Question:

I’m a sophomore in a university.  I’m part of a Christian fraternity on campus and my little is a Mormon.  I’ve been doing as much research as possible to learn about Mormonism and to study the differences between Mormonism and Christianity, but I can’t seem to find a good way to effectively express to my little how Mormonism isn’t Christianity.  I don’t know which arguments to use, what not to use, how to use them and so on.  I am awaiting a copy of your book currently which from what I’ve been told is a great resource in itself though I would be extremely grateful if you could give me some useful tips you think might work for this specific situation. Thank you.

Answer:

Good question.  My best suggestion is to get my book.  In the meantime, I do have a couple of basic suggestions.   First of all, do not attack Joseph Smith or Mormonism directly at this point.  This will have the effect of shutting down the discussions.  This person believes he/she is a Christian.  I would not challenge that assumption directly, but would try to find common ground.   In other words, he/she has been taught that only he/she is a Christian and you are not.   Most supposed Christians in America are very shallow or outright hypocritical.   I assume that you are not!!!  However, your friend has been carefully trained to assume that you certainly are not even marginally a Christian.  Mormons use the lukewarmness of the mass of Christianity as a tool to manipulate the thinking of its members so that they believe they are the only saved people.  So, I would talk about your personal convictions, your personal relationship with God, about how you share your faith and about your prayer life, your knowledge of the Bible and so forth.  The idea is to break down your Mormon friend’s assumption that you cannot possibly be a true believer in Jesus Christ—you should chip away at his/her presuppositions so that you can lay the groundwork for later discussions you will have after you get a copy of my book and have some basis for discussion the Mormon faith and the history of the Mormon Church.  I would discuss the Bible and specific verses as if you were speaking to a believer who also loves the Bible.  This finding of “common ground” is a basic principle in sharing your faith with anyone, but is especially important in sharing with Mormons.

John Oakes