Seth Payne

I have had a long-standing interest in Mormon apologetics which began when I was a teenager. Many of my friends were devout evangelical Christians who, on more than one occasion, “witnessed” to me about the error of Mormon beliefs. Given that at the time I was also quite zealous, such conversations generally involved long discussions on Biblical interpretation. For the most part, these conversations were very friendly. However, on rare occassions I would run into an evangelical Christian who was so adamantly opposed to Mormon belief that they ended up saying something rather stupid over the course of our conversations. Perhaps the most poignant example of this kind of silliness happened during my Senior year of high school when I was told, by someone who I had long-considered to be a friend, that we Mormons should not be allowed to come to the school’s baccalaureate because we weren’t really Christians.

As a Mormon missionary I encountered similar sentiments – although not nearly as often as I had expected to before beginning my mission.

Today, I am a non-believer in Mormonism. I am still a Mormon – and always will be – but generally speaking I am both heterodox and heterprax when it comes to Mormonism. Mormonism is my heritiage. I love it and wouldn’t trade it for anything.

I am a theist and can be considered Christian in the liberal sense. I am pursuaded by the so-called “higher criticism” of the Bible and while I do admire – and attempt to adhere to — the many ethical teachings contained within both the Hebrew Bible and the New Testament, I view much of the miraculous within those pages to be myth. Thus, beyond my simple belief in God and my general support for the ethics of Judeo-Christian tradition, I personally have no real theological position.

In regards to Mormonism, I am both a critic and apologist. There are some social aspects to Mormonism that I find disconcerting and some specific truth-claims I find both troubling and problematic but on the whole, I find Mormonism to be a positive contributor to the social good. Thus, even though I am a non-practicing Mormon, I often participate in discussions of Mormon doctrine and social practice at the Mormon Apologetics and Discussion Board (MADB). There are some incredibly intelligent people who participate there including David Bokovoy, Blair Hodges, Chris Smith, Mike Reed, Dan Vogel, Brent Metcalfe, Michael Ash, and many others. The discussions at MADB are generally lively and informative before they either 1) run their natural course or 2) degenerate into a pissing match of insults between zealots on both sides of a particular issue. Regardless, MADB is interesting and generally informative.

It was on MADB that I first became aware of the Christian Apologetics Research Ministry (CARM), and its discussion forums. CARM is a ministry operated by Matt Slick, a professed reformed Calvinist. Slick is openly hostile towards Mormonism, and pretty much any belief system that does not conform to his narrow Calvinist theology. According to Slick, Roman Catholics, Christian Scientists, Jehovah’s Witnesses, the International Church of Christ, Oneness Pentacostals, Seventh Day Adventists, and others are all non-Christian even though they profess the divinity of Christ, albeit in slightly different ways. Matt Slick’s heaven is going to be a lonely place.

In case you are curious, Slick has devised a test to help you determine if you are really a Christian. Fortunatley, he has also provided an answer key so you really have no excuse for not receving a passing grade.

Essentially, Slick has sought to obtain a monopoly on the word “Christian.” By his narrow definition, he excludes all but a relatively small group of Evangelicals. Any denomination, or anyone who does not fit Slicks definition is not part of “the Body of Christ.” Such a position is as absurd as it is un-Biblical.

I’m sure that Matt Slick is a nice guy and that he is sincere in his belief. However, it is positions like those taken by Slick which reinforce the notion that evangelicals are narrow-minded xenaphobes.

Fortunately, the vast majority of evangelical Christians are not so narrow-minded. Consider, for example, Bridget Jack Meyers. She is an articulate evangelical who remains faithful to her own beliefs without the need to attack the beliefs of others. Myers certainly disagrees with other belief system but chooses to engage others in a respectful, non-exclusive, and what I would consider, Christ-like way.