Assessing the Mormon Faith

I work with people from many different religions, and have read books about all of these religions from the Christian perspective. I have also read books about Christianity from the perspective of these other religions.

My usual impression of these books–whether written by Christians about another religion, or written about Christians from the perspective of another religions–is that they are harsh, overly critical, and tend to unfairly treat and quote the religion that is being critiqued.

So it was with a sense of relief and surprise that I recently read The Mormon Faith: A Theological Assessment by William W. Wells. Here is why I appreciated this book:

First, of all, it is not a long book. Only 75 pages. William Wells knew what he wanted to say, and he said it.

Second, the book is written with truth AND love. William shows that while Christians can — and must! — point out the differences between Christianity and Mormonism, we can do so with love. This book was written with love and grace, which is so rare in books of this kind.

Third, William zeroed in on the main issues between Mormonism and Christianity. So many other books focus on all the peripheral issues like baptism for the dead, the tripartite view of heaven, and the possibility of eternal marriages, but spend little time focusing on the main issues which separate Mormonism from Christianity.

What issues? The nature of God, the person of Jesus Christ, and how a person receives eternal life. These are the main issues that separate Mormonism from Christianity, and which keeps Mormons from falling beneath the “Christian” umbrella. Wells provides a helpful and loving introduction to these issues, and provides support from the original documents of the Mormons to support what he says.

When it comes to a good introduction to the beliefs of Mormons and how thy differ from Christians, I highly recommend The Mormon Faith: A Theological Assessment by William W. Wells.

FTC Disclosure: I was sent a free copy of this book from the author for review on this website.