Behind the Mask of Mormonism

Rating:
Summary: Two of our most brilliant minds toiling in anonymity...
Review: Do it! I dare you. Click on the name of this books authors and see how many they've written. Isn't it absolutely amazing? These two men in their short lives (any life would be too short) have amassed an immense amount of knowledge on: UFO's, the Occult, Catholicism, Hinduism, Mormonism, Jehovah's Witnesses, New Ageism, Holistic Medicine, the Trinity, Evolution, Charles Darwin, Angels, Homosexuality, Halloween (I don't wanna know), blah, blah, blah...And me, in my puny pathetic life laboring diligently in the vineyard to understand one small part of one branch of engineering. Where's a Nobel Prize when you need it? Do the nation's governors know about these guys? Why, they could replace an entire university faculty!

Rating:
Summary: Doesn't deserve any stars.
Review: I believe I should first state my religious belief and association with Mormon(ism). I am a Protestant who has studied Mormonism for quite a long time. I have read so many book like this one. Since I have read so many similar titles, I have become very selective in which books I like. This book is essentially a cookie cutter book that has little original information. Similar titles include:

The Mormon Illusion Unmasking Mormonism Mormonism Answered Verse By Verse How To Answer A Mormon

The Facts On The Mormon Church Letters To A Mormon Elder (better then the rest but...)

All of which I have read. They are all the same and they all present the same old, unscholarly arguments (excluding LTAME). There are enough books out like this one, I don't understand why the authors had to publish this book. My only assumption is for money, but I can't be sure. It's time to stop publishing these tired arguments (see FARMS and FAIR) and actually [put out scholarly books that deal with the early church fathers, that deal with extensive biblical interpretation, that deal with arguments put out by FARMS.

Some people give books like this one 5 stars. I used to agree and 6 months ago I probably would give it the best rating, but from studying extensively LDS apologetics, these books are tired, outdated, and essentially horrible.

I don't get what's up with the Ankerberg/Weldon series anyway. They aren't experts in any of the subjects they publish, but they have like (what?) 200 titles out? I read their evolution book which was just as bad as this one. Neither of them have degrees in biology, so WHAT ARE THEY DOING WRITING A BOOK ABOUT SOMETHING THEY AREN'T EXPERTS IN? But apparently Ankerberg has studied evolution "extensively" so we are supposed to buy his book? In the same sense, that logic applies to this book. It simply isn't put out by experts in Mormonism, and doesn't deserve a purchase. While Ankerberg is an expert in philosophy, I'm interested in what he writes in that subject, he is simply out of his league trying to tackle Mormonism.

Rating:
Summary: Dime a Dozen; Cookie Cutter (and I'm not LDS)
Review: I believe I should first state my religious belief and association with Mormon(ism). I am a Protestant who has studied Mormonism for quite a long time. I have read so many book like this one. Since I have read so many similar titles, I have become very selective in which books I like. This book is essentially a cookie cutter book that has little original information. Similar titles include:

The Mormon Illusion Unmasking Mormonism Mormonism Answered Verse By Verse How To Answer A Mormon

The Facts On The Mormon Church Letters To A Mormon Elder (better then the rest but...)

All of which I have read. They are all the same and they all present the same old, unscholarly arguments (excluding LTAME). There are enough books out like this one, I don't understand why the authors had to publish this book. My only assumption is for money, but I can't be sure. It's time to stop publishing these tired arguments (see FARMS and FAIR) and actually [put out scholarly books that deal with the early church fathers, that deal with extensive biblical interpretation, that deal with arguments put out by FARMS.

Some people give books like this one 5 stars. I used to agree and 6 months ago I probably would give it the best rating, but from studying extensively LDS apologetics, these books are tired, outdated, and essentially horrible.

I don't get what's up with the Ankerberg/Weldon series anyway. They aren't experts in any of the subjects they publish, but they have like (what?) 200 titles out? I read their evolution book which was just as bad as this one. Neither of them have degrees in biology, so WHAT ARE THEY DOING WRITING A BOOK ABOUT SOMETHING THEY AREN'T EXPERTS IN? But apparently Ankerberg has studied evolution "extensively" so we are supposed to buy his book? In the same sense, that logic applies to this book. It simply isn't put out by experts in Mormonism, and doesn't deserve a purchase. While Ankerberg is an expert in philosophy, I'm interested in what he writes in that subject, he is simply out of his league trying to tackle Mormonism.

Rating:
Summary: More Anti-Mormon....!
Review: One of the more definitive descriptions of the history and origins of the Mormon cult is offered in this book, including some of the more unfortunate mistakes that the authors of the Book of Mormon made when they pieced together their addendum to the Bible.

One of the aspects about the Mormon cult that I felt could have been addressed in more detail is the fact that the BoM claims that elephants lived in North America at the time the cult's creators, Josephn Smith and the anonymous individuals who helped him, claimed Jesus Christ lived in North America. They're wrong. Mammoths lived in North America, but elephants did not. The creators of the cult just didn't know that the two animals are different species. That fact alone proves that the book isn't inspired by God, Jesus, a Holy Ghost, or a "heavenly father" of any kind.

Another aspect of the Book of Mormon which I felt this book could have discussed in greater detail is the mistaken notion that steel existed at the time the authors of the BoM claimed it did. While there is no archeological or anthropological evidence for such a notion, the manufacture of steel requires a temprature that just wasn't possible at the time the authors of the BoM claim in their book.

The whole cult is predicated around a book that is stuffed full of ignorant notions that are in any event honest; the authors just didn't know. And I thought this book should cover these failing in greater detail.

Rating:
Summary: Good review of Mormonism, raises many important concerns.
Review: This book brings many deceptions and Mormon doctrine into the light. Think for yourself, read the book. "The church and the kingdom of God has no fear of the truth." E.T.Benson

Rating:
Summary: Doesn't deserve any stars.
Review: This book is not definitive and is not well researched. It laces together decades old myths, and does nothing to try to substantiate, one way or another, the reality behind what they are saying. These guys make money writing this stuff! It relies on testimony of those already discredited, gossip, and other less than reliable sources. Want to read a good review of this book? Check out: Peterson Daniel C., ed. FARMS Review of Books. 9 vols. Provo, Utah: Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies (FARMS), 1989-1997. Granted, the review is by an author who is a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, but I think you'll find the review based on facts. You'll also find it a bit entertaining.

Rating:
Summary: Good for source material and that's about it
Review: You may get your money's worth if you use this one critically. It contains plenty of original quotes from ormon sources that speak for themselves, and that's the ONLY reason this book gets two stars. But there is little in the way of depth of research beyond primary LDS material. And then there is something that would make a smaller book completely unusable: The veneer of sensationalism. Perhaps LDS ceremonies are derived from occult practices, perhaps not; but if they are, Ankerberg and Weldon could have come up with much more rational ways to say so. Two evangelical scholars, Mosser and Owen, years ago decried the inadequacies of counter-Mormon apologetics and rightly castigated these authors for producing too much of a diatribe and not enough of substance in their work; I would not recommend this book at all were it not for the wealth of original source material it references. I use it while holding my nose.