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Criticism of Mormonism/Books/Mormon America: The Power and the Promise: Difference between revisions
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*The term "Mormon Jesus," as used by the authors here, came from ''somewhere''. A search of the endnotes for Chapter 19 did not turn up any references to ''The God Makers''...yet it was this film, well known to Evangelical Christians, that promoted the term "the Mormon Jesus." This pejorative term is used by evangelicals to distinguish the "Mormon Jesus" from the "true Jesus" in order to support the claim that Latter-day Saints are not "Christians." | *The term "Mormon Jesus," as used by the authors here, came from ''somewhere''. A search of the endnotes for Chapter 19 did not turn up any references to ''The God Makers''...yet it was this film, well known to Evangelical Christians, that promoted the term "the Mormon Jesus." This pejorative term is used by evangelicals to distinguish the "Mormon Jesus" from the "true Jesus" in order to support the claim that Latter-day Saints are not "Christians." Its use by the authors in the main text of their narrative is simply insulting to Latter-day Saints. | ||
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Revision as of 06:31, 30 November 2008
This article is a draft. FairMormon editors are currently editing it. We welcome your suggestions on improving the content.
About this work
Authors: Richard N. Ostling and Joan K. Ostling
- Should non-Mormons write a book about Mormonism? The coauthors, are, admittedly, conventional Protestants...the outsiders will find some fascinating information and want to learn even more. And the insiders will see themselves portrayed fairly while learning some things they would not have known othwerise.
- —Preface, Mormon America: The Power and the Promise
- Mormon America is very much like two books in one. The first depicts individual Latter-day Saints "as a model minority, a hardworking people with more education than the American average, deeply committed to church and family" (p. xxiv)...Yet in the second part, when the Ostlings begin to discuss the church's doctrines, its history, and its leaders, they paint a landscape that, to a knowledgeable Latter-day Saint, is selective with a bias toward the sensational.
- —Raymond Takashi Swenson, Faith without Caricature?, 2001
- [T]he Ostlings do not want to seem openly or stridently hostile toward the Saints. They are, instead, condescending in ways that are analogous to the way virtually every community of believers gets treated by journalists, including evangelicals and their allies. But at times the Ostlings drop the guise of balanced, objective reporters.
- —Louis Midgley, Faulty Topography, 2002
Claims made in this work
Quote mining, selective quotation and distortion
Many critics who write about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are not content to portray the Church and its doctrines fairly. Some critics mine their sources by extracting quotes from their context in order to make the statement imply something other that what it was originally intended to mean. Other critics make statements that are self-contradictions—instances in which a critic says or writes one thing, and then makes another statement elsewhere that flatly contradicts their first statement.
These examples do not prove that these critics' arguments are without merit; they do suggest caution is warranted before accepting these authors or their works as reliable witnesses when they speak of their own experiences connected with "Mormonism." In particular, one should also be cautious about accepting their interpretation of primary sources without double-checking the original sources themselves.
Council of Fifty behind the destruction of the Nauvoo Expositor?
| Reference | Author's claim... | The rest of the story... | Use of sources |
|---|---|---|---|
| p. 16 | Smith knew that someone from the Council of Fifty, despite the secrecy oaths, had betrayed him by giving information to Foster and Law, According to Quinn, "He could not allow the Expositor to publish the secret international negotiations masterminded by Mormonism's earthly king." But Joseph, as mayor of Nauvoo, declared action was essential because the Expositor faction would "destroy the peace of the city" and foment a "mob spirit." With the backing of his Council, Smith ordered that the new press be smashed and all possible copies of the press run destroyed. (emphasis added) | The way that the paragraph is constructed, it is clear that the authors wish the reader to believe that the Council of Fifty was backing Joseph in the destruction of the Nauvoo Expositor. | D. Michael Quinn |
Commentary
- It was the Nauvoo city council that ordered the destruction of the Nauvoo Expositor, not the Council of Fifty. Note how the authors have capitalized the word "Council," which, when read with the preceeding reference to the "Council of Fifty," makes it appear as if the "secret" Council of Fifty was behind the destruction of the Expositor. The correct information is buried in an unreferenced endnote on page 402, which states "Nauvoo city council activities related to the Expositor" were taken from D. Michael Quinn's The Mormon Hierarchy: Origins of Power. One wonders why the authors chose not to clarify this information in the main body of the text. The endnote shows that the authors knew that this was the city council. Instead, the author's decided to throw in Quinn's own speculation and then constructed the paragraph in a way which made the matter appear much more sinister.
A description of Central American ruins in View of the Hebrews?
| Reference | Author's claim... | The rest of the story... | Use of sources |
|---|---|---|---|
| 29 | One book Joseph Smith likely knew was Ethan Smith's View of the Hebrews, published in Vermont in 1825 and containing considerable material on the subject, as well as a description of ancient Central American Indian ruins. | Joseph first learned of Central American ruins in 1841 when John L. Stephens, Incidents of Travel in Central America, Chiapas, and Yucatan was published, over 16 years after Ethan Smith's book was published. |
Commentary
- The authors were not very careful in their research. Ethan Smith's book describes artifacts (not cities) found in North America, not Central America.
Joseph was "hoping one last time" to use his seer stone to produce treasure in 1836?
| Reference | Author's claim... | The rest of the story... | Use of sources |
|---|---|---|---|
| 31 | Smith left his financially troubled church for Salem, Massachussetts, at summer's end in 1836, hoping one last time that the use of his seer stone might produce treasure that he had been told lay under a house (D&C 111). The seer stone failed again, and his money-digging was no more successful than before. (emphasis added) | D&C makes no mention of the use of a seer stone. None of the published accounts of this story mention the use of a seer stone. | DC 111 |
Commentary
- The authors outdo themselves this time by showing their willingness to synthesize and fabricate new elements for this story. Note that they provide D&C 111 as a reference, which describes the Salem "treasure hunting" trip. When one reads DC 111, it is plain to see that this section does not mention the use of a seer stone. By 1836, Joseph had not used a seer stone for years, having given his stone to Oliver Cowdery soon after translation of the Book of Mormon was completed.
- See also Joseph Smith and seer stones
The nature of Helen Mar Kimball's marriage?
| Reference | Author's claim... | The rest of the story... | Use of sources |
|---|---|---|---|
| 61 | [Joseph's] youngest bride, in some ways typical, was fourteen-year-old Helen Mar Kimball. (emphasis added) | The most conservative estimates indicate that Joseph entered into plural marriages with 29–33 women, 7 of whom were under the age of 18. The youngest was Helen Mar Kimball, daughter of LDS apostle Heber C. Kimball, who was 14. The rest were 16 (two) or 17 (three). One wife (Maria Winchester) about which virtually nothing is known, was either 14 or 15. |
|
| 62 | [Helen's] own writings and other evidence indicate that she felt rebellious at times, and that it was possible she had not grasped before the ceremony that the marriage in time would eventually have a sexual component. (emphasis added) |
|
|
Commentary
- The authors speculate that the marriage to Helen Mar Kimball was "in some ways typical," although they do not clarify this statement.
- The authors take speculative statements from their source (note Compton's use of the word "apparently" in each case) and extrapolate them even further by adding the term "sexual component." Note that the source never mentions a "sexual component," and that the authors interpret this data in ways that the source never intended. Todd Compton said the following when Jerald and Sandra Tanner attempted to use his material to "prove" that sexual relations were involved:
- The Tanners made great mileage out of Joseph Smith's marriage to his youngest wife, Helen Mar Kimball. However, they failed to mention that I wrote that there is absolutely no evidence that there was any sexuality in the marriage, and I suggest that, following later practice in Utah, there may have been no sexuality. (p. 638) All the evidence points to this marriage as a primarily dynastic marriage.[1]
The "Mormon Jesus"
| Reference | Author's claim... | The rest of the story... | Use of sources |
|---|---|---|---|
| 320 | The same process of apostasy was repeated among the believers in the New World who were visited by the Mormon Jesus. | Consider this excerpt from the 1982 anti-Mormon film The God Makers:
"Mormon apostle Orson Pratt taught that after Jesus Christ grew to manhood, he took at least three wives: Mary, Martha and Mary Magdeline. Through these wives the Mormon Jesus, through whom Joseph Smith claimed direct descent, supposedly fathered a number of children before he was crucified. According to the Book of Mormon, after his resurrection, Jesus came to the Americas to preach to the Indians, who the Mormons believe are really Israelites. Thus, the Jesus of Mormonism established his church in the Americas as he had in Palestine." |
Source not provided by the authors. |
Commentary
- The term "Mormon Jesus," as used by the authors here, came from somewhere. A search of the endnotes for Chapter 19 did not turn up any references to The God Makers...yet it was this film, well known to Evangelical Christians, that promoted the term "the Mormon Jesus." This pejorative term is used by evangelicals to distinguish the "Mormon Jesus" from the "true Jesus" in order to support the claim that Latter-day Saints are not "Christians." Its use by the authors in the main text of their narrative is simply insulting to Latter-day Saints.
Mormonism operates more like a small cult?
| Reference | Author's claim... | The rest of the story... | Use of sources |
|---|---|---|---|
| 354 | The files are only one aspect of a meticulous system of internal discipline through which contemporary Mormonism operates more like a small cult than a major denomination. | Church disciplinary procedures linked to the word "cult?" | Authors' opinion |
Commentary
- Apparently the authors cannot resist the opportunity to use the word "cult" in association with the church.
Evidence of magical activities "too well documented for Mormons to deny?"
| Reference | Author's claim... | The rest of the story... | Use of sources |
|---|---|---|---|
| 403 | Evidence of Smith family magic activities too well documented for Mormons to deny: Richard L. Bushman, "Treasure-seeking Then and Now," Sunstone, II, no. 5 (1987): 5. | Richard L. Bushman, of course, is a believing and active Latter-day Saint scholar. | Richard L. Bushman, "Treasure-seeking Then and Now," Sunstone, II, no. 5 (1987): 5 |
Commentary
- The authors' mask of alleged impartiality and objectiveness slips as they flatly imply in the endnotes that the Church would attempt to hide any evidence of magical activity on the part of the Smith family unless forced to acknowledge it. They then have the gall to support their claim by using the published work of one of the most well-known, active LDS scholars. Attempting to promote their bias in the endnotes is apparently acceptable journalistic practice.
Endnotes
- [note] Todd M. Compton, Response to Tanners, post to LDS Bookshelf mailing list, no date. It should be mentioned that many reviewers of Compton's work do not agree with all of his conclusions, even though he has collected much useful data; see the reviews of In Sacred Loneliness, linked below.
Reviews of this work
- Louis Midgley, "Faulty Topography (Review of: Mormon America: The Power and the Promise / And the Saints Go Marching On)," FARMS Review of Books 14/1 (2002): 139–192. off-site
- Raymond Takashi Swenson, "Faith without Caricature? (Review of: Mormon America: The Power and the Promise)," FARMS Review of Books 14/1 (2002): 65–77. off-site
Further reading
| Template code | Inserts this reference | Click to edit |
|---|---|---|
| {{To learn more box:responses to: 8: The Mormon Proposition}} | To learn more box:responses to: 8: The Mormon Proposition | edit |
| {{To learn more box:''Under the Banner of Heaven''}} | To learn more about responses to: Under the Banner of Heaven | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: Robert Price}} | To learn more about responses to: Robert Price | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: Ankerberg and Weldon}} | To learn more about responses to: Ankerberg and Weldon | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: Ashamed of Joseph}} | To learn more about responses to: Ashamed of Joseph | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: Beckwith and Moser}} | To learn more about responses to: Beckwith and Moser | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: Beckwith and Parrish}} | To learn more about responses to: Beckwith and Parrish | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: Benjamin Park}} | To learn more about responses to: Benjamin Park | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: Bible versus Joseph Smith}} | To learn more about responses to: Bible versus Joseph Smith | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: Bible versus Book of Mormon}} | To learn more about responses to: Bible versus Book of Mormon | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: ''Big Love''}} | To learn more about responses to: Big Love | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: Brett Metcalfe}} | To learn more about responses to: Brett Metcalfe | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: Bill Maher}} | To learn more about responses to: Bill Maher | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: Bruce H. Porter}} | To learn more about responses to: Bruce H. Porter | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: Carol Wang Shutter}} | To learn more about responses to: Carol Wang Shutter | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: CES Letter}} | To learn more about responses to: CES Letter | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: Charles Larson}} | To learn more about responses to: Charles Larson | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: Christopher Nemelka}} | To learn more about responses to: Christopher Nemelka | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: Colby Townshed}} | To learn more about responses to: Colby Townshed | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: Contender Ministries}} | To learn more about responses to: Contender Ministries | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: Crane and Crane}} | To learn more about responses to: Crane and Crane | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: D. Michael Quinn}} | To learn more about responses to: D. Michael Quinn | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: Dan Vogel}} | To learn more about responses to: Dan Vogel | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: David John Buerger}} | To learn more about responses to: David John Buerger | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: David Persuitte}} | To learn more about responses to: David Persuitte | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: Denver Snuffer}} | To learn more about responses to: Denver Snuffer | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: Dick Bauer}} | To learn more about responses to: Dick Bauer | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: Duwayne R Anderson}} | To learn more about responses to: Duwayne R Anderson | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: Earl Wunderli}} | To learn more about responses to: Earl Wunderli | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: Ed Decker}} | To learn more about responses to: Ed Decker | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: Erikson and Giesler}} | To learn more about responses to: Erikson and Giesler | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: Ernest Taves}} | To learn more about responses to: Ernest Taves | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: Fawn Brodie}} | To learn more about responses to: Fawn Brodie | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: George D Smith}} | To learn more about responses to: George D Smith | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: Grant Palmer}} | To learn more about responses to: Grant Palmer | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: Hank Hanegraaff}} | To learn more about responses to: Hank Hanegraaff | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: Hurlbut-Howe}} | To learn more about responses to: Hurlbut-Howe | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: James Brooke}} | To learn more about responses to: James Brooke | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: James Spencer}} | To learn more about responses to: James Spencer | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: James White}} | To learn more about responses to: James White | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: Jerald and Sandra Tanner}} | To learn more about responses to: Jerald and Sandra Tanner | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: Jesus Christ-Joseph Smith or Search for the Truth DVD}} | To learn more about responses to: Jesus Christ-Joseph Smith or Search for the Truth DVD | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: John Dehlin}} | To learn more about responses to: John Dehlin | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: Jonathan Neville}} | To learn more about responses to: Jonathan Neville | edit |
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| {{To learn more box:responses to: Laura King Newell and Valeen Tippetts Avery}} | To learn more about responses to: Laura King Newell and Valeen Tippetts Avery | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: Loftes Tryk aka Lofte Payne}} | To learn more about responses to: Loftes Tryk aka Lofte Payne | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: Luke WIlson}} | To learn more about responses to: Luke WIlson | edit |
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| {{To learn more box:responses to: Martha Beck}} | To learn more about responses to: Martha Beck | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: Mcgregor Ministries}} | To learn more about responses to: Mcgregor Ministries | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: McKeever and Johnson}} | To learn more about responses to: McKeever and Johnson | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: New Approaches}} | To learn more about responses to: New Approaches to the Book of Mormon | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: Richard Abanes}} | To learn more about responses to: Richard Abanes | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: Richard Van Wagoner}} | To learn more about responses to: Richard Van Wagoner | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: Richard and Joan Ostling}} | To learn more about responses to: Richard and Joan Ostling | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: Rick Grunger}} | To learn more about responses to: Rick Grunger | edit |
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| {{To learn more box:responses to: Rod Meldrum}} | To learn more about responses to: Rod Meldrum | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: Roger I Anderson}} | To learn more about responses to: Roger I Anderson | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: Ronald V. Huggins}} | To learn more about responses to: Ronald V. Huggins | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: Sally Denton}} | To learn more about responses to: Sally Denton | edit |
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| {{To learn more box:responses to: Thomas Murphy}} | To learn more about responses to: Thomas Murphy | edit |
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| {{To learn more box:responses to: Vernal Holley}} | To learn more about responses to: Vernal Holley | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: Walter Martin}} | To learn more about responses to: Walter Martin | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: Wesley Walters}} | To learn more about responses to: Wesley Walters | edit |
| {{To learn more box:responses to: Will Bagley}} | To learn more about responses to: Will Bagley | edit |