Are Mormons Christians?

And the House on the Sand Went … CRASH!

Dr. Simon Southerton, PH.D., excommunicated from the Mormon Church for intellectual honesty! (http://www.exmormon.org/mormon/mormon406.htm --Southerton Church Court Announced.): “An Australian who wrote a book saying DNA evidence contradicts ancestral claims of Mormon belief faces disciplinary action that could get him excommunicated from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Simon Southerton’s book, Losing a Lost Tribe: Native Americans, DNA and the Mormon Church, was published a year ago by Salt Lake-based Signature Books, a publishing house for Western and Mormon studies. It used established DNA data to refute Book of Mormon teachings that ancient Americans inhabitants were descendants of Israelite patriarch Lehi.”

In another article posted on the same website, www.exmormon.org/mormon/mormon412.htm, Southerton comments on his Church court. Dr. Southerton explains that he was excommunicated for “having an inappropriate relationship with a woman.” Dr. Southerton openly admitted his sin, and went on to say that he and his wife are working things out and have been back together for 8 months. He then accused the court of using this lesser charge of adultery as a smoke screen for the real reason: his book, Losing a Lost Tribe: Native Americans, DNA and the Mormon Church, and his apostasy. The Stake president denied this.

Dr. Southerton was further stunned when a member of the council assured him that an alleged “inappropriate relationship” was more important than apostasy. The reason he was stunned was: as a former Bishop in the Mormon Church, he knew apostasy is one of the few sins a Mormon can commit that leads to ‘Outer Darkness’ (the Mormon equivalent to hell). He knew that the LDS General Handbook of Instructions states a council may be held for adultery, and must be held for apostasy!

Further, Dr. Southerton stood before them; repentant of his sin of adultery; working with his wife to restore their marriage; yet unashamed of his apostasy! Why would the Mormon Church wish to excommunicate Dr. Southerton on the lesser charge of adultery instead of the greater charge of apostasy? Simple…the adultery charge allows them to discredit a great intellectual mind while avoiding the hard-hitting evidence in his book which shakes the foundations of the Book of Mormon.

Let us now examine the evidence: The Book of Mormon teaches that Native American Indians are direct descendents of Jacob, or are of Hebrew origin. The story began around 600 BC when Lehi, a descendent of Joseph (I Nephi 5:14), flees Jerusalem. Later Nephi, the youngest son leads his rebellious brothers to the Americas in 589 BC (I Nephi 17-18).

Later, in II Nephi 5, the older brother of Nephi, Laman, rebels and they split into two great nations – the Nephites are blessed by God and have fair skin; the Lamanites are cursed by God and are given dark skin. These two nations covered the whole of the Americas (Helaman 3:8; Mormon 1:7).

The Book of Mormon records many battles fought between these two great nations until 326 AD, when the Nephites are destroyed by the Lamanites and Moroni is the only Nephite survivor. He then buries the golden plates that record the history of the Nephites and the Lamanites. These are the same gold plates that later the angel Moroni reveals to the young Joseph Smith.
Now the problem lies in that when Joseph Smith wrote the Book of Mormon which he described on the cover-page to the Book of Mormon as: “Wherefore, it is an abridgement of the record of the people of Nephi, and also of the Lamanites – written to the Lamanites, who are a remnant of the house of Israel.” He had no idea that in less than two-hundred years, science and DNA would be able to prove that the American Indians are descendents of northern Asia and Siberia, not Israel as the Book of Mormon claims.

What are the Mormon leaders concerned about? If the Native Americans are not descendents of Joseph and of Hebrew origin, the whole Book of Mormon is called into question, which in turn calls Joseph Smith into question as a prophet, which calls the whole church and all of its teaching into question! What then is the origin of the Book of Mormon? Who was Joseph Smith?

This reminds me of a Bible story I learned as a kid. “Therefore, whosoever heareth these sayings of Mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: And the rain descended and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock. And every one that heareth these sayings of Mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.” (Matthew 7:24-27)

In short, the Mormon Church is built on sand. Modern DNA evidence is the storm that may cause their house to come down. Biblical Christianity is built on the solid rock which is Jesus Christ! “He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am? And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-jona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but My Father which is in heaven. And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” (Matthew 16:15-18)

The rock was Peter’s answer! “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

Christ also warned us there would be false prophets, “And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many.” (Matthew 24:11)

According to Deuteronomy 18:20-22, “But the prophet, which shall presume to speak a word in My name, which I have not commanded him to speak, or that shall speak in the name of other gods, even that prophet shall die. And if thou say in thine heart, How shall we know the word which the Lord hath not spoken? When a prophet speaketh in the name of the Lord, if the thing follow not, nor come to pass, that is the thing which the Lord hath not spoken, but the prophet hath spoken it presumptuously: thou shalt not be afraid of him.”

Joseph Smith was a false prophet, for if he missed the origins of the Book of Mormon, then the whole of Mormonism crumbles.

Witnessing point:

Ask your Mormon friends if they have heard anything about these DNA studies. Invite them over to watch a videotape: DNA vs. The Book of Mormon, a production of Living Hope Ministries. (You can order a copy of this video at www.mormonchallenge.com; then simply teach them from God’s Word about the true Messiah and His free salvation.

Sources used in the development of this article:

* DNA vs. The Book of Mormon, Living Hope Ministries, Brigham City, UT ©2003.

* Websites: www.mormonchallenge.com, www.exmormon.org, and www.USAToday.com – DNA Research and Mormon Scholars Changing Basic Beliefs, article posted 7/26/2004.

Douglas K. Hollen attends Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and takes the Gospel of Christ to Mormons in an effort to bring them to Christ. He is available to speak at your church or small Bible study group about Mormonism by contacting him at (314) 691-5418.