Groundbreaking book examines key philosophical and theological differences between the two religions
SAN FRANCISCO — Catholics may be missing out on fruitful interfaith dialogue by failing to engage with Latter-Day Saints, argues Francis Beckwith and Richard Sherlock in the new book, A CATHOLIC ENGAGEMENT WITH LATTER-DAY SAINTS (Ignatius Press)
Beckwith, Ph.D., is a professor of philosophy and church-state studies at Baylor University. Among his many books are The New Mormon Challenge and Taking Rites Seriously: Law, Politics, and the Reasonableness of Faith, winner of the American Academy of Religion’s 2016 Book Award for Excellence in the Study of Religion in the category of Constructive-Reflective Studies. Sherlock, Ph.D., a former Mormon who became Catholic in 2012, was a professor of philosophy for 47 years at Utah State University.
In A CATHOLIC ENGAGEMENT WITH LATTER-DAY SAINTS, Beckwith and Sherlock put together a collection of Catholic scholars who address several theological topics over which Mormons and Catholics hold contrary beliefs: the great apostasy, the papacy, the Eucharist, the Trinity, the incarnation, the nature of God, justification, sainthood, liturgy and deification. The contributors, some of whom are converts to Catholicism from Mormonism, offer a respectful, though critical, analysis of LDS beliefs.
A CATHOLIC ENGAGEMENT WITH LATTER-DAY SAINTS examines the LDS faith as an important and serious challenge to the Catholic narrative of the origin and development of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The book is free of the ad-hominem attacks and lurid historical details that are often found in popular Christian assessments of the LDS Church. Instead, the editors seek to further dialogue and create a better understanding of Mormonism.
“The Latter-day Saints are often ignored by all but a handful of Christian thinkers,” said Douglas Beaumont, Ph.D., author of Evangelical Exodus: Evangelical Seminarians and Their Paths to Rome. “This book steps into this void with an assemblage of stellar Catholic scholars. Those interested in engaging Mormons at a higher level than standard pop apologetics will find much to ponder in these pages.”
For more information, to request a media review copy, or to schedule an interview with Francis Beckwith and/or Richard Sherlock, please contact Kevin Wandra (404-788-1276 or [email protected]) of Carmel Communications.
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