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By Mason

Lucifer’s Lantern was originally the passionate project of A.T. Schroeder (1864–1953), a lawyer who became one of early Mormonism’s most vocal critics after moving to Utah in the 1890s. Disillusioned by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, whose doctrines and practices he saw as regressive and morally problematic, Schroeder launched Lucifer’s Lantern as his intellectual counterpoint to what he viewed as the Church’s unchecked influence over Utah’s culture and history.

He began collecting a vast archive of artifacts, diaries, journals, letters, and books related to early Mormonism. Through Lucifer’s Lantern and his other publications, he published his research on the authorship of the Book of Mormon, counterfeiting and the use of intoxicants in the early Church, Mormon polygamy, and even controversial claims about Joseph Smith as an abortionist. 

However, Schroeder absolutely served as a perfect example of an "anti-Mormon" as many of his publications demonstrated a very clear disdain for Mormonism.




Now, to make it clear: this site is not “anti-Mormon.” This modern Lucifer’s Lantern follows some of Schroeder's same ideas. It examines the issues within the doctrines, history, and culture of Mormonism while attempting to avoid the disdain and hatred that was commonly seen in the original 19th century publications

 Each article sheds light on the origins of Mormonism, it's culture, the shaping of scripture, and the historical events behind the faith. The goal is not to provoke contention, but to spark discussion.

The content shared here aims to be as honest and accurate as possible. Schroeder may have held a sharp disdain for Mormonism, but I do not. I love Mormons. And I love ex-Mormons.

My goal is to create content for both.

This site and its content are inspired by the ideas A.T. Schroeder presented—specifically, his belief that truth should not fear examination and that religious systems should be judged by their own claims and evidence.


Schroeder’s Key Ideas

- Reformatory literature should be devoted to showing the human origin of Mormonism, its follies and its iniquities, by a critical examination of the system itself.

- The attack upon the divinity of the Book of Mormon should be made upon two grounds only: The insufficiency of the evidence to establish the claim of its divine origin, and the argument based upon the historical and internal evidences demonstrating its human origin.

 

- Man always makes his God endorse what he himself has first conceived to be the most desired good. Reform man’s moral precepts, and he will make his conception of God conform.

 

We have adapted these approaches into The Five Rules for Criticizing Religion


How Do We Keep This Site Running?

Instead of using a platform that is monetized by subscriptions, I have chosen to have the content of this site available to anybody rather than hiding behind a paywall, which seems to have become the norm for many bloggers these days. To keep this site up and running, I have utilized several methods of monetization. 

Some links on this site are Amazon affiliate links. If you make a purchase after following these links, we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.  These commissions help support and improve the site.

To make it so we don't have to push affiliate links at our readers constantly, we have enabled ads. we know they're annoying, but it keeps the site running and we try and keep them to a minimum in the main feed and keep them to the side bar as to not get in the way (That seams reasonable, right?)

The best way you can support the site is through that big "Buy me a Coffee" button at the bottom of your screen or through our shop (we have coffee).

Thank you for all of your support

- Mason


Contact

    For feedback, grievances, topic suggestions, or if you have a desire to write for the site feel free to contact me using the form below.


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