Customer Reviews

I Love Mormons: A New Way to Share Christ with Latter-day Saints

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(6)

 

 

This book is perfect for those living in, around, or near Mormons. It dispels many misbeliefs about the Mormon religion and it takes the outsider into the religion without bashing, hating, or belittling them. It explains the differences between a evangelical Christian and a Mormon instead of just laying into Mormonism as if they were the most evil of people. Having moved to Utah myself with very little previous Mormon interaction I found this book as a life saver in terms of getting a grasp on everything culture to vocabulary to history. It is a must read for any Christian or non-Christian, in other words, everyone should read it. It is a very easy read as well.

I agree with some of what Dr. Rowe says...and other parts...when it come to practice or application of his premise...I disagree.I agree we need to see our LDS neighbors as more than "two-dimensional information processors who simply need to have their bad information replaced by our good information." (pg 80). I agree that we need to "find a better way to touch our LDS friends with the love of God out of our own security in that love." (pg 19). This is done by keeping the focus of our witness on God's grace that is received by faith (Ephesians 2:8-9).What I disagree with is calling the presentation of the gospel with the pejorative term "Bible Bashing." It is true that using the Bible to hammer a Mormon with one verse after another is not effective. The reason why is that they already view the Bible as corrupted and the gospel has many plain and most precious parts kept back by the great and abominable Church (1 Nephi 13:20-36). So what needs to be done is to show that the Bible is true, reliable and authoritative. This will take time and care to make this case. The second disagreement is how to show respect to Mormons. What came across to me...in what he suggested...amounts to treating them as equals. This is usually called respect and understanding of Mormons. I can show respect and understanding for the person who belongs to the LDS Church...and yet regard the institution as making false claims to being a Christian Church. I would recommend the book because of what can be learned from Dr. Rowe's experience and wisdom in witnessing to Mormons that can help in reaching those who belong to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Speaking the Truth in Love to Mormons

There are a growing number of books dedicated to the discussion of the many facets of Mormonism. Some are great, while others tend to be the same recycled material. There is something different about this book and its approach to Mormonism. Instead of taking the hard-line, doctrinal approach, it focuses 90% of its pages on the LDS culture which is the driving force behind its teachings, how they are put into practice and the subsequent impact on members lives. In short...it is woven into EVERYTHING.

The book's premise is simple. Due to the influence of the LDS church in every part of the believer's life, opening their eyes to the truth of the Bible and how Mormonism contradicts it is better done once certain nuances of how they think and act are understood. He proposes "A new way to share Christ with Latter-day Saints" as the sub-title reads. Let's take a closer look at his proposed way of evangelizing to them.

One of the reoccurring themes Rowe talks about is the LDS Persecution Complex. This is the tendency for Mormons to see most (if not all) questions about their belief system and way of living as an attack. The origin of this deeply ingrained perspective has its roots in the very early days of the church's existence. LDS history often teaches that the early Latter-day Saints (as they will call themselves) were heavily persecuted by those living around them. It is a common belief that these persecutions were un-provoked, and some were. But a closer, more thorough look at the historical accounts show that the Mormons were not the innocent victims being portrayed today. Some examples of this are briefly outlined in chapter 3.

If someone begins to talk with members of the LDS church about their beliefs, it will not take long before you see them pull the persecution card. In many ways, it is a method of protection designed to discredit any information that comes from outside the church that is not "faith-promoting". This can be subjective and will be triggered without intent or warning. This understanding is important to his approach because once you are seen through this lens; the chance of being able to effectively reach-out to that person will be almost non-existent. I did this as a Mormon and have recently experienced it from the other side as well.

As a result of this inclination to shut-down any real conversation once an "attack" is perceived, Rowe suggests that direct questions about doctrine are better kept in our hip pocket until there is more relational trust. I would agree with that based on my own personal experience.

He tells a number of stories of people he has interacted with that ring true to me as a former Mormon. The stories dealt with the different potential reasons Mormons might be inclined to distance themselves from the LDS church. These include a deeper hunger for God, deal-breaking inconsistencies with either doctrine or history and besetting burdens.

Allow me to speak about this last reason. LDS doctrine teaches a type of "conditional grace", a grace that is extended to a person only after they complete certain tasks or demonstrate their continued devotion. When combined with a list of "must-do" rules, the byproduct of this errant teaching of God's grace is a weight that no one can or should carry. Though they may not admit it, many of your LDS friends and family are weighed down by this very thing. The story of Janet demonstrates this. After years of faithful service in the church she told her husband:

"I can`t do it anymore. I can't lift it. My load is just too heavy. I can't do all the things I'm supposed to." She goes on to list the responsibilities she feels obligated to juggle and then says, "I'm just not perfect - I'm never going to be perfect, and I just can't pretend anymore that I am. I've finally admitted to myself that I can't make it to the Celestial Kingdom, so why should I break my back trying?"

This kind of weariness is common and was actually the first reason I stepped away from Mormonism. My heart breaks for people experiencing this. The true grace Jesus offers escapes them but only because they have been presented with a false grace that in no way demonstrates the love and mercy God has for them. Unconditional grace is what every LDS person needs to see and understand.

One of my favorite quotes in the book that I think highlights his plea for Christians to cultivate real relationship with Mormons is when he says, "Let's carefully observe what particular way God seems to be at work in a person's life and think that way as we relate to him or her." It is by partnering with God in what he is already doing that we can show the LDS in our lives the grace, freedom and rest found in Jesus.

The end of the book highlights another need that I experienced as I worked my way out of Mormonism and into Christianity...a welcomed place to land. Understanding the issues most LDS face once out, he identifies areas in which the local Christian church can improve on to make the transition as easy as possible. He also includes a glossary of commonly used LDS terms to help you understand "Mormonese".

While the end of the book can come across as advocating a "soft" approach when discussing doctrine (which I tend to disagree with) I think this book is a must-read for anyone who has someone close to them in the LDS church but is struggling trying to understand and relate to them. Having spent 30 years in the LDS church I can say that they way he presents Mormons is accurate and is full of great insight into how they think and act. Combining the wisdom found in "I Love Mormons" with a basic understanding of LDS doctrine will go a long way in helping you effectively share the truth of the gospel with those who are in need of it most.

Getting past the title and the cover was the greatest hurdle to reaching the treasure inside David L. Rowe's book, I Love Mormons: A New Way to Share Christ with Latter-day Saints. Rowe claims to know the best way to communicate the gospel to LDS people. He says that until now, most Christians have tried to prove that Mormon doctrine is wrong. Problem was, no one was listening. Mormons are less into intellectualizing their faith and more into feeling it. Mormons "know" truth by experiencing it, so Christians can improve their presentation by learning how to speak effectively about the redemption experience. Rowe is passionate about helping Christians live out their faith in a way both transparent and deliberate. He and his family have resided in Salt Lake City for thirty years, giving him plenty of time to interact with the locals. He discovered first-hand the Mormon subculture-ethnicity-that makes a non-Mormon in Utah feel like a foreigner. Bumping against that invisible barrier over and over again helped Rowe define it. He writes as a professor and the dean of spiritual life at Salt Lake Theological Seminary (a non-LDS institution), where he teaches cross-cultural ministries.

Rowe is candid in sharing the mistakes he made and insights he gained, insights that would be useful in many cross-cultural settings--reaching the youth of our own society comes to mind. For example, Rowe stresses that in witnessing to Mormons, theology is not usually a good starting point. Most LDS people are unreflective regarding doctrinal or theological issues, so doctrinal knowledge should be used humbly and gently. The book first recounts various types of experiences in relating to LDS people. One chapter helps the reader understand Mormon ethnicity, including the strengths of their community, followed by a comparison of LDS and Christian doctrine and pointers on how to discuss the differences. How do some exit? Why do others choose to stay? The transition stories are noteworthy.

Rowe instructs us how to graciously welcome LDS visitors who come to our churches, and, more importantly, why we should. Those who visit are burdened by conditional grace, a hunger for God, inconsistencies in their own religion, and the weight of excessive expectations.

His chapter on basic teachings, "Mormonsim 101," discusses the power of belonging and the importance of community, precisely what Mormons miss most when they leave. Rowe's mild rebuke to evangelical Christians to live an interdependent community life may sting Americans committed to the familiar let-me-do-it-myself attitude. Rowe challenges us to reach out and meet Mormons with love and respect, ready to express our vital relationship to Christ as long as God gives an open door. Rowe also identifies door closers-preaching, taunting, dilettantism, and avoidance. Rowe supports his approach to effective communication with examples and case studies: how he did it wrong and how we can avoid making the same mistakes.

Beyond serving as a primer for understanding Mormons, this book reviews the distinctive acts of faith in Jesus Christ-the life change, the freshness of a vital relationship with God, the privilege and right to call God "Abba, Father." This book can be used alone or as a companion study to a video training series, "Bridges: Helping Mormons Discover God's Grace," available from Salt Lake Theological Seminary (www.slts.edu).

Somewhat bothersome is Rowe's reference to Christians as "traditional" Christians, blurring the distinction and perhaps inferring that Mormons are simply contemporary Christians while evangelicals are traditional. Readers may tire of Rowe referring to Mormons as "friends" when he means acquaintances or even unfamiliar missionaries at the front door. Also of concern is Rowe's urging us to invite Mormon missionaries inside our homes and engage them in faith dialogue, something 2 John 10-11 specifically prohibits.

Overall, Rowe's message for interacting with everyday Mormons is needed, the anecdotes are clear, and the wealth of experience that Rowe and his colleagues have gained is a treasure that we can freely dip into and learn from. -- M. J. Wooten, Christian Book Previews.com

David Rowe, of the Salt Lake Theological Seminary, indicates that, when he arrived in Utah in 1975, he quickly became a kind of "Mormon slayer" who loved a "Bible bash." Back then "we were," he now admits, "attacking them instead of their doctrine" (p. 17, emphasis deleted). Eventually he realized that all he got out of his aggressive, adversarial, confrontational anti-Mormon polemics was a sense of having trounced a miserable cultist.

He claims to have eventually discovered what he calls a "new way" of "witnessing" to the Saints--that is, of attacking their doctrine rather than them. This is still what Latter-day Saints see as proselyting since they regard themselves as disciples of Jesus Christ, who has provided for them the only means of salvation.

As an alternative for the more overtly adversarial sort of "cult-busting" approach he employed earlier in his career, Rowe now offers a presumably kinder, gentler, more culturally sensitive kind of anti-Mormonism. His is, however, a minor voice in the cacophony of anti-Mormon voices. What he offers still is blatantly anti-Mormon.

Why?

One reason is that he asserts that the Jesus that the Saints know is merely "'a two-dimensional cutout paper doll' Jesus Christ" (p. 159) and not the real Jesus of the Bible. And when the Saints offer thanks for the atonement, Rowe, like many other sectarian anti-Mormons, insists that we do not really mean what we pray, say, or sing (pp. 53--56), since we do not have the proper "worldview" (p. 55), and so forth.

This book was obviously not written for Latter-day Saints. It is another in a long line of handbooks that promise a new and improved way of proselyting the Saints and thereby meeting the Mormon challenge. Rowe proudly describes his book as a "new way" of "transforming" the Saints.

It is "new" in that it is a presumably less adversarial and abrasive, and, hopefully, a more effective way of seducing the Saints away from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and into some unidentified sectarian ideology.

Rowe hopes that others, following his advice, will somehow "come to understand Latter-day Saints and their culture [as he has] and wed this understanding to a profound love and respect for them" (p. 9). Love is thus recommended as a means to an end.

What end?

He very much wants to see his contemporary conservative Protestant culture, his own religious language and lore, his worldview, and his version of "the biblical gospel" (as opposed to what the Saints have) "built into their world, their lives, and even their worldwide church" (p. 9).

Rowe's "new way" is endorsed by such evangelicals as David Neff (editor of Christianity Today), Craig Blomberg (Denver Seminary), Vernon Grounds (chancellor, Denver Seminary), and two fellow employees of the Salt Lake Theological Seminary.

Rowe is said to have, "beyond his family and Jesus," a passion for "incendiary worship, fine cuisine, acoustic music, elegant discourse, and sheer grace" (p. 191). He claims that Mormonism is a culture and not a cult and he teaches something called "cross-cultural ministry," in addition to worship theology, homiletics/communication, and spiritual formation.

His new way of proselyting Mormons involves learning their mind-set and their language, since Mormons are a culture (or ethnic group) and not a cult as commonly understood by countercultists (pp. 27--29 and elsewhere).

In order to spread the message encrusted in the language and lore of his variety of contemporary conservative Protestant culture, Rowe believes that one must learn the language, stories, and modes of thinking of the Mormon culture if one is to effectively communicate the "real Jesus" to the Saints (p. 107).

According to Rowe, there is "a characteristically Mormon way of knowing about God and spiritual matters" (p. 13). He urges conservative Protestants "to adapt our communication style to their [LDS] way of knowing so the Good News can sound like good news" (p. 13). One must appear to have a deep love for the Mormon people "despite deep disagreements with some of their distinctives" (p. 9), or what he calls "a profound love and respect" for lost Mormon souls.

But Rowe's "new way" is not without its critics. There is currently a donnybrook taking place among conservative Protestants over how best to proselyte Latter-day Saints. Both sides in this internecine struggle quote--out of context--a phrase from Paul's letter to the Ephesians (4:15) to describe their approaches as "speaking truth in love."

The Saints, of course, often have a difficult time recognizing either truth or love in what is said and done. One camp practices a confrontational, adversarial, aggressively Bible-bashing mode of "evangelizing" the Saints. The other faction, aware that such tactics yield very poor results, has fashioned a slightly more irenic and less openly adversarial approach, which Rowe advocates in his handbook for luring the Saints away from their faith.

First of all, Mormons are Christians a.k.a followers of Christ. Secondly and most important "Utah Mormons" are a culture and differ from most Mormon's. It is entirely too ignorant to judge/label someone as being something because they are a certain religion. As all religions it is a family and all members of that family are unique. As individuals we choose to do things from our perspective, even under a collective viewpoint we still have many varying degrees of actions, perceptions and feelings. I think this is a nice book, well written and interesting. However I think the viewpoint is skewed as it pertains to "Utah Mormon's" which do have a strong culture of their own. Personally I would not choose to approach someone's beliefs based on generalities. How about gaining your own perspective rather than taking someone's word for it?

This is the best book out there on the LDS if your interest is in following the call of Christ on your life (the great commission). This is not the book for you if you would rather simply judge others as heretics or feel good about yourself for witnessing on someone. The "unique methodology" in this book has proven over the last couple of centuries to be effective -- whether you are in China or Utah. Oh, and it was also the methodology of the Master.

I was fully prepared to study up on the various problems with Mormon theology and lovingly lay them on a friend of mine, expecting that he'd see his mistake and hopefully change his mind. This book showed me that my idea was clearly wrong. It's not the way to approach Mormons. In fact there is no secret or special way at all. You approach them as you would anybody that you love, with respect and care, and without condescension.

This books deals with the core theological issues but not before explaining real Mormons for who they are- wonderful people with real lives and a strong commitment to their culture and country (and others who aren't so devout- like some Christians).

The book also explains what the approach I was ready to take actually results in- walls going up so thick that the clearest, most well explained and lovingly presented argument will never penetrate them.

The author has lived as an evangelical Christian in the Mormon capital of the world for many years. He knows what happens when you challenge Mormons on their faith, and explains in detail what an improper attitude does to any chance of being taken seriously by them.

Please, please read this book before talking theology with any Mormon, or suggest it to another person you know that will be.

David Rowe, Ph.D., a professor and dean of spiritual life at Salt Lake Theological Seminary, argues that to understand Mormons and discuss spiritual concepts, we need to understand their culture, not just their theology. While is book, I Love Mormons: A new Way to Share Christ with Later-day Saints, uses the Mormon culture as a case study, he actually demonstrates methods for understanding cultures and better communicating with them. It's an "understand first, and then be understood" thing.

In textbook style, complete with discussion questions concluding each chapter, Rowe constructs his ideas and shares his experiences. But while the ideas are articulated well, the writing is slightly lacking. The paragraphs are long and most pages have at least one exclamation point if not two or three.

In some instances, Rowe alienates his readers by not fully describing the drama that plays out between various religions on Temple Square in Salt Lake City. He also broad-brushes some of the cultural items as specifically Mormon, when in fact, they are more isolated to the Utah Mormon culture.

The minor criticisms aside, I enjoyed I Love Mormons and found it informative. Anybody wanting to share ideas with cultures other than their own--be it religious, environmental, or political, should read this book. Both Republican and Democrat campaign workers, as well as environmentalists, sales people, and missionaries could learn techniques for more effective conversation from Rowe's book.

I'm sorry, but I found this book entirely offensive. I have close friends of many denominations--many from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I have not found them to be a cult and they are not in need of introduction to Jesus Christ or the Bible--they have both. My friends have pictures of Christ in their homes and put their family relationships above everything else.

I feel for my LDS friends--all good, honest, quality people--when there are all these "Christians" out there misrepresenting them.