Beyond Mormonism : An Elder's Story [Paperback]

James R. Spencer (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1984

The story of a former Mormon Elder coming to faith in Jesus Christ.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

James R. Spencer is a former Mormon Elder who left the Church of Jesus Christ in 1974 and eventually became a pastor of an Evangelical church. He has published eight books on the cults, the occult, and secularism. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback
• Publisher: Chosen Books Pub Co (October 1984)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0800790766
• ISBN-13: 978-0800790769
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5.2 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (35 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #417,750 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

131 of 155 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An honest testimony of reality, April 27, 2006

By 

Kathleen K. Melonakos (Escondido, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Beyond Mormonism : An Elder's Story (Paperback)

My assessment is that Spencer's book is a well written, moving story of a sincere person's search for God. His story demonstrates that he had the courage and intellectual honesty to follow where his hunger and thirst for righteousness led him. Like me, Spencer's prayers to find God were answered, but his experiences led him out of the LDS church and into a Christian life.

As a youth, Spencer longed for something more worthy and respectable than his life of bar hopping and one night stands. Hence, he was willing to listen to the Mormon missionaries. He describes just what the missionaries told him, and some of the techniques they use, all the while offering social acceptance and a warm place to belong. Spencer is incensed (rightfully so, in my opinion) that the missionaries never told him in the first six discussions,(after which they pressured a decision to join) that Mormons believe in polytheism. That is, every LDS male is eligible, if they perfect themselves enough by performing Mormon rituals and such, to become a god. When Spencer heard it, he instinctively felt it was wrong. Also he felt uncomfortable with the occult-type practices in the temple ceremony.

His discomfort launched him into a thorough investigation into the origins of the church, particularly whether Joseph Smith was a prophet. He committed the unpardonable sin (in Mormon eyes) of trying to make sense out of the Journal of Discourses, which is a collection of prophesies and sermons given by early church leaders. Many of these teachings are so bizarre, and so conflict with Bible teachings, Book of Mormon teachings, Doctrine and Covenant teachings and even current church doctrines, that Spencer labeled the whole thing "the Mormon maze."

It is my experience that if one wants to remain an active Mormon, one should never look too deeply into the origins of the church. Indeed, current church leaders actively discourage looking into "the mysteries," by which they mean records like the Journal of Discourses. But if you want a good summary of some of the troubling teachings of Joseph Smith and Brigham Young, see Spencer's Chapter 14. He gives you a good sampling.

Also if you are investigating the truth of the LDS church, really look into the story of the Pearl of Great Price (Mormon scripture). If Joseph Smith was a true prophet, why did he say that he "translated" Egyptian papyri into the Book of Abraham, etc, when all modern Egyptologists agree that the papyri from which he "translated" these books are merely funerary documents very common in ancient Egypt that have nothing to do with Abraham, Joseph or any of it? If Joseph Smith was a true prophet, why did at least 44 of his prophesies fail to come true (some of which are in the Doctrine in Covenants)?

(For more information, see chapters 25, 26, 27 of Hugh Nibley's daughter's book Leaving the Saints, and By His Own Hand : A New Look at the Joseph Smith Papyri by Michael Marquart).

23 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another ex-Mormon, December 29, 2008

By 

D. Norton "ex-mormon" (arizona) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Beyond Mormonism : An Elder's Story (Paperback)

I was raised in the Mormon church, and left when I turned 18 and could get away with it (had to leave home, too). This book details what my 18-year old mind thought was wrong, and couldn't quite nail down. A throughtful, well-written and easy to read book, full of facts, some rather scary...

62 of 75 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Gentle yet honest, October 17, 2006

By 

Robin (Memphis, TN United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Beyond Mormonism : An Elder's Story (Paperback)

James Spencer's story is a personal one. It is a painful one. I read this book in a series of books that I have been reading, trying to learn more about the Mormon religion. This book was probably the best, but it was also the most painful to read. I nearly cried toward the end.

Yet it's not just "his story." It's also a sampling of what led him away from Mormonism. The lies, the lies, and basically the lies. The doctrine doesn't make sense, and he makes this point over and over with Bible references, Book of Mormom references, and references from other documents of the church. This book reveals that Mormonism was not made by God. And it makes my heart ache. For my friends still caught in it, and for all the people in the world believing this lie. The author's love for people is unmistakeable.