“She won’t join the church because we won’t let her practice polyandry.” That’s what my husband told the Stake President at his last interview.
Author: Bridget Jack Meyers
We’re pleased to welcome Bridget Jack Meyers as a guest blogger. Jack (as she is known) is a bit of an unusual guest — she describes herself as “a mostly-Pentecostal evangelical who holds to Arminian, credobaptist, and egalitarian positions.” For those who are counting, she’ll be just the third non-member guest we’ve ever had blogging here. Don’t fret too much; she’s a (generally) friendly, very well-informed voice. Jack attended BYU, where she received her BA in classics with a minor in Hebrew. (She’s repenting by attending Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in the fall, where she will be enrolled in the MA in History of Christianity in America program.) Jack is also something of an expert at interfaith dialog on a personal level — she has been married for 5 1/2 years to an active member of the LDS church, and they have one daughter whom they raise in both faiths. Jack has been studying Mormonism for over 10 years now, and she likes to discuss it. She blogs at ClobberBlog which is devoted to Mormon-evangelical dialogue and interfaith marriage topics (read her Infrequently Asked Questions here); she’s also a current guest-blogger at LDS & Evangelical Conversations. And — because all work and no play would make Jack a dull girl — she also enjoys a range of hobbies including MMORPGs, playing guitar, martial arts, firearms, and for-hire assassination. Welcome aboard, Jack.
Divide? Maybe not so much — Part 2
(See my disclaimer in Part 1 concerning the title) So, let’s discuss some of the less-acknowledged ways Mormons and evangelicals are alike. First we’ll start with things in evangelical thought which bear an unexpected resemblance to LDS thought.
Divide? Maybe not so much — Part 1
(See my disclaimer about the title) There are many similarities between Mormonism and evangelical Christianity which are generally uncontested by both parties. I thought I would cover these prior to doing a post on the similarities which I suspect will be more controversial.
What death can teach us about heaven and hell
People are always making assertions about what heaven must contain in order for it to qualify as heaven for them, some of these assertions being more jokes than anything else. “It’s not heaven without sex.” “It wouldn’t be heaven if [insert name of favorite pet dog] isn’t there.” “If heaven doesn’t have Egg McMuffins, I don’t want to go there.”
Why We’re Confused
An old adage among outsiders who study Mormonism states that determining what is and is not Mormon doctrine is a lot like trying to nail jello to a wall—except that the latter feat is entirely possible while the former remains a struggle to this day. Evangelicals who interact with Mormons often express frustration to that end. It seems that as soon as we think we’ve figured out what Mormons believe and how to respond to it, the next Mormon we meet will tell us “we don’t believe that,” “that’s not doctrine,” or “that’s just his opinion.” It would probably help if evangelicals spent more time genuinely trying to understand Mormonism and less time sizing it up for the best spot to throw a punch,1 but to some of us, the desire to understand is earnest and the frustration is genuine.