Every Thursday night, dozens of people from all walks of life gather like anonymous alcoholics at a small house in Mesa with one thing in common:
Their faith.
The Concerned Christians meeting begins as the 32 attendees line the perimeters of the empty white room, regulars searching the crowd for familiar faces and newcomers glancing around hoping for a welcoming smile.
Bob Betts, the office manager, starts the introductions by asking people to announce their name, and whether they're "Mormon, ex-Mormon, or never-been Mormon."
The introductions reveal a group mixed with people that are either Mormons questioning the teachings of the Church, Mormons trying to leave the Church or Christians offering their support to Mormons. That being said, each person goes their separate ways, Bible and Book of Mormon in hand. Tonight's specials include a Mormon support group, a class on basic Mormon teachings, and a class on how to witness to your Mormon friends.
Judy and Jim Robertson have been holding these meetings since they first started the ministry in 1978, five years after they decided to leave the Mormon Church themselves.
"It's like a hospital for religious refugees," Judy says.
Betts, who was never a Mormon, but rather a "Bible freak" interested in Mormonism, says the meetings have two objectives: first, to "help Mormons come out of Mormonism"; and second, to "educate Christians about Mormonism so they won't fall into the trap of being Mormon, and so they can learn to witness to their Mormon friends."
Because the Robertsons never really researched the teachings of Mormonism, Judy says they were easy targets for the "feel-good religion," as Betts refers to it. With their outreach ministry, Judy says she hopes that people considering becoming Mormons will do some research beforehand.
"What we're about is unveiling the truth. We have all four works of Mormon and anyone can come in here and do research."
Questioning Mormonism
It was 1966 when the Robertsons took a family vacation to the farmlands of Mesa to learn more about what Jim called "the finest people you'll ever meet." The image of Mormonism was one that seemed too good to be true, and for them, it was. On the surface, the Mormons represented the perfect all-American family; hardworking, sincere, family-oriented and unconditionally friendly, Judy says. At a time when Judy and Jim were spiritually deflated, the invitation to join the "true church" seemed like a blessing from God.
"Duly impressed with the trappings of Mormonism, I felt this was the only true church," says Judy in her book, Out of Mormonism. "My eyes were blinded by the shiny package of a church whose members seemed to be running on the inside track with God."
After being baptized into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the Robertsons and their two children quickly became immersed into the Mormon culture. Looking back, Judy says that there was something about the Church that never felt right, but neither her nor Jim ever dared to question it.
"There's a spiritual blindness being in the Mormon Church," Judy says. "You're so wrapped up in activities you don't really stop to look at the roots of what you're believing."
For seven years the Robertsons lived as Mormons, even holding leadership positions in the Church. But as soon as they started asking questions that the Church couldn't answer, it became a different story, they say. By comparing the Bible to the Book of Mormon, the Robertson's slowly started converting their views to what they now know as "the truth."
"The reason I believe [the Bible] is [the truth is] because the source of the knowledge of Mormonism is man, not God," Judy says. "Christianity is historically accurate and can be checked out, and Mormonism only has the word of its current prophet. Having been a Mormon, I know that the teachings of Mormonism don't line up with the teachings of Christ."
After announcing that they wanted to leave the Church, Judy and her family say they faced ridicule and persecution, but they stood by their new beliefs. To seal the deal they burned all of their belongings that had anything to do with the Mormon Church.
"I immediately felt a great sense of relief, a sense of peace and freedom, a sense of 'wow, how could I have been so blind? Why didn't I see this?'" Judy says, realizing that she no longer belonged in the Mormon Church.
Thirty years later, the Robertsons' wounds have healed, and they have found their true calling in helping others, Judy says. She has written two books and is currently working on a third. Out of Mormonism, which tells the story of how the Robertsons got involved in Mormonism and why they got out, was recently re-released in 2000. It has been the No. 1 best-seller at Berean Bookstore in Mesa for more than eight months.
"I was asked to write this book," Judy says. "I never really wanted to write it. I would have to go deep inside to write the book and that's not always pleasant. It wasn't something I was looking forward to."
Through all of the pain the family suffered, and the bumpy roads that they came across, Judy says she believes it was all part of a large plan that God had for them and in the long run it was worth it.
"I believe God allowed us to go down that path because we can now reach out to those who are struggling in Mormonism and to those who want to come out of Mormonism and commit to classical Christianity. This definitely is my calling in life. It is hands-down the most rewarding thing I've done in my life."
Defining Christianity
Luke Ritchie, president of ASU's Campus Crusade for Christ, says he hasn't heard of the Robertsons' group, but he thinks that if they are truly helping people, then Concerned Christians is a good thing. He added that he has several friends that are Mormon, and they do talk about religion, but his friends aren't open to criticism. He does question some of the statements Concerned Christians supports, including the idea that Mormons are not Christians.
"The thing that makes a person Christian isn't nearly what church they go to, but rather their relationship with Jesus. There are some unhealthy things about the way the Mormon Church is run, but I wouldn't say it isn't Christian."
Judy, now 51, is the picture-perfect grandmother: petite, soft-spoken, graceful and kind. Her intentions appear good, but are her looks deceiving?
Since the Robertsons founded Concerned Christians, they say they have helped thousands of people escape Mormonism, but not without making a few enemies along the way. Perhaps it was their "in-your-face" tactic, or the controversial public statements about Mormonism. While Judy admits that Mormonism is a religion, Betts doesn't hesitate a second before labeling it as a cult.
Lisa Crandell, president of the Latter-day Saints Student Association on campus, says she has heard of "anti-Mormon" groups and thinks they are just wasting their time. In her eyes Mormonism is clearly a Christian religion.
"I think just about any group can be perceived a certain way if you want them to be. I don't think anything we do is cult-ish at all," Crandell says. "I think it's unfortunate that we have to have a group that's so anti-something. I'm personally in support of everyone else's religion and I believe in letting people worship in the way they want to worship.
"One thing that drew me to the Church is that they never put down any other religion."
Biblical backlash
When Concerned Christians began, Judy says that she and Jim wanted to run out and show everyone--especially their Mormon friends--what they had found, in hopes of saving them from Mormonism before it was "too late." They used a public approach, with public viewings of the anti-Mormonism movie The Godmakers, and public forums. Their first published material was a pamphlet comparing what the Book of Mormon says to what the Bible says.
"We got some pretty bad press," Judy says. "Some of the things that came out in the paper put us in a bad light."
Even if the group does have good intentions, Crandell says that they shouldn't disturb people's lives just because they don't believe in something, and will therefore, of course, receive a negative response.
"Every group has truth and if a group has something you don't believe in then just don't believe in it and move on. I think it's unfortunate that someone has to spend their life dedicated to making sure other people know their religion is wrong. I personally think that if I found out a religion wasn't true, I'd be searching for what was true, not pointing out what wasn't."
Along with the negative press came negative phone calls, which have consistently continued for the last three decades. Though Judy says negative calls are not as frequent these days, they still hear from the occasional angry Mormon.
"People call and say things like: 'You guys are from the devil. Why don't you do something good with your life?'" Judy says. "We've had many individuals contact us and tell us not in a pleasant way to stop what we're doing. That's part of the territory, but that doesn't discourage us from doing it."
After realizing that publicly displaying Concerned Christians' motives wasn't the most effective approach, Judy says they decided to let the people come to them instead. Though they no longer run newspaper ads pointing out falsities in Mormon teachings, the Concerned Christians' mission statement is still clearly stated on their sign: "Comparing biblical truth to Latter-day revelation."
"Today we have a different methodology," Judy says. "We are more one-on-one. If people come here and ask for help in any way, we help them. We are just here for whoever has questions, whether it's people who are just curious about Mormonism, or Mormons that want to come out, or even people who want to come in and tell us to shut up."
Betts has been with the ministry for a year and says that there is no need for aggressive advertising because the word spreads on its own, along with help from the Web site [http://www.concernedchristians.org] and the newsletter, which has a circulation of approximately 7,000.
"There's a lot more people that are coming out of the Mormon Church and a lot more Christians who don't want to sit back and watch LDS being taught. We don't go looking for [Mormons]--they come to us. They call us, they e-mail us, [and] they write us."
In the future, Judy says she sees the ministry growing and becoming global with the help of the Internet, books and videos.
"I'd like to see the barriers broken down and to be able to talk to the Mormon people so they don't think we hate them. We do not hate the Mormons. I would like to dispel rumors that we are trying to destroy them as people."
Reach the reporter at jaime.schneider@asu.edu.
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Book signing by Judy Robertson, author of Out of Mormonism at Borders Books and Music, 870 N. 54th St., Chandler. 7 tonight. 480-961-4915. |
