By Scott S. Mitchell In recent essays on this website, I have discussed two critical Book of Mormon scriptures (2 Nephi 4 and Jacob 2 and 3). The exegesis of those verses by the LDS Church (hereafter also referred to as "the Church") has been woefully inadequate and misleading. I've hypothesized that these two scriptures … Continue reading The LDS Church’s Most Overlooked and Underrated Scripture
Doctrinal Errors
Jacob 2 and 3, Censorship, and Mormonism’s Avoidance of Stubborn Book of Mormon Truth, Part 1
By Scott S. Mitchell Two Sundays ago, the lesson in my LDS priesthood meeting centered around a talk by Becky Craven in the April 2019 general conference entitled "Careful Versus Casual." Predictably, two things occurred during the classroom discussion. First, the discussion quickly focused on two of the most prominently discussed Law-of-Moses-type items on Mormonism's … Continue reading Jacob 2 and 3, Censorship, and Mormonism’s Avoidance of Stubborn Book of Mormon Truth, Part 1
2 Nephi 4 and the Pain or Exhilaration of Learning What You Thought You Wanted to Know, Part 1
By Scott S. Mitchell One of my daughters, who loves math and majored in statistics in college, recently challenged me to solve a math word problem to which she had already figured out the answer. Since I generally enjoy word problems, and believed careful thinking on my part would reveal the solution, I had no … Continue reading 2 Nephi 4 and the Pain or Exhilaration of Learning What You Thought You Wanted to Know, Part 1
How We Know Shem Wasn’t Melchizedek, Part II, and What it Means for Christianity
By Scott S. Mitchell In a previous essay, I laid out the evidence demonstrating why Shem and the ancient high priest Melchizedek couldn't have been the same person, contrary to popular Mormon belief. See Why Melchizedek wasn’t Shem, and Why it Does and Doesn’t Matter, elsewhere on this website. By reading further information on this subject, … Continue reading How We Know Shem Wasn’t Melchizedek, Part II, and What it Means for Christianity
Forgiving When We Shouldn’t
Scott S. Mitchell Readers of this essay might find the arguments presented surprising, perhaps even unsettling. My purpose in writing is to help righteous people feel better about themselves when the scriptures demonstrate they deserve to feel that way, and to help them avoid feeling guilt when the scriptures indicate they shouldn't be feeling it. … Continue reading Forgiving When We Shouldn’t
The Empty Carton
(This entry is made By Hal Mitchell, who is a frequent contributor to LAMP.) I remember when I was 17 I worked on a farm in southern Utah for a summer job. I had a brother on a mission and in the middle of the summer, my next oldest brother was leaving on his mission. My … Continue reading The Empty Carton
The Restoration of the Priesthoods: True or Revisionist History?
In other essays on this website, we have argued that Mormonism's teachings were in error in teaching that the only true church had to be run by high priests holding the priesthood of Melchizedek, in that this doctrine is completely at odds with Bible and Book of Mormon teachings. Some of those essays can be … Continue reading The Restoration of the Priesthoods: True or Revisionist History?
Ignoring the Book of Mormon in General Conference Talks and LDS Instruction
In his October 2016 LDS General Conference address "If Ye Had Known Me," Church apostle David E. Bednar began his address by citing to an example in the scriptures wherein Joseph Smith had supposedly corrected erroneous language in the King James Version (hereafter "KJV") of the Bible. The scripture Bednar accepted as mistranslated was Matthew … Continue reading Ignoring the Book of Mormon in General Conference Talks and LDS Instruction
Baptism for the Dead: True Christian Doctrine and Practice, or LDS Construction?
Note: The following essay was contributed by frequent contributor Scott S. Mitchell. In the one of the most enigmatic scriptures in the entire Bible, the apostle Paul, in writing to the Corinthians about the universality of the resurrection, said these words: “Else what shall they do which are baptized for the dead, if the … Continue reading Baptism for the Dead: True Christian Doctrine and Practice, or LDS Construction?
The Most Fundamental Christian Doctrine
(The following article was written by Hal Mitchell, 1957-2019, a contributor and original co-founder of the LAMP website.) "The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the contrite spirit." (Psalms 34:18) In Hebrew, “the broken heart” is translated to nishbar lev. Per the website Hebrew for Christians, the author, John Parsons describes the Hebrew meaning behind … Continue reading The Most Fundamental Christian Doctrine
