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9781568582832

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"""A piercing historical overview of Mormonism's teachings and development."""

Thought the Mormons were The Osmonds, the Mormon Tabernacle Choir and once-rife polygamy? Think again, is the message of Richard Abanes's book on the Mormons, or as they prefer to be known the Latter Day Saints. His viewpoint is as balanced as is possible, his previous books on the occult and new religious movements adding credibility to his studies. But the portrait he paints is not a flattering one. The book is chronological, beginning with the self-styled 'prophet' Joseph Smith and his successor Brigham Young, who had 55 wives and a university named after him. Smith's abilities as a 'seer' were embarrassingly exposed when his 'Book of Abraham' was proven to be a mixture of two Egyptian works, the Book of Breathing and the Book of the Dead. Polygamy was central to the sect from the beginning; now played down by missionaries in Europe, it is nevertheless a fundamental part of the religion. There are to date over 60,000 missionaries actively spreading the word on a global scale. However, the issue of racial supremacy soon becomes evident, despite the pseudo-religious veneer cleverly coating reality. Social contact with black people is frowned upon; not one drop of Negro blood can taint that of a Mormon priest, a belief published as late as 1978. Abanes gives the example of a thriving Nigerian congregation that missionaries attempted to visit - only to be refused entry to the country because of their racist views. Abanes questions whether the Mormons are Christian; after all they are instructed not to pray to Jesus, they believe God was once a man (and that they will become gods eventually). He explores the view that they are a cult and concludes they are, in that they increasingly use Christian-sounding terminology to seek credibility, while perpetuating racist and bigoted beliefs. The faith has not been a stranger to creating conflict in other ways; the decision to 'baptise' thousands of dead people by proxy has included the likes of Adolf Hitler, Napoleon, and William Shakespeare. The inclusion of Anne Frank, along with thousands of Jews whose names were taken from concentration camp lists, has not won the Mormons many friends. This is a remarkable and eye-opening book, highly recommended whether the reader simply has a slight interest in the subject or wants to research in depth the cult that is Mormon. (Kirkus UK)

A piercing historical overview of Mormonism's teachings and development.

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Bestselling author Richard Abanes is a nationally known religion journalist who has authored sixteen books, including The Truth Behind the Da Vinci Code and Harry Potter and the Bible. Richard has also worked as a professional singer, dancer, and actor on Broadway and in television/films, and he specializes in the area of pop culture and the entertainment industry.

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