Jo V. (jovan) reviewed on 6/25/2009 + 301 more book reviews

Helpful Score: 1

I grew up in Southern Idaho--Mormon country--so I know well much of the landscape covered in this book. Most of the Mormons I know are decent, honest people, but don't kid yourself. As a non-Mormon, if you open a 7/11 in a predominantly Mormon town, you will go broke. Run for a public office against a Mormon candidate and you will lose. The Mormon church dictates to its members with a heavy hand. They take care of their own. Consequently, you won't see any good Mormons on welfare, so it's a mixed bag. In truth, I have no argument with individual Mormons, but with the church as a whole, I have a lot of problems, starting with the hypocrisy of their leaders.

For the person who said this was a harsh look at their history, well, it's a harsh history. Like any religion, they've suppressed things that make them look bad. The early revelations leave a door open for those who are prone to fanaticism to embrace polygamy, which I find in my readings of both the Mormons and the Muslims that this practice creates horrible misery.

That the church allows no question of their authority, no ability to follow your own conscience, is one of the big points, in my mind, that makes them a cult, rather than a religion. That they always look to the book of Mormon for answers before they look to the bible is also a problem I've long had. Since when would the writings of a prophet be a better guide than the words of the one you believe to be God?

One of the things about the edition I read is that the author includes the LDS church's criticism of this book in the back as well as his response, point by point. I found that extremely interesting.

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