Why does the Mormon faith seem constantly under attack?

Question

I have never come closely aquainted with people of Mormon faith,nor do I have a great understanding of their spiritual beliefs.Yet, in recent years, waves of objection and sometimes uproar against the Mormon faith has become so much more frequent than average Atheists. What has gone wrong? Why are so many, so rigid in their objections? Please explain a little if you can.Thanks.

Answer 1

From the perspective of an outsider, this is my brief experience with coming across Mormon faith: They are good people; a lot of them give their lives for their faith. I respect this very much. But...I used to live in Taipei for a long period of time, during this time, I came across many Mormon youth who had come to Asia to preach their faith.
One incident that struck me negatively was a certain day when I witnessed a group of 2 Mormon youths (early 20's) approaching a Taiwanese man on the subway (also known as the MRT). This man was quietly reading his newspaper when they interrupted him (this is not acceptable etiquette-wise in Taiwan and was obviously embarrassing to this middle-aged man in the crowded compartment) to speak about their faith. I looked on, in awe at the profoundness of their go-get-it approach. A few minutes later, they noticed me (a white female foreigner) and obviously wanted to talk to me too. When Sister Something and the other Sister something approached I felt quite uncomfortable and felt like a was being interrogated. I then asked them how their evangelization was going. They then explained how each team was assigned a certain line of the subway system to meet potential followers. I was surprised at this, because according to the local laws, no political party or any other organization has the power to use the subway system for purposes other than traveling. What they were pursuing was clearing outside regulations. Not only this, but the method they used to interact with locals was not exactly what I call "localzied". Anway, I still believe that Mormons are good-hearted people. The only thing I would encourage them to do is "strive for communion with other Christians".

Answer 2

It's nothing new, and it's no worse than it has ever been. Unfortunately, people of all religions are persecuted for their beliefs. And there always seem to be some religions that just hate each other (i.e. Protestants and Catholics). Specifically concerning Mormonism, we have been prosecuted since our foundation in the early 1800's. We were driven out of many states, until finally settling in Utah. Along the way, thousands died. Which raises a whole other debate about the freedom of religion the constitution promises. Anyway, my point is, people will always argue against things they don't understand, are afraid of, or threatened by.

Answer 3

Because their beliefs have been under scrutuny. They only recently denounced polygamy (more than one wife) and in their Bible is basically says that black people are black because they are cursed by God.

Also..recently the Mormon founder...Joseph Smith..his mother came out and basically said how here son had made up many stories and a fantasy world when he was child. Some stories of which are VERY similar to those in the book of Mormon.

Answer 4

Since this church was founded, we've been "under attack". I think it's because we're different.

We are taught from a young age to stand up for what we believe. We believe that our church has the most (in quantity & quality) truth of any that are on the earth today. Some of our core beliefs are different from most of Christendom.

These characteristics have combined to make us somewhat of a target.

BTW- We aren't atheist- We actuallly define ourselves as Christian. We believe that Jesus Christ (of the New Testament) is the Savior of mankind, each of us individually.

If you have any other questions, I'd be glad to answer.

Answer 5

All religions are always under attack. Mormon's cannot seem to get there story straight. (so I have heard.) The one thing I am certain about is that they denounced polygomy, which was a main part of their religion up until Utah tried to get statehood. When the U.S. said that Utah (which is like 75% mormon) had to make polygomy illegal, that is when the LDS denounced it.

I really do like mormons. Everyone of them I have met has been great. I even have a couple in my family. Unfortunately they are just lost.

Prayers to you and yours and theirs. <><

Answer 6

to couple's comment: The Bible and the Book of Mormon go hand in hand with one another, they compliment one another - neither is regaurded without the other.

to bigjim's comment: Polygamy was denounced by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in the 1870-80's. The Bible speaks of cursed people turning dark as well - look what happened to Cain. And Joseph Smith lives from 1805-1844 - so his mother recently coming out with stories is a little far feched.

to YaHabibeDisney's comment: Warren Jeffs is not a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, he is the leader of a sect that never stopped practicing polygamy and were all excommunicated from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Also, Elizabeth Smart is a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, her kidnappers weren't.


The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints is attacked because of people telling rumours and rumours of rumours about us, speculation instead of fact, and a general missunderstanding of our faith.

Answer 7

People attack what they do not understand. Its sad, but true.

But Mormons are not something to be afraid of.
I am one, and can speak out of experience.

Here, I will adress the main arguments that attack us. Living in Chicago, I heard them all on a daily basis.


We do not worship the devil. We awknowledge he exists, and teach that we need to look out for his influence, but we do not worship him.

The Book of Mormon is used TOGETHER with the bible, as extra revelation given to a people living contemporaneously on the American continent with our favorite prophets and apostles from the old testament and the new testament. Why not have something that confirms the bible to be true? "In the mouths of two or three witnesses shall every word be established."

We preach love, service, brotherly kindness, charity, good works, faith, sacrifice for God and for others, integrity and honesty. Sounds like the list of characteristics of a perfect mate, huh?

The LDS temple is kept SACRED, so we dont like to talk about it outside the temple. We talk about it vaugely in church, but the temple, and the sacred covenants made in the temple are held in high reverence. They are not secret, but sacred.

We do not worship idols. Have you walked into an LDS church lately? they are simply designed and simply used. They are purely for worship of God. No golden calves, nothing. Maybe some art here and there, but that is it.

What is so wrong about waiting for marriage to have sex? Avoid STD's, Dead-end relationships, and single parent families. Most relationships formed without sex are founded on trust and love, not just lust and how they perform in the bedroom.

We are not a cult. How many cults can you name that donates millions of dollars to humanitarian aid, promotes the sanctity of families, and supports the Boy Scouts of America? over half of all the boy scout troops in America base themselves out of a mormon ward.


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I understand the attacks will keep on coming as long as people will misunderstand us. Maybe this will calm at least some fears. As for the horns, we saw them off and hide them with our hair. lol.

if you have any questions, comments, concerns, or emotional outbursts about what I just wrote, email me at [e-mail]

Answer 8

because of the polygamy issue and that guy Warren Jeffs seems to be a terrible man...also I believe people of this religion kidnapped that girl Elizabeth Smart so that might have something to do with it, they are a very quiet group of people who kind of stay to themselves..so maybe that freaks people out....I've also heard that its very cult like and if u do something such as listen to music you are thrown out and never to see your family again. There was a special on CNN about boys who were kicked out for something as simple as listening to music and a family adopted them and now they go through counselling.....its a very cult like religion.

Answer 9

Yes, it's true that there are many people who seem to want to attack those of our faith. There are a number of reasons, I suppose. Here's a non-exhaustive list, in no particular order:

1. Some people who were once part of our church but aren't now can't seem to leave it alone. You will see examples on this site, for example, of people who have decided that they no longer want to follow Mormon teachings, but continue talking about it and trying to convince people that it isn't true. I have been involved with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints my whole life, and have never separated myself from the Church, so I don't fully understand their reasons for this. I find it telling, though, that they don't just ignore it.

2. There is a lot of misunderstanding about our beliefs. Despite that knowledge about our church is more widespread than ever, many people still have a lot of inaccurate beliefs about who we are. In the answers to this very question, for example, you will read answers that misrepresent our beliefs. I suppose that some people do this just because they don't know more accurate information. Unfortunately, sometimes, this is perpetuated in the media as well when reporters who don't know the difference between the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and break-off churches report the actions of very small cultist groups as if they were sanctioned by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It's easy for people to make inflammatory statements about our beliefs by using scary-sounding words like "cult". That doesn't make it true, though.

3. Our church has strong teachings and is firm in those teachings. Recently, for example, one of the members of the Quorum of Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, along with religious leaders of many other faiths, signed a document that unequivocally declares that marriage between a man and a woman is ordained of God. Although our church teaches that we should be kind to people of all faiths, we definitely have a line between what we believe is true doctrine and false doctrine. In today's world where people are taught to be all-inclusive and tolerant, that might seem intolerant to some. Nevertheless, our President, Gordon B. Hinckley, has taught with the attitude of "what you have is good; let us show you more". It is well-known that we have some beliefs that are different from beliefs of other Christian faiths. We do not apologize for this. We believe, like people of all faiths, I suppose, that what we teach is true.

4. Many people seem to resent our active proselyting efforts. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has tens of thousands of full-time missionaries who work in many areas of the world trying to bring people into the Church. I'm afraid that people may sometimes feel threatened when the missionaries offer them the opportunity to learn more about the gospel of Jesus Christ. My understanding is that many Christians believe that it doesn't matter what church you belong to as long as you believe in Christ. Therefore, they view our proselyting as "poaching the flock" (that's a direct quote from a pastor I met when I was a full-time missionary). Again, our attitude is "what you have is good; let us give you more".

5. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints draws attention because it is a very rapidly growing church. We now have approximately 13 million members worldwide. Any organization that grows like that attracts interest.

6. Frankly, I believe that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is an influence for good in the world, and therefore Satan is trying to prevent its work.

Answer 10

one thing is that there book of mormon is put ahead of the bible where the bible says do not add or take away from the bible they say the book of mormon is an addition to the bible