Great Apostasy

I was thrilled with the speed of the arrival of the books. It is very worth the read. Thanks. June

All personal religious feelings aside, this is an interesting look at the early catholic church. Several reviewers have condemmed it as purely anti-Catholic rhetoric. The author makes a point in the book to say that it is a history of the corrupt nature of the Catholic church in the past, not a judgement on the present Catholic church. Differences obviously remain between Catholics and Mormons, but the Catholic church has come a long way from the history presented in the book. Everyone agrees that the Pope these days is a gnarly guy and that the Catholic church is a wonderful organization now that they're not torturing and burning folks. This history points out that the Pope's of old weren't quite so gnarly; orgies in the Vatican, murder, bribery, etc. The author cites work mainly from prominent non LDS historians so the only argument someone can really have is how the history is presented, ah well. To a Mormon or Catholic (or anyone else for that matter), this book is pretty interesting. It's pretty deep reading though.

Elder James E. Talmage makes a survey of the Latter-day Saint view of the Great Apostasy. Many, in fact all western churches recognize that there was a falling-away from what Jesus Christ taught. The idea of an apostasy was the basis for the Protestant Reformation. Luther recognized that something was not quite right with the Universal Church, so his attempts at reformation indicate that the church had been changed from its original character. And the Roman Catholic Counter-Reformation is a tacit compliment and tacit consent to the notion of a falling away. The Great Schism (AD 1054) shows that the Eastern and western Churches thought that the other branch had become corrupt. By the way, the Koran mentions that some of the Christian practices, such as adoration of Mary (Surah 5:116, 9:31), and the resurrection (Surah 4:157), and Jesus’ divine nature (Surah 5:72, 6:101) were wrong, so Mohammed may in fact be the first Reformer!Soren Kierkegaard said, "O Luther, you had 95 theses . . . The matter is far more terrible—there is only one thesis. The Christianity of the New Testament does not exist at all. Here there is nothing to reform." (The Essential Kierkegaard, 428) Furthermore, Mr. K always laments that he is one without authority to be a preacher, although he does it anyways, calling himself a poet instead of an apostle. (The Essential Kierkegaard, p. 84, 267-68, 385, 450, 454)So, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is not a lone voice, but part of a chorus.In this book, Elder Talmage covers the external and the internal causes of the falling away from the Church and Gospel that Jesus Christ established. External causes are the Jewish persecution and the Pagan persecution, and internal causes being the inclusion of worldly philosophies in the doctrines, the change in the sacraments (ordinances) of the Church, and the change in church government and organization. He then brings us through the Apostasy to the Restoration in the 1800’s by Joseph Smith.Elder Talmage uses his rather sesquipedalian style keeps you going for the dictionary, and can, at times, be a thick steak to chew on. However, the book has slim chapters, and is well organized, so you can get back on track quickly. The only complaint I would have is that it would be nice to have some illustrations and pictures.As I said, this is nothing new, since all Christian denominations believe that something happened to the Church between the end of the Book of Revelation and now. The pressing question, however, is not "Did it happen?" but "What are we now to do?" Elder Talmage expresses his faith—and mine also—that there needed to be a restoration of everything that was lost, and that Joseph Smith was called to be the prophet that resorted Christ’s Church. "New wine in old bottles . . ."As with all books, you need to read it to understand it.

This work traces Early Christian History from Christ through to the formation of the Catholic Church and eventually to the Restoration of the gospel to Joseph Smith. Explains why the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints professes to be the "only true and living church on the face of the earth". Wonderfully written and well reasoned.

Talmage, even recognized by Einstien for his intellect,respectfully reviews the history of religion after Christ'sresurrection and the consequent apostacy which began even during his life. As always, eloquently written. Wish this book would find its way into popular Mormon culture and push us to see Christianity through the ages.