It has been five years since Paul Owen and Carl Mosser first published their seminal paper “Mormon Apologetics and Evangelical Neglect: Losing the Battle and Not Knowing It?” Now, some of the most prominent evangelical scholars are entering into the fray. The publication of this anthology is truly a landmark event, and so it merits a detailed look.

Section I - Mormonism’s Appeal, Growth, and Challenges

Chapter 1- “The Apologetic Impulse In Early Mormonism” by Craig Hazen. Hazen sets the table by demonstrating that in its early years, Mormonism in fact held considerable intellectual appeal. For Tekton readers, this chapter alone is nearly worth the cost of the book. Why? Because of J.P.’s piece “The Impossible Faith”, which details that early Christianity was a movement what went sharply against the grain of its cultural milieu. Remember how skeptics quickly said that the same could be said of Mormonism? Hazen (albeit unwittingly) demolishes this claim, detailing how Mormonism in fact was tailor-made to its surroundings, presenting a brand of Christianity that was devoid of nearly everything that early Americans found dissatisfying about the orthodoxy of the time, both in terms of sectarianism and Enlightenment criticisms. Gotta love the perfectly timed irony!

Chapter 2 - “And the Saints Go Marching On” by Carl Mosser. One of the co-authors of the famous paper that started it all elaborates on their original thesis, discussing the world of LDS scholarship and apologetics. At the end, he lays to rest some of the ways his paper was misinterpreted; “Nor do I believe that LDS scholars can actually pull off their task of rationally defending LDS truth claims…My concern about LDS apologetics is not that Mormonism will be proven true, but that the arguments of LDS scholars will either wrongly convince or shake the faith of those who do not have the skills to properly investigate the issues.” (p. 86-87).

Section II - The Mormon Worldview

Chapter 3 - “Craftsman or Creator” by Paul Copan and William Lane Craig. This chapter discusses the biblical, philosophical, and scientific support for the creatio ex nihilo. The exegetical arguments are supported by a beefy survey of biblical scholarship on the subject and the authors also note that the LDS have not interacted with it on this topic. The philosophical and scientific arguments are pretty similar to the ones given by Christian apologists in other venues. What the reader may find interesting and provocative, however, is that Craig and Copan argue that the LDS standard works do not, in fact, prohibit such a view.

Chapter 4 - “The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Joseph Smith” by Jim Adams. This chapter contrasts the Old Testament view of God with Israel’s neighbors and notes that the LDS view of God has far more in common with the latter. The line of argument is close to that made in James White’s “Is the Mormon my Brother?”, with two main exceptions: 1. Documentation for the LDS view is drawn from the Standard Works, and 2. Much more attention is given to the views of Israel’s pagan nations.

Chapter 5 - “A Tale of Two Theisms” by Stephen Parrish with Carl Mosser. A stimulating discussion of the LDS view of God and the implications of a being that is not necessary but contingent. In conclusion, the authors maintain that the LDS God, as well as the universe, exist for no reason at all and that this view cannot account for the order that exists in the universe or provide any ultimate solution to the problem of evil.

Chapter 6 - “Moral Law, The Mormon Universe, and the Nature of the Right we Ought to Choose” by Francis Beckwith. Those who have enjoyed Beckwith’s other writings will not be disappointed here. While noting the substantial agreement between Mormons and evangelicals on moral beliefs, he comes to the conclusion that the LDS view of God cannot be the source of absolute moral law. This undermines any belief in moral realism, and we are left with the uncomfortable position that morals are purely arbitrary. He does, however, believe that there is room for evangelicals and Mormons to work together in confronting the moral problems of our society.

Chapter 7 - “The Absurdities of Mormon Materialism” by J.P. Moreland. The title of this chapter echoes that of an 1849 publication by one of Mormonism’s premier early thinkers, Orson Pratt, who argued against immaterialism, and is a rebuttal to that thesis.

There are two things that can be taken from this section. One is that since Mormonism initially tried to cater to the Enlightenment thinker, it is open to many of the same criticisms that atheism/agnosticism is. Secondly, many LDS have difficulty understanding why evangelicals believe certain doctrines about God’s attributes are considered essential. This section shows their great importance..

Part III - Mormonism and Christianity

Chapter 8 - “Monotheism, Mormonism, and the New Testament Witness” by Paul Owen. Mormons have recently been citing certain liberal biblical scholars in order to provide support for their belief that the Bible does not teach strict monotheism. Owen answers this charge, showing how the work of the cited scholars is flawed. He also charges that the views of these scholars is also inconsistent with the LDS view on the Bible’s origins.

Chapter 9 - “Is Mormonism Christian?” by Craig Blomberg. Here Blomberg works out what many of his critics felt he didn’t answer in How Wide the Divide. Blomberg comes to the conclusion that while there may be a good number of people who truly came to Christ and then subsequently joined the LDS church (because they saw no obvious difference), he states that he cannot say the same for someone who believes the teachings of the current LDS church. He hopes that this will not always be so. (This is one of the huge differences between this book and other evangelical critiques of Mormonism. The authors seem to believe that the battle with Mormonism will ultimately be won not by getting individual members to defect, but by getting the LDS church to move to orthodoxy, even if the former is still important in the meantime. They may indeed have a point.)

Part IV - The Book of Mormon

Chapter 10 - “Does the Book of Mormon Reflect an Ancient Near Eastern Background?” by Thomas Finley. LDS scholars have been arguing that the Book of Mormon should be considered an ancient Hebrew work because it reflects that cultural background. After surveying the evidence, Finley concludes, “The social, cultural, and geographic features within the Book of Mormon derive easily from the KJV. We have not discovered any features of the Book of Mormon that would make plausible the hypothesis that Joseph Smith translated it from ancient gold plates.” (p. 366)

Chapter 11 - “Rendering Fiction” by David J. Shepherd. Comparing the Book of Mormon with the Hebrew text and the KJV, Shepherd concludes that there is sufficient evidence to show that it falls into the genre of “pseudotranslation”, using The Living Bible as a parallel case study.

There were a few things that raised my eyebrows about this work in the context of Mosser and Owen’s mission. First, only half of the chapters in this book really interact with and reply to contemporary LDS scholarship, which seems a bit peculiar in the light of their warnings. A number of points are raised that no LDS scholar has delved into. Moreland’s chapter is in reply to Orson Pratt, who is obviously not contemporary. The work of Hugh Nibley, whose work Mosser and Owen said was being ignored, is scarcely mentioned. This, however, does not in any way detract from the quality of the information in the book. And, on the other hand, Mosser and Owen also stated that the LDS had successfully answered a good chunk of the typical evangelical criticisms of LDS beliefs. Obviously, then, new criticisms must be raised, which this book does quite admirably. It should also be pointed out that the authors do state that they intend for this to be the first of several volumes.

Secondly, the authors are quite adamant that the purported changes in LDS thinking should be accepted at face value and that they are not part of some slick, massive PR effort designed to make the LDS church look more like evangelicalism. If you are skeptical of this, then you need to read this book. The authors document that there has, in fact, been significant shifts in LDS theology in recent years that are indeed closer to Christian orthodoxy than traditional Mormon doctrine. It is happening because Mormons are turning their focus towards both the Bible and the Book of Mormon, which is largely orthodox in its teachings. LDS theologians who think along these lines are becoming quite a force in influencing the minds of the LDS laity.

Having said that, I don’t think the view that there is an attempt to minimize differences for PR purposes is altogether unjustified, either. As evidence that Mormon thought is changing, Blomberg cites President Gordon Hinckley as saying that he is unsure if the LDS really taught the doctrine of deification. However, his source for that quote (The Ostlings’ Mormon America) also mentions that Hinckley appeared in the Mormon Tabernacle shortly thereafter and told the audience that he was misquoted (and thus did believe this doctrine). It is not an either-or situation. We should be on guard for obvious instances of the downplaying of real differences, but when individual Mormons tell us they don’t accept certain teachings, we should be inclined to believe them and not accuse them of duplicity. That is the approach that this book takes, and on that score it is worth noting that two LDS apologists (Daniel Peterson and Blake Ostler) have endorsed this book. When Mormons feel that they are being accurately portrayed, they will listen to what we have to say. One caveat on this point, which Carl Mosser points out,

“As Latter-Day Saints move away from the traditional theology of the King Follett Discourse, assuming that this move continues, it is incumbent on them to do so in light of a more developed understanding of the prophethood of (Joseph) Smith, (Brigham) Young, and others.” (p. 419)

Indeed, this is probably the chief reason for evangelical skepticism. If prophets are true, and were so important to the church’s restoration, shouldn’t one believe what they say, especially in the light of Deuteronomy 18:20? Nonetheless, it is important to meet Mormons where they are at, even if they currently don’t have an explanation of how they got there.

Certainly, the Mormons will respond to this work. Their response will be telling. Of almost equal interest, perhaps, is the response of the counter-cult movement. They are not portrayed in a favorable light. They cannot, however, avoid it and retain credibility.