Additional Resources for Mormons: Who They Are, What They Believe
Use these additional resources to supplement your study on this topic. Because of the Internet's changing nature, a link may modify or get deleted. If you discover a bad link in the list below, please contact us!
STUDY RESOURCES:
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The Mormons: Who They Are, What They Believe
This Project Connect booklet from Lutheran Hour Ministries helps you understand the Mormon missionaries who come to your door. It gives specific advice about what to say and what NOT to say when you share your faith with them. -
Utah Lighthouse Ministry
This website by ex-Mormons Jerald and Sandra Tanner has a tremendous amount of helpful information about all facets of the Mormons. -
Sharing Your Faith with Latter-day Saints
This ex-Mormon webpage gives some helpful advice for witnessing to Mormons. -
Spalding Research Associates
This website includes research about possible sources Joseph Smith used for The Book of Mormon. It includes two interviews with an ex-Mormon. -
Mormonism Research Ministry
This website provides detailed information that critically evaluates the differences between Mormonism and biblical Christianity to help Christians better understand and witness to Mormons and ex-Mormons.
SESSION ONE:
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Introduction to the Book of Mormon
Introduction to the Book of Mormon from the LDS perspective -
Jesus Preaches in the Americas
3 Nephi 8-30 in The Book of Mormon, which relates Jesus' supposed visit to the Americas -
Moroni's Visitation
Joseph Smith's description of the visits of the angel Moroni and unanswered questions critics have raised about it -
A Seer Stone and a Hat: Translating the Book of Mormon
Early testimony about how Joseph Smith translated the Book of Mormon from the golden plates -
Seer Stones - the Occult in Joseph Smith's Day
Description of how seer stones and hats were commonly used in Joseph Smith's time -
Reformed Egyptian
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Setting the Record Straight About Native Peoples: Lost Tribes of Israel
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Native Americans and Jews: The Lost Tribes Episode
This article from a Jewish-American perspective shows the broad appeal of the claim that Native Americans descended from the lost tribes of Israel. -
The DNA Challenge to the Book of Mormon
Article discussing DNA testing indicating Native Americans came from Asia and not from the lost tribes of Israel -
Where Are the Ten Lost Tribes?
PBS article describing background for lost tribes of Israelites and tracing global claims for their location, including the identification of American Indians with the lost tribes, centuries before Joseph Smith
SESSION TWO:
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Review of Sidney Rigdon: A Portrait of Religious Excess
In the early years when Joseph Smith was organizing his new church, he fell under the influence of Sidney Rigdon. -
Sidney Rigdon and the Book of Mormon
This lengthy piece explores the possible role Sidney Rigdon played in the authorship of the Book of Mormon. -
Smith and Rigdon are Tarred and Feathered
Joseph Smith's account of being tarred and feathered by an angry, drunken mob on March 24, 1832 -
What Was Behind Joseph Smith and Sidney Rigdon Being Tarred and Feathered?
This website discusses allegations of adultery raised against Joseph Smith between 1829 and 1835, including one that led to his being tarred and feathered in Hiram, Ohio. -
Joseph Smith's Kirtland Bank Failure
A look at the failure of Smith's anti-banking institution -
Missouri State Archives-The Missouri-Mormon War
Included here are several accounts of clashes between Mormons and non-Mormons in Missouri -
The Battle of Crooked River
This is the account of the battle between Missouri and Mormon militias as given by Charles C. Rich, one of the Mormons who led the attack. -
Missouri Governor Lilburn Boggs' Extermination Order
A copy of Bogg's Extermination Order and its rescission in 1976 by then Gov. Christopher Bond -
Did Joseph Smith Order Missouri Governor Boggs' Assassination?
Several newspaper articles and affidavits about O. P. Rockwell, a Mormon who was accused in the attempted assassination -
Mormon Quotes By and About the Danites
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The Nauvoo Legion-Civil and Religious Rights
Speech by Mr. George A. Smith, a private in the Nauvoo Legion, speaking of the sacrifices the Mormons made in their the trek to Utah in search of civil and religious freedom -
Occultic and Masonic Influences on Early Mormonism
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Freemasonry in Nauvoo
Article describing the friction the Nauvoo Lodge created with other Illinois Freemason lodges -
Nauvoo Expositor
Text of the original edition of the Nauvoo Expositor -
The Order to Destroy the Nauvoo Expositor
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Final Moments at Carthage Jail and the Death of Joseph Smith
Bill McKeever discusses the events at the Carthage jail, including how Smith got his gun and how he broke his own rules against consuming alcohol. He compares the way Smith died with Jesus' death. -
Six Days in August: Brigham Young and the Succession Crisis of 1844
Article thoroughly describing the succession crisis that occurred after the death of Joseph Smith -
Mormon Power Grab?
The death of Joseph Smith's younger brother, Samuel Smith -
Brigham Young's Rise to Power
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Abraham Lincoln's Connections to Joseph Smith and Brigham Young
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Brigham's Destroying Angel
Reprint of a manuscript claimed to have been written by Bill Hickman, loyal Danite under Brigham Young -
Latter-day Saints World Statistics
SESSION THREE:
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Mormon Missionaries
A few details about Mormon missionaries -
Why We Need Creeds
According to Joseph Smith's divine vision, God called the Christian creeds an abomination. In this interview, Jaroslav Pelikan explains how the creeds arose and why they are important to the church. -
Is God an Exalted Man?
Here we see the Mormon system of thought that God the Father was once like us and is, even now, progressing forward in knowledge and power. -
The Heavenly Mother
Mormons rarely talk about God's wife, but their writings speak of their beliefs that God has one or more heavenly wives. -
Did Adam Become the Heavenly Father?
Commentary on Brigham Young's sermon declaring Adam to have become the Heavenly Father -
Our Pre-Mortal Life
According to Mormon doctrine, each of us has lived as spiritual children with Heavenly Father and Mother before our conception and birth. -
Do Latter-day Saints Think Jesus and Lucifer Were Spirit Brothers?
Check out the second question in the "I Have a Question" section of the June 1986 edition of Ensign. -
War in Heaven
Description of the battle between Jesus and Lucifer over God's plan of salvation -
The Choice That Began Mortality
Here Adam and Eve's fall is considered a good thing for humanity. -
The Unpardonable Sin
In his "King Follet Sermon," Joseph Smith explains the one unpardonable sin, when an LDS follower turns from his Mormon faith. (Scroll down to the sections "The Unpardonable Sin" and "The Forgiveness of Sins.") -
Blood Atonement and Utah's Method of Execution
Though many LDS leaders deny it today, blood atonement is still in the psyche of Mormons in the state of Utah. -
What Happens in Temples?
This article from the official LDS webpage explains the rituals taking place in a Mormon temple and why they are necessary for living with God in the highest heaven. -
The Three Kingdoms of Glory
Description of the three kingdoms of glory and perdition as taught by LDS
SESSION FOUR:
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Why do Latter-day Saints Abstain from Alcohol, Coffee, and Tea?
This prohibition is found in Section 89 of Doctrine and Covenants. -
A Temple Recommend: Being Worthy to Enter the Temple
This LDS page explains what is involved in getting a temple recommend. -
My Temple Recommend Expired
A young Mormon woman describes her shame in arriving at the temple only to learn she had let her temple recommend expire. -
The Sealing Ordinance
Temple ritual that seals Mormon marriages and families -
Preparing for the Temple Endowment
This LDS web page discusses the need for the temple endowment to live with God in the highest heaven. -
Aaronic Priesthood
A description of the Aaronic Priesthood as it pertains to the LDS -
Melchizedek Priesthood
A description of the Melchizedek Priesthood as it pertains to the LDS
SESSION FIVE:
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What's the Mormon Community Like?
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Baptisms for the Dead
Using an obscure passage from 1 Corinthians 15, the Latter-day Saints perform proxy baptisms for the dead. -
A Closer Look at Proxy Baptism
This article looks at the Mormon practice of proxy baptism and the 1 Corinthians 15 passage that Mormons use to justify proxy baptisms. -
Masonic Parallels
This website notes similarities and differences between the Mormon endowment and Freemasonry. -
Masonic Symbols and the LDS Temple
Joseph Smith's involvement with Freemasonry is examined. -
The Sacred Temple Garments
Essay on the significance of Mormon temple garments -
Passing through the Temple Veil
Presentation of the ceremony for an initiate to pass through the temple veil -
The Sentinel Angels
Read here about sentinel angels in Mormon teaching.
SESSION SIX:
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Micah Wilder's Testimony
Micah Wilder shares his moving story of God rescuing him from Mormonism. -
Sandra Tanner's Journey out of Mormonism
Here Sandra Tanner describes growing up as a Mormon and how she came out of Mormonism. -
Richard Williamson's Journey Out
KFUO radio interview with Richard Williamson talking about the Mormon Church and his exit from it -
A Spiritual and Intellectual Journey from Mormonism to Deism
Richard Williamson writes about his move from Mormonism to deism, before his becoming a Christian -
New Light on Mormon Origins from the Palmyra Revival
Article on the origins of the Mormons as tied to the Palmyra revival of 1820 -
Joseph Smith's Changing First Vision Accounts
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Joseph Smith's Contradictions
Article exploring Joseph Smith's polygamous behavior and the position of the Mormon Church on this issue over the years -
Marrying a Child
Read here about Joseph Smith marrying 14-year-old Helen Mar Kimball. -
The Mountain Meadows Massacre
In 1857 nearly 120 men, women, and children were murdered by Mormons and Indians in southern Utah. -
Brigham Young's Teachings on Blood Atonement
Dozens of quotations referring to the Mormon concept of "blood atonement" and its suspected widespread practice during the early days of the Latter-day Saint movement -
Latter-day Saints and Biblical Christianity
Though the Latter-day Saints have softened their speech against traditional Christian denominations, they still believe and teach that Mormons are the only true Christian church on earth.