Mormonism - A Life Under False Pretenses: The True Story of a Mormon Bishop's Journey of Discovery

by Lee B. Baker

Second Edition - The fundamental difference that sets the Mormon Church apart from all truly Christian churches is the sinister and self-serving distortion of the very personality and character of the Lord Jesus Christ. For Mormonism to be true, Christ Himself must be corrupted into one who authorized horrible behavior, thus rendering the past Mormon Prophets completely blameless concerning the motivations for their unspeakable actions.

Within the formal teachings of the Mormon Church, Jesus Christ Himself, and not the Mormon Prophets, is the author of polygamy, polyandry, and blood atonement. Under His direction alone, Joseph Smith Jr. was “commanded” to take some thirty-three wives, two as young as fourteen years of age. Mormons are instructed that it was the Lord, and no one else, who required Joseph to take the wives of eleven other men as his own (known as polyandry), as well as two sets of sisters and a mother and her daughter as his wives, while at the same time attempting to become president of the United States of America.

Brigham Young, as the living prophet of God, taught through “divinely inspired revelation” the core principles of “blood atonement.” Reportedly under direction from the Lord Jesus Christ Himself, Brigham instructed that some sins of this world required the neck of the sinner to be slit from ear to ear so that the sinner’s blood could atone for certain violations of Mormon doctrine. Mormons are taught that Brigham Young also was commanded by the Lord to take fifty-five wives, including some previous wives of Joseph Smith.

Defense of these disgusting misrepresentations of the very nature and character of the Lord continues today within the walls of Mormon chapels and Mormon temples throughout the world. This book examines real-world examples of how these beliefs are covered up so that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints might better hide among true believers in the compassionate Savior of all mankind, Christ Jesus. He and His holy name have been disgracefully used so that self-centered men might gain some measure of power, prestige, and perversion.

This book recounts the true-life experiences of a Mormon Bishop, who for over thirty years was a High Priest, Elders Quorum President, and a member of three High Councils for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the Mormons. He has participated in hundreds of Mormon Temple Endowments and witnessed firsthand the practice of ceremonial rituals in which the taking of human life was mimicked, all in the name of Jesus Christ.

Genres: Religion, Mormonism, Lds

Kindle Edition

First published September 10, 2010

Reviews

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don't know that this book is the most organized I've ever read (it's pretty repetitive), but it presents an extremely thorough and well-supported argument against Mormonism from the perspective of a former member, addressed very much to current members of the church. As that is not my background, I can only assume from the author's credentials and experience that his arguments would make a great deal of sense within the community at which they are primarily aimed. I certainly found them compelling, and in some cases far more troubling than I expected. I have read a great deal about the Latter-day Saints as well as their scriptures, as I have known and loved so many members of that peculiar church, and have incorporated some of the church's troubled and controversial history in my own fiction writing. I really appreciate Mr. Baker's candor in discussing the struggles he experienced in seeking-and ultimately not finding-answers to difficult theological questions that eventually resulted in his excommunication. I particularly find useful the list of questions the author suggests as important to ask Latter-day Saints, phrased in such a way as to encourage their careful consideration when their first instinct might be to change the subject instead. But truly the most important part of this book is the message at the end. Baker clearly reminds all of us, and especially Latter-day Saints who may be experiencing the same struggles he experienced, that the love of Jesus is for all, and that Christ does not give up on those who earnestly seek Him, even if they have been led astray by false prophets.

[Carol · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved the fact that this book confirmed what I have believed about Mormonism all along, that it is a 'religion' under false pretenses. I am very grateful that Lee B Baker did all the research he did and finally got the answers (in getting no answers) that he was looking for. I only hope that more people read this and find out what a sham of a religion is taking at least 10% of their money. I do think the reading of it would have been easier with the use of quotation marks more in areas where Mr. Baker cites what others say. I did have a bit of trouble keeping track of his voice as opposed to the voice of others in a lot of places. I do feel though that I am better prepared to have a conversation when someone approaches me to believe that this religion teaches the Word of God. Thank you, Mr. Baker!

[Marc · Rating 2 out of 5]

Baker is correct but comes across as petty and vindictive; if you need everything to add up perfectly, skip religion and go straight to math

[Shane · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some good info, but Baker seemed to have an axe to grind, rather than only providing factual information. Still, all in all it was informative and worth reading.

[Ben · Rating 3 out of 5]

one mans view of how he felt he was trated by leaders of his former faith

[Jenny Allen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Insider view of the LDS church.

This showed the struggle of a family that found truth and had to leave untruth behind. Truth wins, just like grace.

[Marcia Guimaraes · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very repetitive. He could have said it all in one chapter. He started questioning the church history and some of its teachings / doctrines, and as he didn't get any reasonable answer besides "I trust Joseph Smith" or "I know the church is true", his questioning leaded to more questions, which ended up in excommunication. His main questions regarded polygamy, polyandry, blood atonement, bigotry, racial discrimination against blacks, Elder Marriot profiting from the sales and distribution of pornography in his Marriot hotels, exaltation (men becoming Gods - let me say, in the condition of being polygamous, as if "becoming gods" isn't strange enough), the Mountain Meadow Massacre. The topics are quite interesting and most Mormons aren't even aware of them, but it's nothing new to me. Also, the fact that he uses religion (he converted to some Christian denomination) to "condemn" another religion is just nonsense.