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The Gospel According to Joseph Smith: A Christian Response to Mormon Teaching Paperback – December 4, 2001
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- Print length162 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherP & R Publishing
- Publication dateDecember 4, 2001
- Dimensions5.38 x 0.61 x 8.44 inches
- ISBN-100875521800
- ISBN-13978-0875521800
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Editorial Reviews
Review
"A good introduction to the serious differences between Mormonism and the historic Christian faith." --Ronald Nash
"Clearly, logically, and forcefully exposes the heretical nature of Mormonism. This work both challenges the confused Mormon and instructs Christians how to reach Mormons with the true gospel. I enthusiastically endorse this able and devastating critique." --Kenneth L. Gentry Jr.
About the Author
Product details
- Publisher : P & R Publishing (December 4, 2001)
- Language : English
- Paperback : 162 pages
- ISBN-10 : 0875521800
- ISBN-13 : 978-0875521800
- Item Weight : 8.8 ounces
- Dimensions : 5.38 x 0.61 x 8.44 inches
- Best Sellers Rank: #1,993,184 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #973 in Religious Cults (Books)
- #3,138 in Mormonism
- #4,185 in Christian Apologetics (Books)
- Customer Reviews:
About the author

Ethan E. Harris earned a BA in Theology from Corban University, a Masters of Theology, having attended Reformed Theological Seminary while ministering with RC Sproul at Ligonier Ministries, occasionally writing for TableTalk Magazine, and also graduated with a Masters of Education from Kansas University. He is an author and a retired Army Medic, having served with the 82nd Airborne in Iraq. He is an amateur "audiophile" and is a certified pistol instructor.
A Pacific Northwest native, he has traveled throughout the United States and the Middle East. Having studied linguistics as a graduate student at Kansas University and Haskell Indian Nations University, he has demonstrated an aptitude in languages, chiefly Greek, French, and Cherokee.
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But note: 1. A clearer and crisper job at the same task is done by Sharon Armstrong in her book, For Any Latter-day Saint: One Investigator's Unanswered Questions. 2. Though Harris is a valiant LDS contradiction illuminator, he does not in fairness point his light at any of dozens of equally glaring inconsistencies and contradictions in (a) the Bible itself, and (b) between the Bible and many accepted current non-Mormon Christian teachings. So his principled argument against contradictions is inconsistently applied and, therefore to that extent, ironically unprincipled. A much better job than Harris's at applying facts and principle consistently is done by Burton L. Macke (a professor of ancient Christian history) in Who Wrote the New Testament?
All that said, Harris's book is still a valuable introduction to the depth of contradiction in Mormonism.
Early on, he explains the authority structure of Mormonism, which includes its sacred writings (The Book of Mormon, the Pearl of Great Price, Doctrine and Covenants, and the King James translation of the Bible), and the words of Mormon "prophets."
He explains the Mormon view of God (including the Mormon doctrine that Adam is God), and Mormon ideas about salvation, and contrasts these with orthodox Christian teaching. He looks at a number of distinctive Mormon beliefs, and shows that these beliefs often contradict the authoritative works of Mormonism.
One of the most interesting parts of the book is his ethical argument against Mormonism. Lots of people do not care much about doctrine, but will notice that Mormons are nice, moral people. Mr. Harris shows that given their doctrine of God,they have no basis for their morality. After all, if God was once a man like us, and is progressing, then he could not perfectly decide what good and evil are. he might change his mind tomorrow, as he progresses. And in fact, Mormon morality has changed over time. For example, polygamy was commanded by God from 1843 to 1890, and then this command was revoked at the time that Utah sought statehood.
Mr. Harris has researched this book well. He is obviously familiar with the standard works of Mormonism, and has read a lot of obscure material that very few non-Mormon readers would be expected to know. He has also conversed extensively with Mormons and ex-Mormons, and in fact he publishes some testimonies from ex-Mormons which give a good look into the Mormon state of mind.
Now I would not suppose to know the heart of this man, and I would think that if he is striving to live as a Christian then he would want to spend more time building up others and serving others with his light and knowledge. However, it appears that he considers tearing others down with his so-called expertise to be a better use of his time and talents. Unfortunately his knowledge and understanding of latter-day saint teachings are severely lacking. This book reads more like a Calculus textbook that has been written by someone who failed Algebra. Should it matter that he consulted others-a mix of those who never took a course in math, along with those who took some math classes but claim to hate the subject, along with a few who, yes, majored in math. What you get is a convoluted rendering that uses the correct words, but uses them incorrectly. To those who are equally ignorant, it all sounds quite impressive and believable, but it is actually neither of those. What it is, is shameful and un-Christian, to flippantly suggest that the author himself or anyone else could read a single book on a subject as deep and complex as the nature of God and the Universe and claim to have such a complete understanding of that subject, that he is an expert whose teachings should be accepted as Truth.
Contrast that with those who are latter-day saints, especially those who are in leadership positions within the Church... especially those who claim to be prophets. What do they teach? They teach that each person should humble themselves as little children and to seek to know God's will for themselves through prayer and the study of Scripture. Trust God, not any person, but especially not this author.