How Wide the Divide?: A Mormon & an Evangelical in Conversation

by Stephen E. Robinson and Craig L. Blomberg

Book Overview

Mormons and evangelicals don't often get along very well, at least not once they begin to discuss their religious beliefs. They often set about trying to convert one another, considering the faith the other holds as defective in some critical way. Unfortunately, much of what they say about one another simply isn't true. False stereotypes abound on both sides, preventing genuine and helpful communication. Having discovered this sad state of affairs,...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0830819916
• ISBN13: 9780830819911
• Release Date: April 1997
• Publisher: IVP Academic
• Length: 228 Pages
• Weight: 0.63 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 5.7" x 8.2"

Customer Reviews

Great dialogue

This truly a landmark book. Where a Mormon and Evangelical can speak clearly to each other and not being able to succor punch the other. They discuss four areas of belief: Scripture, God and deification, Christ and the Trinity, and Salvation. Both represent there version of what their beliefs on these items are very well. They then talk about what the differences and common grounds are. Both show a very great respect for the other. I certainly recommend this book to anyone wanting to know about some of the differences between Evangelicals and Mormons. This book has recieved some negative reviews. Some have attacked Stephen Robinson for not knowing his own faith. I want to mention that Robinson is a life time Mormon, has spent many more hours studying his churchs beliefs than those who think they know more then he does about Mormons. Some have attcked Craig Blomberg for not knowing how big the differneces between Mormons and Evangelicals and for allowing Robinson to give a sugar coated view of Mormonism. Trust me, Blomberg being a Evangelical scholar knows of all the little attacks Evangelicals have used against Mormons far better then those who say he does not. Blomberg was just very respectable and used commen sense in knowing that Robinson knows his Mormon beliefs better then he does. These two criticisms of the authors is done by extreme ignorance. I don't really have any criticisms of the book. I will say that I do believe the divide between Mormons and Evangelicals are not as wide as some think but that they are wider than the conclusion of this book. I would recommend also reading FARMS (Foundation of Ancient Research and Mormon Studies) Review of Books, Volume 11, Number 2, 1999. Which reviews this book. I know this a Mormon publication but the first review in it is done by Evangelicals Paul Owen and Carl Mosser. So you do get both sides of the coin in that Review. Also the reviews in this Farms Review of books does give more views and does give the book How Wide the Divide some more balance.

This book changed my life

This book is essentially an exercise in intellectual honesty. Both authors (a) realize that there has been virtually zero healthy books written by Evangelicals and little more written by Mormons on the subject and (b) decide to do something about it. Less than a year before I read this book (subsequent to my having read The New Mormon Challenge, which had inspired me to read this) I remember making the comment, based on my only having read Evangelical Christian(?) critiques of Mormonism, "the term Mormon scholar is an oxymoron." Gosh, I felt [stupid]when I read these 2 books. I'm reading Craig Blomberg, who I have been familiar with for some time as an excellent New Testament scholar, actually losing some points to Stephen Robinson. Needless to say, I was shocked! Those guys weren't kidding in The New Mormon Challenge when they said there actually were good Mormon scholars winning the debate for Mormonism over evangelicalism (this was in a paper presented by Mosser and Owen entitled "losing the battle and not knowing it"). I by no means think we (evangelicals) have lost. I don't even think that Blomberg's points were totally defeated, but the book makes you sure of one thing - Nearly all Mormon-evangelical material in the past has been sub-par. This is the 1st step in making it a healthy relationship. I'll never forget how many times I've heard the phrase, "Mormon's just don't know what they believe." Stephen Robinson deals with this statement well. If nothing else, this book should bring some balance to the discussion, whether you're a Mormon who's never heard strong arguments from the Evangelical side, or an Evangelical who's never heard strong arguments from the Mormon side. It is my hope that this book will be the stepping stone to a plethora of scholarly and fair books on the subjects involved with Mormon-Evangelical relations.

A Christian-like fair shake...

...for both authors to express the beliefs of their religions, to the best of their understanding. Finally! An Evangelical gets to state 'his side', and a Mormon gets to state 'his side'... about scripture, God, the Trinity, and salvation... without un-Christian-like rumors and rhetoric. Both authors are peers who pracice their religions. Both know the doctrines of their denominations. Both say they don't "officially" represent either side... but they try to convey the beliefs to the best of their understanding. From my personal experiences with both sides, both authors are pretty well on target. The Mormon side wasn't written by any of the top Mormon leaders. However, the Evangelical side wasn't written by any of the top Evangelical leaders, either-- and I think that was part of the point of the book.I wouldn't like someone coming to me and saying, "You believe such-and-such", as if they can read my mind-- espcially if it wasn't true, and they really didn't know what they were talking about. How insulting! ~That is something this book tries to cut through.~ (For example, some thump on the Adam-God theory-- yet, Adam-God is not even in the official Mormon canon, and I have devout Mormon friends who don't embrace that theory.)The book was a fair look at both sides, done in a Christian spirit of love and respect. It was well worth my time and money.

Informative

As a Christian looking into Mormonism, I found it interesting to finally read a book that took an honest look at what LDS believe. So many of the books out there are so biased and full of inaccuracies or misleading statements that they are close to worthless. This book lets a knowledgeable Mormon state his religious views in his own words, comparing them with evangelical positions. An evangelical does the same thing, and the two authors' writings complement each other well. I thought that Robinson was at his strongest in his questioning of the evangelical views of the Trinity, and Blomberg was strongest in stating reasons he believes the Book of Mormono was written in the 19th century. (FWIW, I think they're both right about these.) I sometimes wonder if the harsh critics of this book have really read it. It's as objective of a look at Mormonism and evangelicalism as you're going to find anywhere. I'd highly recommend it for anyone familiar with evangelical jargon who is studying Mormonism, and for Mormons who want to know what other Christians believe. I think both will be surprised.