Distribution
The production of the DVD was funded by "an ex-Mormon businessman who financed the project by selling stock in his company." The video was distributed by many groups, one of which was called Concerned Christians, Inc.: the same group that initially distributed the film '' The God Makers'' in 1982. The producers claim that the video was made out of love for the Mormon people. The video distributed around 500,000 videos in Utah and 5,000 in the Palmyra New York region. A letter of instruction was included with copies of the DVD to those that were to perform the initial door-to-door distribution, several days before the 177th Annual General Conference of the church that was held on March 31 and April 1, 2007:This video is to be viewed by CHRISTIANS ONLY until AFTER the nation-wide distribution which is scheduled for March 25, 2007. In-other-words, do not allow any Mormon people to view the video or learn of our intended evangelistic outreach until after March 25, 2007. Why such extreme caution? If the leadership of the MormonThe letter goes on to say that the "Mormon Church is vulnerable. We firmly believe that with enough exposure, Mormonism will crumble and become a shadow of what it is today." Slick actions by Evangelicals were continued in the letter which spoke of "HANGING THE DVD ON DOOR KNOBS THE VIDEO DOES THE TALKING and, in fact, we do not advise or encourage interaction with Mormon people until sometime after the distribution is complete." They continue to justify this reason because they believed that the DVD "exposes the false teachings of the Mormon cult." and "As a result, people who view the video are much less likely to be converted to Mormonism and these people often use the information found in the DVD to challenge their LDS neighbors and/or LDS missionaries." In the DVD itself, it states that "This video has been produced out of love for our Lord Jesus Christ and love for our Mormon and Christian friends." However,cult In modern English, ''cult'' is usually a pejorative term for a social group that is defined by its unusual religious, spiritual, or philosophical beliefs and rituals, or its common interest in a particular personality, object, or goal. This ...learns of our plans, they will publicly instruct their people not to watch the video and many Mormons will blindly obey.
Content
Nature of God and Jesus Christ
Dr. Phil Roberts (President, Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary), claims that the "Jesus of Mormonism" is different than the "Jesus of the Bible." Roberts claims that Mormons believe that God became a god "by adherence to a system of Mormonism in a previous world in a previous life." Dr.Character of Joseph Smith
A quote from the Bible (Ephesians 2:8-9) regarding boasting is juxtaposed with a quote from Joseph Smith in which he claims to boast. The narrator repeats a portion of a quote from Brigham Young, in which he claims that “no man or woman in this dispensation will ever enter the celestial kingdom of god without the consent of Joseph Smith.” It is claimed that Mormons believe that their "godhood rests on the act of polygamy”, based upon a portion of a quote made by Brigham Young in 1866: “The only men who become Gods, even the sons of God, are those who enter into polygamy.”First Vision
It is stated that nine different versions of Joseph Smith's first vision were recorded. The on-screen list includes both accounts of the first vision that is claimed to have occurred in the Sacred Grove and several accounts of the visit of an angel in Smith's bedroom. The onscreen list shows the following accounts: #1827 – A spirit appears to Joseph telling him of a record on gold plates at age 17. #1827 – An angel appears to Joseph telling him he has been chosen to be a prophet and bring forth a record on gold plates at age 18. #1830 – An angel tells Joseph where to find a secret treasure. Joseph returns once a year for several years before obtaining the plates. #1832 – Jesus Christ appears to Joseph at age 15. #1834 – Angel appears to Joseph in his bedroom at age 17. #1835 – Two personages appear to Joseph in grove at age 14. #1835 – Many angels appear to Joseph in grove at age 14. #1838 – God the Father and Jesus appear to Joseph in grove at age 14. #1844 – Two unidentified personages appear to Joseph at age 14. The narrator claims that Brigham Young “denied that the Lord came to Joseph Smith in the first vision.” Several sentences from a speech given by Brigham Young are shown which state, “The Lord did not come…but He did send His angel to this same obscure person, Joseph Smith…and informed him that he should not join any religious sects of the day…”Archaeology
The narrator states that because Joseph Smith's writings are now over 150 years old, that they should be “easily validated by historical and archaeological evidences.” A 1969 quote by BYU professor Dee Green is referenced in which he “confesses” that “No book of Mormon location is known.” It is stated that “not even one coin” has been found, and that coins were mentioned as “being common in Joseph’s writings.” Joel Kramer (Director, Living Hope Ministries) relates that his group went to the Middle East and Central America and talked to experts in archaeology and anthropology. Kramer states that “in all cases” that they found the “historical reliability” of the Bible and that for the Book of Mormon it was “non-existent.” Floyd McElveen (Author and Lifetime Evangelist) adds that “Joseph Smith claimed there were huge cites – thirty eight cities in the Americas,” but that “not one single city has ever been dug up.” McElveen adds, “would you want to base your eternity on something that is totally unknown?” Sandra Tanner (President, Utah Lighthouse Ministry) notes that the LDS Church will not “commit itself” to a specific map of Book of Mormon lands.Prophecies
Joseph Smith is claimed to have described “the inhabitants of the moon as being about six-foot tall, dressed like Quakers, and living to be about 1000 years old.” The narrator adds that “SinceOccult
The video notes that on March 15, 1842, Joseph Smith joined theTranslator
The narrator states that Joseph Smith “boasted the bold claim” that the Book of Mormon was the “most accurate book in existence.”Response
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints responded with a news release, part of which stated,"The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has weathered such attacks throughout its history. At a time when the Church is growing strongly throughout the world, it’s not surprising that some groups try to curb that growth in such ways."The
"This is the same kind of plain, old-fashioned Mormon-bashing that Jim Robertson and his group have been spewing for over a quarter-of-a-century. The only difference is that back then, it was the film, 'The God Makers,' and today it's the DVD, 'Jesus Christ/Joseph Smith.' It was wrong then, and it's wrong now."The LDS Church noted in its news release that, "The Jewish Anti-Defamation League in Phoenix promptly condemned the distribution, saying that ' hate directed at any of us is hate directed at all of us.'" Bill McKeever, Director of an organization called the Mormonism Research Ministry, sent a letter to the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints protesting what he called the church's "tacit approval" of the Anti-Defamation League's condemnation of the video. McKeever states, "I wish to express my indignation at your church’s tacit approval of the Anti-Defamation League's accusation of hatred towards Christians who were involved in a recent DVD distribution. It is one thing to disagree with the content of the DVD, but it is quite another to accuse them of being motivated by hate." He concludes by stating, "With all the talk of repentance at your last conference, I think you need to lead by example and offer an apology to the thousands of Christians you have offended with this false accusation." McKeever followed up on this letter with an article posted in the ''Christian Examiner Online'', in which he claimed that the "Mormon Church went into one of its most hypocritical frenzies in modern times." Claiming that the media in Utah is "either owned by the LDS Church or is sympathetic to it," McKeever claimed that " lk show hosts did their best to stir up their listeners against the 'religious bigots' who dared come onto 'our property' with their 'message of hate.'" The Foundation for Apologetic Information & Research (FAIR), a non-profit organization specializing in Mormon apologetics, produced a point-by-point rebuttal of inaccuracies and exaggerations in the video. This was posted on the FAIR Wiki web site one week before the initial distribution of the DVD. In addition, the LDS affiliated Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies posted a page with links to articles written by Mormon scholars which deal directly with subjects addressed in the video.
Notes
References
*. *. *. *. *. *. *. *. *.External links