J. M. SJŌDAHL (An Elder in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints).
Copyright 1913 by JOSEPH F. SMITH[i] Trustee-in-Trust for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints [Mormons], pp. 16-18).
“We learn from the letter of Paul to the Colossians that the tendencies manifested in Essenism, and later in Gnosticism, began to make themselves felt very early in the churches. Wherever these tendencies pre vailed, knowledge was held as the exclusive property of a few, while the many necessarily had to be ignorant and dependent on the privileged class for their enlightenment. From this, class distinction developed. A priest caste arose, and the foundation was laid for future ecclesiastical despotism and arrogance. Another result of the Gnostic tendencies was philosophical speculation and at tempts to solve mysteries not revealed, and beyond the power of human understanding. In the pursuance of such attempts, pagan philosophy was introduced in theology. The doctrine of the Godhead was paganized. Superstition was substituted for faith in the administration of the sacraments. The worship of “saints” and relics was incorporated in the divine service, and many other features of paganism were adopted bodily. Asceticism was another feature of the tendencies noted, and as a result celibacy was adopted with all its demoralizing consequences, and brotherhoods and sisterhoods of friars and nuns flourished.
“The officials of the Church, as appointed by our Lord, were leaders and teachers of the people. They were the instruments through which He communicated His will, and as such they were the servants, not the masters, of the people. This position was retained for some time after the death of the first Apostles, but after the beginning of the third century a great change took place. The ministers became a priest caste. They claimed to hold the office of mediators between God and the laity, and gradually they called themselves the representatives and vice gerents of the Son of God. As such they claimed magical power to change bread and wine into divine flesh and blood, and to impart to water the occult virtue of regenerating sinners.”
The above paragraphs were an early attempt to vilify the Catholic Church by claiming her “Great Apostacy” and to justify the “Truth” of the LDS Church.
Catholic apologist Patrick Madrid, one of the foremost experts counters this heresy:
“Mormonism’s main argument against the Catholic Church is its claim that there was a total apostasy of the early Church and that Catholicism is the apostate, counterfeit of the original. Mormons disagree with Catholics on many key doctrines (e.g., the Trinity, heaven and hell, salvation, etc.), but they recognize the antiquity of the Catholic Church. They understand that the only other Church that can make a plausible claim to being the original Church—the Church Christ established—is the Catholic Church. The Protestant churches, Mormons are quick to point out, can only trace themselves as far back as the beginning of the Reformation (circa 1517), so none of them can be the true Church. But the Catholic Church can easily demonstrate its existence and continuity of doctrine back to the time of the first Christians.
Mormons will try to make their case by citing biblical passages such as Matthew 24:4-12; Mark 13:21-23; Luke 21:7-8; Acts 20:29-30; 2 Thessalonians 2:1-12; 2 Timothy 3:1-7, 4:1-4; 2 Peter 2:1-3; and Jude 17-19. Notice that several of these verses say “many will fall away,” but none says or implies that there would ever be a complete apostasy of the Church. There’s no evidence to support the total apostasy theory.
The verses listed above describe an apostasy in the “end times” or the “latter days,” as the King James Version renders it. This is another disproof of the theory of a total apostasy. The Mormons claim the apostasy took place early on, definitely by the early third century. But the second and third centuries were not the “latter days.” Joseph Smith named his religion the “Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter-Day Saints,” warning his converts that they were living in the latter days. So, ironically, these verses fail even just for the simple fact that they refer to an era that is at least 1800 years after the time the New Testament was written.
Christ guaranteed that the Church would never be overcome. Both He and the Apostles speak of this frequently. You can present the Catholic case to a Mormon by following this step-by-step presentation of biblical evidence.
First, read the passages that speak of the Church being Christ’s own Body (e.g., Romans 12:1-5; 1 Corinthians 12:12-27; Ephesians 3:4-6; 5:21-32; Colossians 1:18). Christ is the head of His Church (cf. Eph. 4:15-16) and He indwells each member of His body, the members enjoying an organic spiritual union with Him (cf. Jn. 15:1-8). So it’s inconceivable that Christ would allow His Body to succumb as a whole to Satan’s attacks.
Second, point out that St. John reassures us that Christ is more powerful than Satan (cf. 1 Jn. 4:4). Then read 1 Timothy 3:15, which describes the Church as the “household of God.” Or, to put it another way, the Church is the “house that Christ built.” That house cannot be pillaged by Satan because “no one can enter a strong man’s house to plunder his property unless he first ties up the strong man. Then, he can plunder his house” (Mk. 3:27; cf. Mt. 12:29). Jesus Christ is the “strong man” who guards His household, the Catholic Church. While it’s true that the devil can conquer individual Christians, who commit mortal sin and cut themselves off from union with Christ (cf. Rom. 11:22; Gal. 5:4; 1 Jn. 5:16-17), the Church as a whole is preserved by Christ, who promised, “Behold, I will be with you until the end of the world” (Mt. 28:20). We are told that the “wheat and chaff” (good and bad) will be side by side in the Church until the end (Mt. 13:24-43, 47-50).
Third, remind the Mormon that Christ promised St. Peter, “You are Rock, and on this rock I will build my Church and the gates of hell will not prevail against it” (Mt. 16:18-19). Clearly, Christ would not command His followers to do something He Himself could not do. Remember what He promised His followers: “Everyone who listens to these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on a rock. The rains fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and buffeted the house. But it did not collapse; it had been set solidly on a rock (Mt. 7:24- 25). It was no coincidence that Christ promised He would build His Church “on this rock” (see also Hebrews 11:10 and 1 Peter 2:6-8).
Jesus Fails the First Time
Mormonism stands or falls on the premise that Christ was a failure, that His attempts at building a Church flopped. And if they flopped, He would be made to look foolish for saying, “Which of you wishing to construct a tower does not first sit down and calculate the cost to see if there is enough for its completion? Otherwise, after laying the foundation and finding himself unable to finish the work the onlookers should laugh at him and say, ‘This one began to build but did not have the resources to finish’” (Lk. 15:28-30).
Fourth, besides investing the Church with His own authority to teach, make disciples, and administer the sacraments (cf. Mt. 28:20; Mt. 18:18; Lk. 10:16), Christ promised the protection and guidance of the Holy Spirit: “I will ask the Father and He will send you another Advocate to be with you always, the Spirit of truth, which the world cannot accept, because it neither sees nor knows it. But you know it, because it remains with you, and will be in you. I will not leave you orphans (John 14:16-18; emphasis added).
If the Mormons are right about the total apostasy, Christ did leave us as orphans for over 1600 years. This means He was either a liar or a fool, making promises he couldn’t keep. But Christ is God, He is all-powerful and He keeps His promises. His Church cannot sink into a total apostasy.
“Jesus Fails the Second Time
“Smith also claimed that after His Resurrection, Christ appeared in South America to the Nephites—a group of Jews who, Smith claimed, had migrated to the New World between 600 and 592 B.C. (cf. 1 Nephi, chapters 1-18). He organized a parallel church there (somewhere in South America, Mormons claim), which was a mirror image of the church in Palestine. But Christ’s second attempt at church building failed as miserably as His first, and soon His South American church collapsed under the weight of evil members and pagan influences, drifting into complete apostasy (cf. 3 Nephi, chapters 11-28).
“Practical Advice When Dealing with Mormons
“Besides highlighting the above passages in your Bible, cross reference them with the Catechism for ease of use. Read the Catechism’s sections on the nature of the Church, including its indefectibility, that is, its inability to teach contrary to Christ’s teaching (cf. Catechism nos., 669, 672, 737-768, 779-822).
“Pray for the illumination and guidance of the Holy Spirit. Be charitable and patient; don’t be sarcastic or mean-spirited. Present the Catholic case in a friendly but firm way and be ready to give out good apologetics literature that will explain things in greater detail.
“When Mormons come to the door, make their apostasy theory the focal point of the discussion. Tell them you’ll discuss other issues provided they can prove there was a total apostasy. If they can’t, you’re not interested in whatever else the Mormon Church has to say. After all, if the Great Apostasy didn’t happen, Mormonism has no reason for existence, since there’d be no need for a restoration.”
Used with Permission.
[i] Joseph Fielding Smith Sr. (1838 –1918) served as the sixth president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). He was a nephew of Joseph Smith, founder of the Latter-Day Saint movement, and the last LDS Church president who had personally known him.