Copyright © 2007 Jay Scott Lowder All rights reserved. The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary has permission to reproduce and disseminate this document in any form by any means for purposes chosen by the Seminary, including, without limitation, preservation or instruction. UNRESOLVED TENSIONS IN THE MORMON DOCTRINES OF GOD, MAN, AND SAL V ATION DURING THREE CRITICAL PERIODS OF DEVELOPMENT A Dissertation Presented to the Faculty of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy by Jay Scott Lowder May 2007 UMI Number: 3258200 Copyright 2007 by Lowder, Jay Scott All rights reserved. INFORMATION TO USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. Broken or indistinct print, colored or poor quality illustrations and photographs, print bleed-through, substandard margins, and improper alignment can adversely affect reproduction. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if unauthorized copyright material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. ® UMI UMI Microform 3258200 Copyright 2007 by ProQuest Information and Learning Company. All rights reserved. This microform edition is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. ProQuest Information and Learning Company 300 North Zeeb Road P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, M148106-1346 APPROVAL SHEET UNRESOLVED TENSIONS IN THE MORMON DOCTRINES OF GOD, MAN, AND SALVATION DURING THREE CRITICAL PERIODS OF DEVELOPMENT Jay Scott Lowder Read and Approved by: Chad Owen Brand TABLE OF CONTENTS Page LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS............................................ VI PREFACE. ..... .. .. .. VB Chapter 1. INTRODUCTION............................................. 1 The Importance of Evangelical Studies of Mormonism. 5 Unresolved Tensions in Mormon Doctrines. 7 The Exclusive Truth Claim ofthe LDS Church. 8 The Significance of Unresolved Doctrinal Tensions. .. 11 2. METHODOLOGy............................................. 13 The Difficulty of Determining Mormon Doctrines. .. 13 The Challenge of Mormon Minimalism . 22 Inadequacies of the Minimalist Methodology. 25 Methodological Approach. .. 35 Sources for Doctrinal Analysis. .. 37 Areas of Doctrinal Tension. .. ... 42 Periods of Doctrinal Development .............................. , 42 Three Periods of Mormon Doctrine. .. 45 3. OMNISCIENCE. 52 III Chapter Page The Early Mormon View of Omniscience. .. 53 The Traditional Mormon View of Omniscience. 57 The Neo-absolutist Mormon View of Omniscience. 77 Unresolved Tensions in the Mormon View of Omniscience .......... 87 4. OMNIPOTENCE. 92 The Early Mormon View of Omnipotence. 92 The Traditional Mormon View of Omnipotence. 98 The Mormon Neo-absolutist View of Omnipotence .. 118 Unresolved Tensions in the Mormon View of Omnipotence . 126 5. THE NATURE OF HUMAN BEINGS .............................. 128 The Early Mormon View of Human Beings. .. 129 The Traditional Mormon View of Human Beings. .. 133 The Mormon Neo-absolutistic View of Human Beings. .. 157 Unresolved Tensions in the Mormon Doctrine of Human Beings. .. 169 6. THE MEANS OF SAL V A nON. .. 172 The Early Mormon View of the Means of Salvation . .. .. 172 The Traditional Mormon View of the Means of Salvation. .. 176 The Mormon Neo-absolutist View of the Means of Salvation .......... 191 Comparing the Neo-absolutist View with the Evangelical View. 203 Unresolved Tensions in the Mormon Doctrine of the Means of Salvation. .. 204 7. FAITH AND REASON. .. 206 The Traditional Mormon View of Faith and Reason. .. 207 IV Chapter Page The Mormon Neo-Absolutist View of Faith and Reason .............. 220 The Unresolved Tensions in the Mormon View of Faith and Reason ............................... " 241 8. CONCLUSION. .. 243 The Presence of Unresolved Tensions in Mormon Doctrine. .. 243 The Significance of Doctrinal Tensions. .. 248 Further Areas of Study. .. 249 A Proposal for Future Apologetics. .. 252 A Call for Doctrinal Teaching. ... 254 BIBILIOGRAPHY ................................................. " 255 v LIST OF ABBREVIA nONS BYU Brigham Young University CHC Comprehensive History ofthe Church CR Conference Reports D&C Doctrine and Covenants DJS Joseph Smith, Discourses ofthe Prophet Joseph Smith DS Joseph Fielding Smith, Doctrines ofSalvation EM Encyclopedia ofMormonism HC B.H. Roberts, History ofthe Church ofJesus Christ ofthe Latter-day Saints HWD Craig L. Bloomberg and Stephen E. Robinson, How Wide the Divide? A Mormon and an Evangelical in Conversation. JD Journal ofDiscourses LCL LDS Collectors Library 2005 CD-ROM LDS Latter-day Saints LF Lectures on Faith MD Bruce R. McConkie, Mormon Doctrine MFP Messages ofthe First Presidency TJS Joseph Smith, Teachings ofthe Prophet Joseph Smith VI PREFACE The writing of a dissertation is always a joint venture involving more people than just the writer. This is particularly true in my case. The faculty of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary represents the finest collection of evangelical scholars in the world. Several professors have contributed significantly to my intellectual growth during my time at the seminary. Among them are James Parker, Thomas Schreiner, and Bruce Ware. Through his seminars and informal conversations, Ronald Nash nurtured my passion for evaluating worldviews. Ted Cabal, my supervising professor, provided many insights and much refreshing encouragement during the process of writing. The seed of the idea that germinated into this dissertation came from a seminar with James Chancellor, one of my committee members. I also thank my other committee member, Chad Brand, for his valuable insights. David Puckett, associate vice president for doctoral studies, demonstrated patience and compassion during my many years in the doctoral program. I have also received tremendous support from my family. My parents and in­ laws have provided financial and emotional support during this journey. They have never wavered in their commitment to this dissertation. My wife, Christy, who is my partner and co-laborer in Christ, has joyfully sacrificed for the completion of this project especially in the task of editing. Her own Vll commitment to theological and intellectual growth has rivaled my own, and as a result, her cheerful encouragement has strengthened my resolve many times. Jay s. Lowder Louisville, Kentucky May 2007 Vlll CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION The Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter-day Saints is a relatively young religious movement, yet during its one hundred and seventy-seven year history, it has espoused a wide diversity of doctrines. I When Joseph Smith founded the church in 1830, he believed that it was a restoration of the true gospel. He claimed that God had forbidden him in a vision from joining any of the existing churches because none of them possessed the true gospel. During the long, dark night of the "great apostasy," Christian doctrines had been perverted and changed.2 Smith proclaimed that his church was a restoration of true beliefs about God. It was his role as the living prophet of God to restore the doctrines that were lost after the death of the apostles.3 Because Latter-day Saints believe that their restored doctrines are true, Mormon leaders and scholars commonly assume that the doctrines of the church have never changed. While there might have been different emphases at different times, they deny that any substantial changes in doctrine have ever occurred. Many evangelical IThis dissertation will examine only the branch of the Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter-day Saints that followed the leadership of Brigham Young after the death of Joseph Smith. This church is headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah. The tenns Monnon, Monnonism, and LDS are commonly used to refer to this church. For the origin and rapid growth of the LDS church see Rodney Stark, "The Rise of a New World Faith," Review a/Religious Research 26 (September 1984): 18-27. 2 Joseph Smith - History I: 18-19. 3Todd Compton, "Apostasy," in EM, 1:56-58; Cory H. Maxwell, "Restoration of All Things," 1 2 scholars have also assumed that there is a consistency in Mormon doctrine. Based upon this unexamined assumption, both Mormon and evangelical scholars frequently attempt to identify, summarize, and evaluate LDS doctrines by citing only a few "authoritative" Mormon leaders.4 Because of this assumed yet unproven belief that Mormon theology has remained unchanged, it has been difficult for Mormon and evangelical scholars to account for seemingly divergent theological statements of Mormon leaders. For example, it appears that Mormon leaders have taught contradictory views of omniscience. Hyrum Smith, who was Joseph Smith's brother, a patriarch of the church, and an associate president of the church, proclaimed in 1844 that he "would not serve a God that had not all wisdom and all power. ,,5 Only twenty-three years later, President Brigham Young attacked as erroneous a similar exhaustive foreknowledge view held by Orson Pratt. Like Hyrum Smith, Pratt taught that God possesses all knowledge and as a result, he cannot continue to learn new truths. God had complete knowledge of the past, present, and future. Young, acting as the living prophet of the church, voiced his opposition to the teachings of Pratt, specifically his doctrine of omniscience: "According to his theory, God can progress no further in knowledge and power; but the God that I in EM, 3:1218-19. 4The issue of whether