1. What is the Doctrine of the Book of Mormon?
a. You cannot claim to be the only true church (2 Nephi 28:3).
b. The Dark Ages were not a result of “priesthood” being taken from the earth. Lack of faith IN THE NAME OF JESUS CHRIST is the cause of a lack of angels, miracles, and power of the Holy Ghost. (Moroni 7:33-38)
c. The definition of “Church” was different. It was defined as anyone who believed in Jesus Christ (Mosiah 26:21-22) or who was baptized in his name (3 Nephi 26:21).
d. Requirements for salvation were simple: confess Christ, repent if you needed to, and be baptized for the remission of sins. The Book of Mormon did not say anything else was required for salvation (3 Nephi 11:33).
e. Church order was based upon elders, priest, and teachers. There were also disciples and prophets, but they were not offices in the church.
f. Meetings were conducted by the Holy Spirit, therefore each meeting was different.
g. Baptisms were performed by a teacher, priest, or elder and were strictly forbidden to children or those who needed no repentance.
h. Confirmation was not mentioned, therefore it was not a requirement of salvation.
i. The “gift” of the Holy Ghost is available to all, thus it is referred to in the Book of Mormon as a “gift.” On occasion, the Holy Ghost and not the gift of it (Which is a free offering to all.) was bestowed on others, the bestower being full of the Holy Spirit first, was able to impart of it to others as did Saul, Peter, and Jesus. At other times it was poured out on groups like on the day of Pentecost, or to individuals straight from God.
j. The Book of Mormon does not say that the Holy Ghost is a person, but rather is a power, and there are many fruits and gifts of the Holy Spirit including speaking with the tongue of angels, interpreting languages, healing, prophesying, bearing one another’s burdens, etc. The modern day phenomenon of being “slain in the Spirit” is also mentioned in the Book of Mormon more than once (Alma 18:42, 19:8, 22:18; Jacob 7:21).
k. The Godhead is made up of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Jesus himself is often referred to directly as God and not always as the Son of God, therefore the Book of Mormon leaves room for interpretation as to the true nature of the Godhead. Jesus was seen as a pre-mortal spirit being by one prophet during Old Testament times, and the Book of Mormon is clear that Jesus was born of a virgin, died, rose again and is in heaven as a resurrected being.
l. Other than a prophet seeing the spirit of the pre-mortal Jesus, there is no further information on the nature of a “pre-mortal existence” for God’s other children.
m. The Book of Mormon is clear that we are to pray to God in the name of Jesus, however Jesus did allow the people to pray directly to him on one occasion (3 Nephi 19:18, 26).
2. What is Not Book of Mormon Doctrine?
Mormon Church doctrine or beliefs not supported by the Book of Mormon include: plurality of Gods, progression of God, mother in heaven, baptisms for the dead, eternal marriage, temple endowments, apostles, polygamy (not tied to salvation), pre-existence, priesthood authority, high priest after Jesus, temple building after Jesus, word of wisdom, a church structure of prophets, apostles, patriarchs, seventy, or deacons.
3. What is the Intent & Purpose of the Book of Mormon?
a. It is a Second Witness of Jesus as the Messiah, his virgin birth and resurrection from the dead. God knew His people would reject the coming of the Messiah, so He prepared a Second Witness for them, which is currently being overlooked due to its association with the Mormon Church.
b. A spiritual “Book of Instruction” for the inhabitants of America.
c. A history of God’s dealings and promises to the inhabitants of Western New York which was the center of the Promised Land.
d. Restores Biblical instructions left out of the Bible – the how-to’s of Baptism and Communion.
e. Details the “Work of the Father” in these last days.
4. What is Not the Intent or Purpose of the Book of Mormon?
a. Start a new religion.
b. Further divide the Christian people.
c. Endorse doctrine not in it.
5. What is Unique About the Book of Mormon?
a. It describes the history of a remnant of the House of Jacob, the tribe of Joseph.
b. It contains visions of the past and future, and of the Savior by numerous prophets.
c. It has faith promoting teachings, prophecies, and doctrine.
d. It has inspiring dreams and interpretations.
e. It contains profound preaching not found anywhere else.
f. It gives instructions specific to the United States of America.
g. It was written in 16th century English, not 19th.
6. What is Not Unique About the Book of Mormon?
a. It adds no new doctrine to the Bible.
b. It is not the only sacred record to be hidden and later found.
c. It is not the only thing made out of gold to be taken into heaven.
d. It was produced in a way previously found in the Bible.
7. What is Confusing About the Book of Mormon?
a. People assume that the doctrine in the Mormon Church was derived from it.
b. It contains nothing uniquely found in the Mormon Church.
c. Old theories long ago dispelled are still being perpetuated as factual such as Solomon Spalding’s manuscript and The View of the Hebrews by Ethan Smith.
d. The long standing Mormon Church claim that it is a history of the inhabitants of North and South America, and the American Indians descended from Lehi. [The Book of Mormon is clear on its geography, that all its events occurred in a small area in Western New York, that they were a sub-group of a much larger culture, that the Book of Mormon people were purposely wiped out, and any traces of them removed.]
e. Use of the word “plates” in describing the record has garnered visions of a heavy stack of stiff metal plates thicker than tin. More accurate statements use the word “leaves” to describe the sheets which were as pliable as “thick paper” and you could rustle them with a finger like the pages of a book.
f. Use of the word “translate” has attributed powers to Joseph he did not have, and the historical record states clearly that he saw the English, then dictated it one word or sentence at a time. It is now known that the English is of 16th century origin, not 19th.
8. What is Not Confusing About the Book of Mormon?
a. The gospel it contains is simple, not complicated.
b. The gospel it contains is the “full” or complete gospel of Jesus Christ.
c. It adds no new doctrine to the Bible nor does it need any additional doctrine to be added to it.
d. It is a confirming message from God that what the Bible says about Jesus, his virgin birth, death and resurrection ARE TRUE!
e. It restores the missing instructions on baptism and communion.
f. It can unify an isolated Mormon Church with the body of Christ if followed.
g. It can convert Muslims and Jews by providing for them a Second Witness that what the New Testament says is true.
9. What Should People Know About It?
a. It belongs to the world and not a particular denomination.
b. It is the Second Witness of Christ that God said He would provide.
c. Aside from everything else, it contains powerful preaching on Jesus Christ not found anywhere else.
10. What Do You Hope a Denomination-free Book of Mormon Will Do?
a. Provide a Book of Mormon that anyone can use unattached from a denomination.
b. Provide a viable Second Witness for Christ that Christians can use to proselytize to the Muslim and Jew.
11. If Joseph Smith or Brigham Young Were Alive Today What Would They Do With It?
a. We believe they would work to make it available to the public free of any denomination like the Bible is, and stop using it to do anything more than to convert people to Christ.
12. What Views Do You Have That Are Different From Other Book of Mormon Believers?
a. We do not believe it to be a history of the American Indians.
b. We do not believe its geography to be centered in Mesoamerica.
c. We do not believe Joseph used any of his own words to dictate it. Nor do we believe he had the ability to translate. We believe he dictated it by peering into another dimension and reading the English from there.
13. How Do You Explain the Lack of Archaeological Evidence for the Book of Mormon?
a. Simple, no one has looked in the right place.
b. Assumptions of what they should find are incorrect. They were purposely destroyed and all evidences of them removed. (See www.bookofmormongeography.org for details.)
14. How Do You Explain the Lack of DNA Evidence Linking Native Americans and Jews?
a. We believe The Book of Mormon peoples were nothing more than a subset of a much larger, pre-existing population. When their bloodline died out or was exterminated, any chance of making a DNA connection was lost.
b. Scientist have already linked other stands of DNA to the old world, which proves nothing more than that there were visitors coming here from all over the world. DNA will neither prove nor disprove the value of the Book of Mormon. If the preaching of the Book of Mormon does not astound you, that a young man who never preached a word wrote, then you would be accepting a holy record for all of the wrong reasons.
15. Do You Believe External Evidences Will Ever Be Found to Support the Book of Mormon?
a. Yes we do, both by newly discovered ancient writings and by newly discovered archaeological ruins in Western New York. We already have an authentic Nephite archeological site located and will only reveal its location when b. has been achieved and a proper archaeological team assembled.
b. We believe God does not want confirming evidence to be brought forth until after the Book has been publicly separated from the Mormon church, or from any church.
16. If As You Hope All Christian Denominations Cling to the Book of Mormon, What Difference Will That Make?
a. Of course we do not ever see it replacing the Bible in church, but we do see it being used on occasion to confirm the birth, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
17. If the General Body of Believers Were to Conform to the Book of Mormon, What Affect Do You Believe That Would Have On Society?
a. We believe the only reason the world has not submitted to the Lordship of Jesus Christ is because Christians by and large are divided. Jesus said if you are not one you are not mine. Christianity is the largest religion on earth and has been for some time. Still, the world we live in is impoverished, and as stewards over the earth, we are missing important opportunities to come together and truly make a difference.
b. The Book of Mormon says that once Christians believe in the Book of Mormon, so too will the Jews; and once the Jews believe, all faiths upon the earth will follow suit, until the whole earth has submitted to the Lordship of Jesus Christ.
18. Does the Book of Mormon Describe the Coming Millennium of Peace?
a. Several prophets were aware of the writings of Isaiah and often times quoted his record in this regard. One prophet Nephi, saw all things including the things of John the Revelator. Another prophet Ether saw three New Jerusalem’s. One to be built upon the Promised Land of America, the one in Jerusalem to be rebuilt, and a third one coming down from above as John described.
19. Do You Believe That America is Already the New Jerusalem or Will Some Group Build One in Independence Missouri?
a. We do believe the government of the United States of America, with its inspired constitution at its core, IS the New Jerusalem, and that it fulfills every prophecy foretold. What Mormons fail to realize is that the New Jerusalem would be built upon “The Promised Land” of the Book of Mormon, which they on all accounts believe is somewhere near Mexico. Therefore, they should be looking forward to building, moving, and living in a New Jerusalem in Mexico not Independence, Missouri.
b. Benjamin Franklin’s Albany Plan of Union in Albany, New York, was the forerunner to our Constitution, and was a joint effort by the Colonists and the Iroquois Nation – the current inhabitants of The Promised Land, thus fulfilling all Book of Mormon prophecies concerning a New Jerusalem to be built jointly by the Gentiles and the Lamanites. Indian treaties still exist between the two nations.
For more details see The Geography Of
20. With America Under Threat By Non-Christian Nations, How Important Do You Feel This Information Is?
a. We believe the Bible to be the word of God and we believe the Book of Mormon substantiates it, that Jesus is the Christ, the very Son of God, that he died and rose again the third day and now lives, that he is the Savior appointed by God for all of mankind, and no one can approach the throne of God unless they respect His choice. All Christians should therefore support this work and cling to this book – the Handbook for the Promised Land – the New Jerusalem, the tool by which God would subdue all nations for the Second Coming of our Lord, the rightful ruler of all.
b. To this end we pledge our support and encourage all Book of Mormon believers to study these materials and take them back to their own congregations and use them to make a difference where they are.
21. Is Book of Mormon Christian Having an Impact on the Mormon Church?
Yes. They changed their Gospel Principles manual to be more in line with the teachings of the Book of Mormon and less like the teachings of Joseph Smith.
22. Is Book of Mormon Christian Justified In Its Evolved Position?
Yes. In the words of B.H. Roberts:
And let me here say a word in relation to new discoveries in our knowledge of the Book of Mormon, and for matter of that in relation to all subjects connected with the work of the Lord in the earth. We need not follow our researches in any spirit of fear and trembling. We desire only to ascertain the truth; nothing but the truth will endure; and the ascertainment of the truth and the proclamation of the truth in any given case, or upon any subject, will do no harm to the work of the Lord which is itself truth.
Nor need we be surprised if now and then we find our predecessors, many of whom bear honored names and deserve our respect and gratitude for what they achieved in making clear the truth, as they conceived it to be – we need not be surprised if we sometimes find them mistaken in their conceptions and deductions; just as the generations who succeed us in unfolding in a larger way some of the yet unlearned truths of the Gospel, will find that we have had some misconceptions and made some wrong deductions in our day and time.
The book of knowledge is never a sealed book. It is never “completed and forever closed;” rather it is an eternally open book, in which one may go on constantly discovering new truths and modifying our knowledge of old ones.
The generation which preceded us did not exhaust by their knowledge all the truth, so that nothing was left for us in its unfolding; no, not even in respect of the Book of Mormon; any more than we shall exhaust all discovery in relation to that book and leave nothing for the generation following us to develop. All which is submitted, especially to the membership of the Church, that they may be prepared to find and receive new truths both in the Book of Mormon itself and about it; and that they may also rejoice in the fact that knowledge of truth is inexhaustible, and will forever go on developing. (B. H. Roberts, New Witnesses for God, 3 vols. [Salt Lake City: Deseret News, 1909], 3: 503 – 504.)