Mormons-Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints

By

Elizabeth Abouelkheir 

The success of the Mormon church in America has always perplexed me.  I know some of the history of the church like how its founder Joseph Smith in 1820 “received” his revelation from seer stones (which by the way were used in the occult practice of divining treasure that he and his dad practiced) and a dead Indian spirit named “Moroni” and how they teach from the Book of Mormon and use the Bible as an aside reference. There are three levels of heaven and essentially everyone gets to go. Jesus is divine but it is Joseph Smith who has the power to certify whether an individual makes it to the top tier of heaven which is where God dwells.  My question is how could such a rationalistic society such as ours accept such teaching in light of all the available resources to test the veracity of the claims.  The answer lies both in the way the Mormon church evangelizes and in human nature. 

 

To say that Mormons are on a mission is an understatement.  They strategically advertise with a strong message of Christian values and show the joy, peace and love that a family will experience by following the teachings of Jesus Christ as contained in the Book of Mormon.  We’ve all seen the commercials.  I love them-I just wish they were truly about Christ. These messages (both TV. and radio) reach an audience of 357.4 million people a year.  The commercials are run before an area is canvassed by missionaries (a pair of 18-20 year old men on bikes wearing black suits with white shirts and nametags).  At the end of the commercials is usually an 800 number.  Upon calling, an inquirer is sent a free copy of the Book of Mormon and now also a Bible but along with it is an explanation of how the Bible has been so misinterpreted that it can no longer be considered a reliable source.  The Book of Mormon, on the other hand is the pure word of God.

 

Outside the US, their advertising is not focused on family values but is directed toward the needs of that particular society i.e. health care or justice.  In South America, Brigham Young University (Mormon university) basketball games were broadcast for free for 5 years.  When the missionaries were finally sent in they were told to target homes with antennas.  Their “door opener” was a conversation about the game. 

 

Once in the homes, on their first visit, they discuss God in conservative terms and conceal questionable beliefs.  The majority of their quotes come from the Bible with a few from the Book of Mormon that are in line with a more mainstream Christian view.  One strategy used is evaluating truth as a “good feeling.”  They ask numerous times throughout the presentation do you feel good about what you heard so far.  Most people respond affirmatively.  The missionaries then explain that these feelings come from the Holy Ghost therefore God must be confirming the truth.  (Since that is the case, there really is no need to check it out for yourself.)  Even when prospective believers are told about Joseph Smith, the “prophet”, they are told to test the truth of their claim but they are not told how to evaluate a prophet using Biblical criteria. Instead they are told to pray until they come up with another good feeling. 

So far, the appeal has been emotional.  But that makes sense, as humans, unless otherwise trained, our immediate responses are emotional.  To think through something requires effort and most of us choose the path of least resistance.  Madison Avenue (advertising moguls) understands this perfectly- people don’t buy what they need, they buy what they want (or have been persuaded they want). 

 

Speaking of persuasion, I came upon a great article written by a former Mormon, Bob McCue. In it, he discusses 6 ways that psychologists have identified that are used by those most adept at persuasion to get what they want.  The author goes on to show how the Mormon church (and contends all long-lived organizations) masterfully applies them. 

  1. Reciprocity- if I give you something you are more apt to do what I want you to do.  Free pamphlets, Books of Mormon, Bibles etc.  In addition, in the process of choosing, prospects are “bombarded with love” and are shown what inclusion in the group could look like. 
  2. Consistency- if I can be persuaded to commit to something I will behave consistent with that commitment.  * This one is applied to those having chosen Mormonism.  They are expected to “bear a testimony”.  This is confessing the conviction that the Mormon church is God’s one true church on earth and a multitude of other ideas that go along with that concept.  For those who do not yet have a testimony, they are taught to bear one (ie- speak, act, live as if it were true until it becomes true to you).  To help them do this, they are put on the mission field where they are publicly and repeatedly bearing the testimony.  Because there is so much stress that they must endure and limited reward, they figure out ways to truly believe what they are saying to calm down any dissonance that may be occurring due to inconsistencies with the commitment.  (This is important because huge personal investments are made as a result and continued commitment is necessary and the cycle continues and is perpetuated for the next in line). 
  3. Social validation- I am more likely to do what is asked of me if I believe many others are doing the same thing. Media campaigns show how wonderful Mormon families are. 
  4. Liking- I will be more willing to do what you want if I like you.  The missionaries that are sent out are highly personable and respectful as well as well groomed. 
  5. Authority- I am more willing to do what you want if you appear authoritative.  The missionaries all wear suits and look professional.
  6. Scarcity- I am more likely to do what you want if I think the offer you are offering is in short supply. The prophet Joseph Smith holds the key to God and every other religion is a sham. 

 

Knowing the lies, and understanding the manipulation, it is easy to deem these practices as evil and the people who practice them as deceptive.  The vast majority of the Mormons that I have had the pleasure of knowing, however, have been moral, helpful, considerate people.  It appears as if they raise their children well (in my high school science class all my Mormon kids were respectful, obedient, hardworking, compassionate people).  This is understandable considering the authoritarian structure of the church. Questioning is not allowed- if a source does not support Mormonism, it should not be read and definitely not considered reliable.  Truly the best lies of the enemy are part truth. 

What does all of this mean for us?  Is it ethical or unethical to employ the understanding of human psychology and use it to help make our point?  Motivation is everything here.  If we use it to educate and inform and allow freedom of dialog (ie- research something then discuss it together allowing both pros and cons) it seems ethical.  If, however, it is used to emotionally manipulate using the information then it would be classified as unethical persuasion.  To me, the techniques of the Mormon church smack of the world and man’s ways.  Isaiah 55:8 clearly tells us “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways," declares the LORD.  I think we are called to be “other worldly” even in our evangelism. 

 

So is there anything we can take away from what the Mormons do?  A resounding yes.

 

*** From my experience in working with the spectrum of American society, what I have discovered is that people are searching for love, acceptance, hope and integrity <Truth> (lack of hypocrisy)- all of which are embodied in Our Lord, Jesus Christ. People who are searching or in ignorance even, don’t need ‘more of the same” or look-a-likes for what they currently have. They do not need to have God “placed in their reality” because this is a low, skewed and powerless position. What they need is a revelation of Christ Himself by the beautiful aroma of a person whose heart is totally for God and can then be totally for his fellow neighbor. This to me is the beginning and end of evangelism.  Our motivation, zeal, and power can only come from our life walked out with our Lord.  St John Chrysostom sums it up, "Let us strive to persuade others with our lives and not with mere words. Because, even if we can speak very philosophically, but we do not give an example of godly life, there is no profit at all. Unbelievers pay more attention to our deeds, than to our words. If we describe to them the glories of eternity, but we remain attached to earthly enjoyments, we are contradicting ourselves".

 

http://www.orthodoxresearchinstitute.org/articles/mission/makarios_zimbabwe_evangelism.htm

 

 

http://www.apologeticsindex.org/m01.html

 

 

http://home.mccue.cc:10000/bob/documents/rs.the%20mormon%20use%20of%20belief%20shaping%20technique.pdf