Criticism of Mormonism/Video/Search for the Truth DVD/Call to Leaders

Jesus Christ/Joseph Smith or Search for the Truth DVD



Call to LDS Leaders

This portion of the video calls for LDS leaders to stop the supposed deception of Mormonism. "You’d be the hero of all time to the LDS people if you finally admitted Joseph Smith was a false prophet. Beloved you know that. That Mormonism is not true. The Book of Mormon is not true. Joseph Smith is not true. Joseph Smith deceived you and deceived your people. Don’t go on with this deception. So we pray of you, Mormon leaders, have the courage to admit that you’re wrong." (Floyd McElveen)

This charges that leaders actually know that Joseph Smith was a fraud and that the Book of Mormon is false, and that LDS leaders simply need to admit the deception and take the steps necessary to lead Mormons out of the Church. Who granted the critics insight into the minds, beliefs, hearts, and souls of the leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ?

Critics should recall the admonition of Jesus:

Judge not, that ye be not judged. For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.(Matthew 7:1-2)

The poisonous accusation that leaders actually know that their faith is false has become fashionable in some anti-Mormon circles. This claim is designed to add credibility to the anti-Mormon accusation that the Church is not only wrong, but deceptive.

The fact is, however, that Church leaders give of their time (a tremendous amount of time) and talents, because they love Christ, they love God's children, and they believe that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is true. Many leaders give up lucrative professions and sacrifice time they could be spending in retirement or with family, to dedicate themselves to the Restored Gospel. They really believe in the teachings of the Church and they labor continuously leading people to Christ and the fulness of the Gospel as found in the latter-day church that Christ restored.

Brigham Young, like many Church leaders, repeatedly taught that no member should rely on their leader's convictions— each member must seek a spiritual witness:

The First Presidency have of right a great influence over this people; and if we should get out of the way and lead this people to destruction, what a pity it would be! How can you know whether we lead you correctly or not? Can you know by any other power than that of the Holy Ghost? I have uniformly exhorted the people to obtain this living witness each for themselves; then no man on earth can lead them astray.
—Brigham Young, (29 November 1857) Journal of Discourses 6:100.

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