want us to know of the many differences between Mormonism and biblical Christianity. I think they have done a superb job in doing exactly that.

I really like how the authors define terms at the beginning of each chapter. Mormons often mean something very different by a term from what Christians understand the word to mean. The authors go through beliefs topic by topic, beginning with God, the most important teaching and the foundation of any religious belief system. They show that the Mormon concept of God is very different from that of evangelical Christianity (such as God having a body and a pre-existence as a mortal). They follow with the Mormon teaching on Jesus (brother to Lucifer, the result of impregnation of Mary by Elohim) and the Trinity (rather a plurality of Gods).

They continue with the LDS concept of humans (spirit children of God with a pre-existence before physical birth), the Fall (a wise decision with God's full commendation), and Apostasy (from when the apostles died to Joseph Smith's restoration). The authors explore the LDS concept of Scripture and the reliability of the Book of Mormon, the Doctrine and Covenants, and the Pearl of Great Price.

They continue by looking at salvation, grace, repentance, works and how the LDS understanding differs from evangelical Christianity. They do the same with heaven and hell, the sacraments, how revelation is received, the temple ceremonies and garments, and some controversial beliefs and decisions.

I really like the way the authors have documented their work. There are many footnotes as they quote from official LDS documents and other sources. I also like how they compare the LDS teaching to evangelical Christian belief on every topic they cover.

This is a very good book for anyone interested in LDS teaching and how it compares with the truth of the Bible as understood by evangelical Christians. For some, it will be a surprising revelation. For others, familiar with the LDS teaching, this will be a good resource for a complete review of Mormon beliefs and practices. There are discussion questions at the end of each chapter so this book could be used for a small group or a class discussion. A bibliography and various indexes in the back make this a good resource book for all.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher for the purpose of an independent and honest review.

Of all the religions that we have mormon has been one of the most wildly speculated upon with little facts. I am happy to say that Mormonism 101 by Bill Mckeever and Eric Johnson is byfar the best at explaining in detail what being a mormon is about. I have never been so enthralled by all the information and the amazing scriptures shared that I may have frightened a few of my family members thinking I was going to change religions. I am not but I think it is extremely beneficial in understanding the hopes, fears, and beliefs of as many religions as we can. This kind of knowledge can bridge the gap of prejudice between religions. Everyone has their own set of beliefs which makes up who they are and knowing that would make the day-to-day living so much easier. I was given a copy for this review from Baker Books and all opinions are my own.

This book was a great help to getting answers I sought. The authors referenced their points and which book they were found in, and that also helped. I felt they broke down the basics of this religion very well, and made it easy to understand. I wanted facts, and only facts. This book was the only one I have found where they told you directly where they pulled their quotes from. I hope this is as helpful to you as it was to me. I didn't want more speculation, and assumptions. By the time I was finished, I felt I had a more certain understanding of their beliefs. I was able to compare and contrast their beliefs to mine, and based on facts.