I watched them with a guy whose door we knocked on. He was a super cool guy and he admitted it was cheesy but he wanted to know what we thought. I wasn't phased by it. I knew enough of my church's history and doctrine to know where the movie played fast and loose. And on the stuff I didn't know or hadn't heard - I just didn't trust the presentation. Cause they were unfair on the stuff I did know.
We had a lot of evangelicals that wanted to argue with us. Some kindly some not so much. It was about 8 months in my mission I learned how to navigate those discussions so we always left warm friends. Even with the evangelicals who started out unkind.
I’m glad to hear about that one experience—cheesy, but he asked. My response was fear and distrust, so it took me a few years to “come out of my shell” and talk to anyone with a LDS background. Fortunately, my first interactions with missionaries led to a couple of meetings with a bishop, who was very kind and patient with me. He basically said he knew my search for truth was sincere and blessed me in it without corralling me into the Church. I’ve always respected him for that, and wished I’d kept in contact with him.
That bishop sounds like a good man! I'm glad to hear that. Some of our favorite people on my mission were evangelicals - just good people. We attended Saddleback once and really, really enjoyed it.
For many of us XLDS "The Godmakers" was seen as a bit of a bad joke. Not on the Mormon church or people, rather, on the Evangelical groups and churches that were conned into buying the video to do showings. Fortunately not too many churches participated in it, often feeling it was just a sensationalistic venue.
The first time I saw the book was after we left the church. Before that I had been taught not to read anything written by "angry, bitter apostates". The Tanners were already known but Ed Decker was a newcomer to the scene and, though I was not yet a Christian, I could still see problems.
For example, he relied on cut/paste research, meaning, the book was filled with information already well known and documented by others who had done the work. However, Ed seemed to sensationalize it more.
More concerning were the things he said outside the book. For example, claiming the Mormon church or members of it were trying to poison him.
There seems to be a problem these days in terms of meeting the scriptural tone of "speaking the truth in love" as well. We can tell the truth but we should deliver it as kindly as possible without sugarcoating.
We should also avoid the sensationalist approach.
But one more thing- we should never be putting spokespersons out there who are newly out of the LDS church. Give them some time to breathe, get bearings and, hopefully, come to know the Biblical Christ. And then more time to grow up in the faith.
Hi Lynda, I appreciate you taking the time to read and respond.
Just to be clear, this piece wasn’t written to promote Mormonism or its doctrines. I’m a committed Christian who holds to historic orthodoxy and I believe clarity and charity aren’t mutually exclusive. My goal wasn’t to defend Latter-day Saint beliefs, but to explore how and why certain portrayals (like those in The God Makers) shaped evangelical responses, sometimes in unhelpful ways.
Hi Linda. I hope you don't mind my interjecting. As a former member of the LDS Church myself, I can tell you that very few Mormons ever read the Godmakers book nor watched the video. We were told not to. And we didn't. It was only after leaving that I read the book and while I can say that Ed Decker and Dick Baer intended to help others, they went about it completely the wrong way. The cut and paste approach to research being one of them. But moreso the sensationalism involved. I went through the Temple. My husband and I were sealed in it before the changes. Simply pointing out that we did and said things that most people would find weird is enough. Calling it practicing Satanism is, shall we say, a big stretch? Practicing Freemasonry yes. But Satanism? "Pay Lay Ale" does not mean hail Satan nor anything close to it.
Joseph Smith had taken a course in Hebrew. Not too many critics of Mormonism are aware of it and I'm fairly sure Ed Decker wasn't, either. It comes from the Hebrew: פה לאל or Pe le El, meaning "mouth to God" and is used in Jewish prayers to call to God in prayer (you may recognize El as in El Shaddai).
No doubt in his lessons Smith learned the phrase.
Today you will hear Jewish people say: "From your mouth to Gods ears".
What I am saying, I guess, is that biblically speaking, just the existence of the temples is enough to show the lds church as heretical. We don't have to sensationalize it and that, sad to say, is what Mr. Decker did in the Godmakers.
We will soon see who has been deceived and who is following the Truth that is Jesus Christ.
I saw both Godmakers 1 and Godmakers 2 while on my mission to Southern California.
What a time to see them! What was your reaction and thoughts, especially being on mission in the very area the films originated?
I watched them with a guy whose door we knocked on. He was a super cool guy and he admitted it was cheesy but he wanted to know what we thought. I wasn't phased by it. I knew enough of my church's history and doctrine to know where the movie played fast and loose. And on the stuff I didn't know or hadn't heard - I just didn't trust the presentation. Cause they were unfair on the stuff I did know.
We had a lot of evangelicals that wanted to argue with us. Some kindly some not so much. It was about 8 months in my mission I learned how to navigate those discussions so we always left warm friends. Even with the evangelicals who started out unkind.
I’m glad to hear about that one experience—cheesy, but he asked. My response was fear and distrust, so it took me a few years to “come out of my shell” and talk to anyone with a LDS background. Fortunately, my first interactions with missionaries led to a couple of meetings with a bishop, who was very kind and patient with me. He basically said he knew my search for truth was sincere and blessed me in it without corralling me into the Church. I’ve always respected him for that, and wished I’d kept in contact with him.
That bishop sounds like a good man! I'm glad to hear that. Some of our favorite people on my mission were evangelicals - just good people. We attended Saddleback once and really, really enjoyed it.
For many of us XLDS "The Godmakers" was seen as a bit of a bad joke. Not on the Mormon church or people, rather, on the Evangelical groups and churches that were conned into buying the video to do showings. Fortunately not too many churches participated in it, often feeling it was just a sensationalistic venue.
The first time I saw the book was after we left the church. Before that I had been taught not to read anything written by "angry, bitter apostates". The Tanners were already known but Ed Decker was a newcomer to the scene and, though I was not yet a Christian, I could still see problems.
For example, he relied on cut/paste research, meaning, the book was filled with information already well known and documented by others who had done the work. However, Ed seemed to sensationalize it more.
More concerning were the things he said outside the book. For example, claiming the Mormon church or members of it were trying to poison him.
There seems to be a problem these days in terms of meeting the scriptural tone of "speaking the truth in love" as well. We can tell the truth but we should deliver it as kindly as possible without sugarcoating.
We should also avoid the sensationalist approach.
But one more thing- we should never be putting spokespersons out there who are newly out of the LDS church. Give them some time to breathe, get bearings and, hopefully, come to know the Biblical Christ. And then more time to grow up in the faith.
Stuck on the Audio A around parents and P.O.D when they weren’t around 😂
IYKYK
THIS READS LIKE
AN ACTUAL SHAMELESS PROMOTION OF
👉🏼THE ABOMINABLE FREEMASONIC KABBALISTIC WITCHCRAFT
MORMON CULT.👈🏼
THIS WRITER HAS BEEN WHOLLY-DECEIVED.
DO THE RESEARCH FOR YOURSELF.
STEER CLEAR OF THIS FALSE DOCTRINE.
Hi Lynda, I appreciate you taking the time to read and respond.
Just to be clear, this piece wasn’t written to promote Mormonism or its doctrines. I’m a committed Christian who holds to historic orthodoxy and I believe clarity and charity aren’t mutually exclusive. My goal wasn’t to defend Latter-day Saint beliefs, but to explore how and why certain portrayals (like those in The God Makers) shaped evangelical responses, sometimes in unhelpful ways.
Thanks again for engaging.
Thank you for this [much-needed] clarification.
I say 'much-needed',
because
👉🏼THIS BONIFIED CULT👈🏼
runs online ads, which deliberately masquerade
as 'Christian',
and only later,
divulge their identities.
I was a baptized L.D.S. convert,
raised up in 👉🏼THAT CULT👈🏼
from age eight. My testimony
can be found on Facebook.
I firmly believe that we must take a very strong stand
against Mormonism and the so-caller Jehovah's Witnesses,
which are blatant offshoots of
Satanic, Zionist, Talmudic, Kabbalist Judaism.
These Freemasonic wolves have infiltrated
and subverted every single 'christian' church.
The 501(c)(3)
[state-beholden] 'churches'
are rife with them.
They are 'Judas Goats',
leading the sheep-le to the slaughter.
Hi Linda. I hope you don't mind my interjecting. As a former member of the LDS Church myself, I can tell you that very few Mormons ever read the Godmakers book nor watched the video. We were told not to. And we didn't. It was only after leaving that I read the book and while I can say that Ed Decker and Dick Baer intended to help others, they went about it completely the wrong way. The cut and paste approach to research being one of them. But moreso the sensationalism involved. I went through the Temple. My husband and I were sealed in it before the changes. Simply pointing out that we did and said things that most people would find weird is enough. Calling it practicing Satanism is, shall we say, a big stretch? Practicing Freemasonry yes. But Satanism? "Pay Lay Ale" does not mean hail Satan nor anything close to it.
Joseph Smith had taken a course in Hebrew. Not too many critics of Mormonism are aware of it and I'm fairly sure Ed Decker wasn't, either. It comes from the Hebrew: פה לאל or Pe le El, meaning "mouth to God" and is used in Jewish prayers to call to God in prayer (you may recognize El as in El Shaddai).
No doubt in his lessons Smith learned the phrase.
Today you will hear Jewish people say: "From your mouth to Gods ears".
What I am saying, I guess, is that biblically speaking, just the existence of the temples is enough to show the lds church as heretical. We don't have to sensationalize it and that, sad to say, is what Mr. Decker did in the Godmakers.