What Do Mormons Believe?

In the mid-1960s, our young family moved to Seattle from Salt Lake City, and in time, I was offered a teaching position in higher education. Following on the heels of this blessing, I was called to serve as a counselor in our ward’s bishopric. Not long thereafter, our bishop received a telephone call from a religion professor at a Methodist college located within our ward boundaries asking if someone would be willing to represent our Church at a forum on religions being sponsored by his institution? This educator wanted his students to become better acquainted with the basic beliefs of various religions, and so a representative from each of several selected churches was being asked to meet with his students for that purpose over a period of weeks. The bishop asked if I would accept the assignment, and I consented gladly.

The paramount question for me concerned the approach I should take. I gave the matter prayerful consideration, and it became quickly apparent that under the circumstances a forthright, aggressive discussion of our basic beliefs was best. Once the issue of the approach was resolved, I knew what my main resource would be namely, the Articles of Faith by James E. Talmage. The challenge would be to elaborate sufficiently on each of the thirteen articles in my one-hour of allotted time. Following my remarks, the religion professor would have an opportunity to respond. Lastly, those present would have an opportunity to ask me questions.

In 1842, the Prophet Joseph Smith received a letter from John Wentworth, the editor of the Chicago Democrat, written on behalf of a George Bastow who was authoring a history of the State of New Hampshire. Mr. Bastow sought information concerning the origins and the beliefs of the Mormon Church. In what we know as the Wentworth Letter, the Prophet fulfilled the request made of him, and from that writing we derive our thirteen Articles of Faith.

The appointed day for my presentation arrived. The weather was sunny and warm, so the discussion was staged on an outdoor patio attached to the student union building. The tables and chairs were filled with students and interested adults. The audience was larger than the available seating, so many of the attendees sat on the wall that bordered the patio as well as anywhere else possible. The host professor and I sat at a table upon which I had my books and notes. A folded newspaper was all that he had on the table before him. After a brief introduction, the time was mine.

When my presentation was completed, he had an opportunity to respond. From personal experience, I knew what the tenor of feeling on that conservative religious campus was vis-a-vis the Latter-day Saint Church, so I had every reason to believe his remarks might well be sharp and critical. From the fold of the newspaper before him, he withdrew a copy of Elder Talmage’s Articles of Faith. He admitted to the audience that he had not believed that I would be forthright concerning the Church’s beliefs, and so he was prepared to use this resource to criticize my remarks. My presentation had totally disarmed him, and he was left with little of substance to say. The questions that followed from the audience were thoughtful and courteous.

The intended purpose of this writing is to set the course this blog will take in the coming weeks which is to discuss each of the elements of these Articles of Faith as well as some possible related topics. From time to time, it behooves each of us to review the particulars of our bedrock beliefs.