I Love Mormons: A New Way to Share Christ with Latter-Day Saints

This book is perfect for those living in, around, or near Mormons. It dispels many misbeliefs about the Mormon religion and it takes the outsider into the religion without bashing, hating, or belittling them. It explains the differences between a evangelical Christian and a Mormon instead of just laying into Mormonism as if they were the most evil of people. Having moved to Utah myself with very little previous Mormon interaction I found this book as a life saver in terms of getting a grasp on everything culture to vocabulary to history. It is a must read for any Christian or non-Christian, in other words, everyone should read it. It is a very easy read as well.

I was fully prepared to study up on the various problems with Mormon theology and lovingly lay them on a friend of mine, expecting that he'd see his mistake and hopefully change his mind. This book showed me that my idea was clearly wrong. It's not the way to approach Mormons. In fact there is no secret or special way at all. You approach them as you would anybody that you love, with respect and care, and without condescension. This books deals with the core theological issues but not before explaining real Mormons for who they are- wonderful people with real lives and a strong commitment to their culture and country (and others who aren't so devout- like some Christians). The book also explains what the approach I was ready to take actually results in- walls going up so thick that the clearest, most well explained and lovingly presented argument will never penetrate them. The author has lived as an evangelical Christian in the Mormon capital of the world for many years. He knows what happens when you challenge Mormons on their faith, and explains in detail what an improper attitude does to any chance of being taken seriously by them. Please, please read this book before talking theology with any Mormon, or suggest it to another person you know that will be.

This is the best book out there on the LDS if your interest is in following the call of Christ on your life (the great commission). This is not the book for you if you would rather simply judge others as heretics or feel good about yourself for witnessing on someone. The "unique methodology" in this book has proven over the last couple of centuries to be effective -- whether you are in China or Utah. Oh, and it was also the methodology of the Master.

This book really focuses on the Christian living a life of love and authenticity among those of differing faiths. I felt this was more the focus of the book than "converting Mormons", although our desire is always that all others would come into a redeeming relationship with Christ. Rowe's theme is basically that when others met Christ in us, they will be drawn to Him. We can then invite them to join us on our faith walk. I found this a very enjoyable book to read and developed a new respect for Mormons as well. Rowe makes every effort to acknowledge the areas in which we can have a great deal of appreciation for the Mormon culture, if not their doctrines.

I am currently polishing off David L. Rowe's book I Love Mormons: A New Way to Share Christ with Latter-day Saints. Despite the negative reviews it received from FARMS and other Mormon publications (given the subject matter of the book, this is no surprise) calling him, among other things, a "wolf" and an anti-Mormon, I believe that Dr. Rowe's book is one of the most important that any evangelical has ever published on the topic of Mormonism. It explains the Mormon worldview and way of knowing in no-nonsense, down-to-earth language, and points out that the so-called "Bible-bash" is not and has never been an effective way of reaching Mormons. He advises us to have humility, show a profound love and respect for Mormon people and their religious culture, and speak to them out of personal experience rather than out of a sort of disconnected analysis of DNA, history, and/or a medley of Bible verses (he does suggest that it's okay to treat these topics when the opportunity arises, but says that timing is everything). Any evangelical who wants to "reach" Mormons should read this book. Rowe's journey and experience of trying to "reach" Mormons closely parallels my own, and I can vouch for his assertions about what "works" and what does not. I find that when I humbly and simply share my own experience of God, when I am vulnerable about my encounters with Mormonism, and when I focus on the good things in my own religious tradition rather than the bad things in the Mormon one, my arguments with Mormon people become conversations, even opportunities to share with them the truth that God has given me. Moreover, when I actually listen to what they are saying, I find that I often learn at least as much as I teach. A weakness of the book, perhaps, is that it assumes that Mormons are not "Christians" without really trying to explain why this is so. For EVs who start with the same assumption, the book is perfect. For those who are considering a broader definition of the term "Christian" and are optimistic about the scope of salvation, this feels like an egregious omission. Nevertheless, in Rowe's defense (note that I haven't read the last chapter yet) I have not yet found any place where he explicitly says Mormons are "not saved". The basic premise of the book-- that we should "share Christ" with Mormons-- implies that this is true of many of them. But Rowe also does not treat Mormonism as a monolithic people group, and recognizes that there is a lot of diversity within it. I have a feeling that if you asked Dr. Rowe whether he believes some Mormons are "saved", he would answer in the affirmative. A second weakness of the book, in my mind, is in its treatment of the issue of grace and works. Perhaps it is my Pentecostal/holiness theological upbringing that causes me to rebel against any understanding of the gospel that sacrifices morality on the altar of grace. To Rowe's credit, I don't think this is entirely his intent, and he makes the issue much less central