Mel's Shelves: Blog Tour: Day of Defense by Scott Thormaehlen

Day of Defense, by Scott Thormaehlen, 2013, 176p
My Rating=5+ stars, Highly recommend!!
Source: Provided review copy from the author for an honest review

There comes a point for each of us who are Latter-day Saints when we are face-to-face with those who have contrary views to ours. Oftentimes, we find ourselves feeling attacked and wish we knew just the right thing to say and how to say it.

Day of Defense: Positive Talking Points for the Latter Days transforms misconceptions and stigmas associated with the LDS Church into opportunities to effectively share the truth.

Discussion is divided into specific topics that place seemingly peculiar LDS beliefs into patterns seen in the Bible and early Christian history. Misunderstandings discussed include:

The Great Apostasy
Plural Marriage
Heaven and Hell
Man’s Potential and the Nature of God
The Book of Mormon
The Restoration

The Bible comparisons of these tough topics will give you the confidence to stand strong in the day of your defense. (Goodreads)

As a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, I am constantly defending my beliefs. I love the way this book is written! It is easy to understand and the topics are ones we're all familiar with. I love the tone in which he presents it--to help inform and clear up misconceptions, not antagonize or criticize others. We have so much in common with people of all faiths and we need to embrace our similarities and look to build bridges with others who are different from us. I enjoy talking to those who have sincere questions and aren't out to play "gotcha." I'm imperfect and the words don't always flow freely out of my mouth in a coherent, intelligent way, so I'm glad I now have an excellent book to refer others to where they can learn more about my religion.

Thormaehlen goes to the Bible to find the answers to his questions and a lot of it I have heard before but there were also ideas I wasn't familiar with. I love the way he presents the information. He starts each chapter with the negative statements that are directed against us and then shows where and how our theology fits with the Bible. This is a book that I feel I could continue to read over and over and come away with something new and a deeper understanding every time. It's not a long book, but there's lots of meat!

I was able to interview the author so keep reading if you want to know if he's currently working on something new:

Author Interview

When did you first consider yourself a writer?
I first started doing research and writing down the first thoughts or notes that later became Day of Defense back in 2002 or 2003 while I was in the Air Force.

What inspired you to write Day of Defense?
My inspiration came from a combination of being surrounded by non-LDS colleagues during my time serving in the United States Air Force. My experiences in conversation with others begged me to discover my own religion and faith in light of the misconceptions that many held. Also 9/11 kind of struck me, not at the time of the attacks, but as things unfolded it became clearer that these two worlds were colliding. I felt impressed to pay close attention to my faith and take note so that some day I could help others understand what was keeping them from what I know as the Restoration of Christianity. I have always believed my religion to be a source of peace that could some day bridge the differences between peoples that cause such conflicts, and more importantly share truth that can hopefully shape people’s attitudes so that such things are prevented, not antagonized, or do not occur because of ignorance and intolerance from either side.

Are you planning to write any other books similar to this one?
I am, in fact I have an outline that covers misconceptions about the LDS faith not covered in Day of Defense. This will deal with things Brigham Young is recorded saying in the Journal of Discourses, Joseph Smith looking into his hat to translate, the lost 116 pages of the Book of Lehi, blacks and the priesthood, horses in the Book of Mormon, the Book of Abraham, and other stumbling blocks that people come across investigating the LDS Church. I hope to do it in a succinct easy to read book just like the first one. Wish me luck!

What are some of your favorite books and what book are you reading now?
One of my favorite books is Standing for Something by then President Gordon B. Hinckley. I’ve recently read a short book titled Joseph Smith and Modern Astronomy by Richard Ingebretsen. On my to read list is The Exodus Case by Dr. Lennart Moller, Latter-day Liberty as well as Latter-day Responsibility by Connor Boyack, another Cedar Fort author. Mere Chrisitianity by C.S. Lewis is a favorite. I also like The Revolution by Ron Paul and Paulo Coelho’s The Alchemist.

What do you like to do when you’re not writing?
Hiking, trying to catch up on the news, hang out with my girlfriend, or reading. I have also purchased a book to study for the LSAT.

If you couldn’t be an author, what would your ideal career be?
I would love to teach History, particularly Word Civilization or U.S. History to college students.

Do you have any advice for aspiring authors?
Never give up, but make yourself useful advancing your career in other ways too because writing one book will not pay the bills.

Is there anything that you would like to say to your readers and fans?
I hope you have the opportunity to find people who are honest truth seekers and that you will find Day of Defense a valuable tool to share with those who cannot quite connect the dots. Please remember to post a review and rate the book on Amazon.com, Goodreads.com, and your own blogs. Thanks!

Yay, I'm glad to hear that a second book in the works, so good luck with it, Scott. I will definitely read it!

Author Scott Thormaehlen

Scott Thormaehlen served honorably for four years in the United States Air Force as a weather forecaster during the Operation Enduring Freedom and the War on Terrorism. He graduated from the University of Texas at San Antonio with a Bachelors of Arts in History. These academic and professional experiences cultivated an already analytical and curious mind. Stationed in the Bible Belt, at Shaw AFB, SC and born in South Texas, Scott has lived in areas where Bible-only belief is the prevailing religious perspective. Having lived in the “Mission Field” for over 29 years, Scott gained a cultural perspective of his religious counterparts in school, among friends, neighbors, and co-workers. Sharing a belief in the Bible and being raised in the knowledge of the Restoration, Scott came to realize the peculiarity of his station in life and the conflict between Mormonism and mainstream Christians. His interest in history, particularly Early Christian history and the differences between Mormons and mainstream Christians motivated this book; particularly that many viewed his faith as a cult and did not fully understand and often misrepresented the doctrines of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The book began in 2003 as a few pages of notes that sought to simply answer Mormon topics with the Bible. Over the years Scott added more notes, and more notes, until he decided to put his work and thoughts into book format.