Marv Cowan Interview Part 2

Answering questions by doing what you were hearing Johnson deals with 36 commonly asked questions by your LDS friends and neighbors. It's a great resource for Christians want to share their faith with friends and loved ones.

Be sure to pick up your copy today at your favorite Christian bookstore viewpoint on Mormonism program that examines the teachings of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints from a biblical perspective viewpoint on Mormonism sponsored by Mormonism research ministry since 1979 Mormonism research ministry has been dedicated to equipping the body of Christ with answers regarding the Christian faith in a manner that expresses gentleness and respect. And now, your host for today's viewpoint on Mormonism so glad to be with us for this additional viewpoint on Mormonism.

I'm your host, Bill McKeever, founder and director Mormonism research ministry and we have a treat for you again today I have with me Mark Cowan, an old friend of mine. I shouldn't say it that way. You've been a friend of mine for a long time, say, an old friend at this sounds derogatory.

Although we both kind of reflecting that as we look back on all the years that we have had working among the Mormon people and Mark Cowan is with missions door and the website. If you want to read more of Marv's material as you talk Christian pub.com you talk Christian pub.com yesterday Marv we are talking about your conversion to Christianity and the fact that you are challenged by some of your young friends because you were a teenager at the time and you had responded how one of your goals in the next life was to be a God. And of course your Christian friends probably looked at you little cross eyed, wondering what in the world are you talking about and you expressed how you thought the Lorenzo Snow couplet by fifth president Lorenzo Snow is man is God once was, as God is man may become a man may be was in the Bible. And so you realize, as you said yesterday that you're getting towards the age of going on a mission and you thought what I better at least read the standard works so you're talking about the book of Mormon, the doctrine and covenants Pearl of great price, and then started reading the Bible, but as you mentioned yesterday when you're going through the book of Mormon. You were finding a lot of the unique Mormon teachings that you had been raised on and that had pretty much a profound impact on you. Why do you think, well, I kinda know the answer to this but I want to hear your take. Why do you think the book of Mormon is the first and foremost book that the missionaries want their investigators to read and embrace. Why don't they just jump right in with their investigators and just tell them all these unique things about Mormonism is just because it's going to scare them off.

Why do they use the book of Mormon and do you think that's an honest tactic on their part will let me do it sincerely. But still I think the reason is because the book of Mormon sounds a lot like the Bible. In fact, there's a lot of King James Bible in the book of Mormon and a lot of people assume. I think because of the similarity it's a 1611 A.D. English and it sounds like the King James Beckwith Smith did that the King James Bible was basically the Bible that everybody had there were few exceptions, but that was the main one and Smith used that language not only in the book of Mormon, but you'll find a lot of it in the doctrine and covenants that it as well as in the pearl of great price, but to people in 1830 when the book of Mormon first came out work speaking 1611 English so it's cuter why it comes out in the archaic English at that time that your you're looking back in your noticing this problem, yes. But when you are Mormon. Did it ever don you are Indian, speaking in King James English. It probably did not appear to you like I didn't think of it back. At that time.

Later, the more I started those kind of questions did come up one of the things that early on in reading the book of Mormon.

I saw that skin color change in the fight for white skin nice with dark skin.

I think it's in the third Nephi chapter 2 for you can see that change takes place within one year, and as I was thinking about that I thought I've been around a number of American Indians were Mormons, but I've never seen one turn white and red on in the book of Mormon and it talks about how God doesn't say miracles today did anciently. So in my thinking.

Why isn't that happening, you know, you would think that that would probably wake up. A lot of people are reading that because when it does talk about that when the dark skin Lamanite embraces the true gospel courses the gospel of Mormonism that it they would turn white and delightful and I remember when I was for studying Mormonism and I read that and I thought, why doesn't that affect Latter Day Saints more than it does, why do they seem to gloss over that and not think about that because I remember Spencer Kimball making a big deal out of this.

And because he was wet from Safford, Arizona. He was near.

There is large Indian reservations.

Of course in Arizona is very familiar with the Native Americans and their and and he actually want. At one point gave an example of a young girl who had embraced Mormonism and he said was turning shades lighter than her darker parents and I remember reading that actually espousing this teaching that's not something you hear anymore of course.

And he probably wouldn't senses since 1978 when it comes to the seed of Cain, as they call those of African heritage, which of course the skin color issue is the same, but it's up to its two different people groups and I notice a lot of Christians sometimes don't understand that you can't mix. Is it still showing some kind of spirituality dependent on your skin color course is nonsensical. But that was a part of early Mormonism now when the changes made in 1978 you been out Mormonism now for a long time else but you still probably knew of Mormons and knew at least the temperature hearing you talk as you been here for decades. What was the mindset when that happened in 1978 when the priesthood man against those who were of African heritage, offset or allowed to hold the priesthood. What was the climate you remember back then there were some that were very upset. There were some that actually dropped out of the church because of that they just couldn't believe that something so basic could change like that because back when I was growing up. It was ingrained was part of the pre-mortal existence. These people with the dark skin were people that were undecided. They couldn't make up their minds and they didn't want to follow Satan that point, but this is target the war in heaven. This is the context here that they were known, likes fence sitters and now there's been a lot of controversy now because the Mormon church's acts like they don't know why anymore. You were taught that yes oh yes back in 78 I think as long about September, so Chris will lock us to whom you he and I went down and talked with LeGrand Richards is a Mormon apostle of tasseled and asking Pointblank was not a revelation. There was an agreement among the apostles and I was surprised she said was an agreement which was interesting to me sounds like more of a corporate decision rather than a revelation.

I wonder if a lot of people would ever stop to think about that. The problem I think the Mormon church has. And certainly you've recognize this as they've written just about everything down. It's just a matter of knowing where to look up and now with the age of digitizing past documents and stuff. It's so easy to go and find this information and I've made the comment that when I when the Mormon church started digitizing their material that was a great day for me because now I don't have to wade through page after page after page to find anything I can just do keywords now and find these things almost instantly change research immensely for all of us, absolutely. Now, hasn't help the Mormon church. I don't think in a lot of areas because now the average member of the church can find out the same stuff that we've been finding out and I know you probably been accused of being anti-AND I don't know what we are now since you're not supposed to use the word Mormon anymore, although I still find some are still accusing us of being that how does that make you feel more because I've always detested that title because I'm not against Mormons at all what you think about it I'm not either like normal people.

I would live here but it's the doctrine of Luther teaching and calling it Christianity that bothers me.

If they want to call me an anti-Mormon because I point out some of the problems I see with those kind of claims they can do it but to yeah I've been especially when I first started I was cursed by the power of the priesthood so many times after a year or two I started single, you better give me a double whammy because lesson didn't work yeah and it wasn't too long after that that through some recent I stop getting cursed by the power of the priesthood that I don't know if that had a whole lot to do with it but at least they they decided they shouldn't be doing that and apparently word got back to the leaders in and they cut them off. They weren't doing it but remember that one time I was in California and Northern California and was speaking in the sky jumped up and he shouted, I assure you in the name of Jesus Christ. This blaspheming against the true church, and I looked at it just went right on with what I was talking about and we got through it had time for questions and answers and stuff and dismiss the service. I noticed that he and the whole line of Mormons within were trying to get out the back door so I ran to my said hey you had some excitement when I was up, I'd like to talk to you and is not sure we got anything to talk about that. He finally agreed and he and the pastor and I am only half a dozen other LDS people talk till about midnight and they didn't have any answers for the questions that I was raising and as we were getting ready to leave.

I said to the fellow that challenged me. I said if anything should demonstrate to you that you do not have the priesthood you been told you have tonight should do it and it was like I had with the club just have a priest.

It is everything with them. Now they've got this idea that they have a restored Aaronic priesthood, which, of course, none of them qualify for this. This alleged Melchizedek priesthood that they talk about McCarthy nearly missed misuse versus that of Hebrews.

In such there's no example in the New Testament, any of the apostles ever having this Melchizedek priesthood and you think something as important as that is in Mormonism there be some mention of that is at least attributed to Peter and Paul and others in the early years of the Christian church alone. You would think would would open the eyes of a lot of Latter Day Saints but there there is a spiritual blindness. There's no doubt about that and I think as Christians we need to be compassionate. We need to be sympathetic need to be patient because Mormons such as yourself. You didn't see a lot of these. Please note these things and it wasn't till you are challenge that you started looking into it, and the Holy Spirit graciously was opening your eyes to a lot of these truths which eventually led you out of the Mormon church we been talking to Mark Callan he's with missions door and if you want to check out the website. He's affiliated with the Utah Christian pub.calm Utah Christian pub.com and yesterday Margie said if somebody wanted to write you. They may have any questions. I'd like to ask you.

It's pastor Marv 80 the number 80 pastor marv80@gmail.com and tomorrow I want to continue talking about your conversion out of Mormonism and some of the struggles that you had going into Christianity and so we been talking with Mark Callan and again is with missions door and that's his website is Utah Christian pub.com. Thank you for listening. If you would like more information we guarding his research ministry. We encourage you to visit our website www.mrm.org you can request our free newsletter Mormonism research. We hope you'll join us again as we look at another viewpoint is