Rating: 
Summary: Comprehensive guide to Latter-day thought and beliefs.
Review: Altought Bruce R. McConkie's work is not an official LDS Church Publication, it is a clear and consise presentation of what mormons believe. I found the "encyclopedic" style quite useful, and it has plenty of cross-references that come in handy when looking for unfamiliar names. One of the most stressed matters within the work is the identity of Christ, from His premortal commission, His earthly ministry, the things He is bringing to pass in the latter days, and His glorious second coming. Worthy of mention here is that the work includes the most complete summary of what the scriptures say are the signs of the second coming of Jesus Christ. McConkie is one of the most versed latter-day saints regarding the messiah, and in this work, it shows. Definitely, a good study tool, but not for entry-level study of mormonism.
Rating: 
Summary: Mormon Doctrine, our classic
Review: Bruce R. McConkie could be argued as being one of the most influential writers since Peter. Mormon Doctrine is understood by few but by those who understand, this book will stand as a classic in Latter-day Saint literature and our best reasource book for years to come.
Rating:
Summary: Mormon Doctrine, our classic
Review: Bruce R. McConkie could be argued as being one of the most influential writers since Peter. Mormon Doctrine is understood by few but by those who understand, this book will stand as a classic in Latter-day Saint literature and our best reasource book for years to come.
Rating:
Summary: Handy One-volume Cyclopedia of Mormonism
Review: Bruce R. McConkie's first book is a touchdown! Set up as a cyclopedia, "Mormon Doctrine" has several thousand entries on topics relating to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, such as Aaronic Priesthood, Jesus Christ (the most cross-refenced entry), Atonement, Evolution, and Zion. His uniqe spiritual and theological endowments are shown plainily in the many entries in the book. It is a must for any new convert or seasoned scriptorian who wishes to know more about Mormonism. It is also valualble for the student who whishes to have a quick, one-volume work on the faith of the Latter-day Saints.
Rating:
Summary: Fairly comprehensive work, lots of opinon though.
Review: Bruce R. Mckonkie was an Apostle in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1973 (I think) to his death in 1985. This book is a good resource and standard for beginning a study of what members of the LDS church generally believe. It is very organized like an encylopedia and is cross referenced with similiar topics found in the book. There is some opinion in the book is Elder Mckonkie's own and not neccesarily what is truth as revealed form Heaven, but nevertheless the book is a prime starting point into learning about the church.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent, concise resource
Review: First of all, let me start out by identifying myself as a devout Catholic evangelist. Over the past year, the study of comparative religion has interested me greatly, and at first, my approach to study was marred by the use of unreliable and biased resources. I made the mistake of trying to learn about Mormons by reading anti-Mormon literature. However, what I found there (in books such as The God Makers, Kingdom of the Cults, etc) was not only appalingly uncharible and vindictive, but also appalingly deceitful and false! Unimpressed with their rhetoric and straw men tactics, I decided instead to do what I should have done in the first place; ask the Mormons what they believe.Aside from the BOM and D & C, this is the first resource I purchased. The layout was impressive - very easy to use, concise, and well cross referenced. I was at first dismayed at the lack of an index, but that became a moot point since the book is so well laid out. Furthermore, although I know this is of course not scripture any more than the writings of St. Thomas Aquinas are to Catholics, it does present a good yet fallible summary of, well, Mormon Doctrine. My only complaint is that McConkie is a bit too brief in covering some points, and doesn't always give references to relevant sections in the canonized books of the Mormon Church. Because of this, further study is not always easy to persue. On the pro side of that, this book can rightfully be considered a "primary source" when citing, by and large. While I still disagree with many aspects of Mormon theology, at least now I can be confident that what I am stating on a particular point is actually what the LDS church believes. Persuing Mormon literature (and conversations with Mormons) prevented me from going down the fiery path of polemics and hatred for Mormons. As a Catholic, I know all too well what it is like to be on the receiving end of hatred and bigotry which roots itself in misunderstanding. As someone who is oftentimes on the receiving end of counter apologetics, I know well the difference between mere theological disagreement and outright bigotry. The distinction makes all the difference in the world when it comes to dialogue. Persual of literature such as this will require some extra effort, yes, but it will also help you obey the commandment not to bear false witness. There is no excuse for lazy research. Anyway - I fear that this book review had turned into an admonishment for my fellow apologists to be honest. However, since I think it needs to be said, and it does tie into this book in a sense, I'm keeping it here. In any case, if you want to learn about Mormonism, don't listen to idiots like Dave Hunt. Rather, you do well to start here for a good, reliable primer and a lasting resource.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent, concise resource
Review: First of all, let me start out by identifying myself as a devout Catholic evangelist. Over the past year, the study of comparative religion has interested me greatly, and at first, my approach to study was marred by the use of unreliable and biased resources. I made the mistake of trying to learn about Mormons by reading anti-Mormon literature. However, what I found there (in books such as The God Makers, Kingdom of the Cults, etc) was not only appalingly uncharible and vindictive, but also appalingly deceitful and false! Unimpressed with their rhetoric and straw men tactics, I decided instead to do what I should have done in the first place; ask the Mormons what they believe. Aside from the BOM and D & C, this is the first resource I purchased. The layout was impressive - very easy to use, concise, and well cross referenced. I was at first dismayed at the lack of an index, but that became a moot point since the book is so well laid out. Furthermore, although I know this is of course not scripture any more than the writings of St. Thomas Aquinas are to Catholics, it does present a good yet fallible summary of, well, Mormon Doctrine. My only complaint is that McConkie is a bit too brief in covering some points, and doesn't always give references to relevant sections in the canonized books of the Mormon Church. Because of this, further study is not always easy to persue. On the pro side of that, this book can rightfully be considered a "primary source" when citing, by and large. While I still disagree with many aspects of Mormon theology, at least now I can be confident that what I am stating on a particular point is actually what the LDS church believes. Persuing Mormon literature (and conversations with Mormons) prevented me from going down the fiery path of polemics and hatred for Mormons. As a Catholic, I know all too well what it is like to be on the receiving end of hatred and bigotry which roots itself in misunderstanding. As someone who is oftentimes on the receiving end of counter apologetics, I know well the difference between mere theological disagreement and outright bigotry. The distinction makes all the difference in the world when it comes to dialogue. Persual of literature such as this will require some extra effort, yes, but it will also help you obey the commandment not to bear false witness. There is no excuse for lazy research. Anyway - I fear that this book review had turned into an admonishment for my fellow apologists to be honest. However, since I think it needs to be said, and it does tie into this book in a sense, I'm keeping it here. In any case, if you want to learn about Mormonism, don't listen to idiots like Dave Hunt. Rather, you do well to start here for a good, reliable primer and a lasting resource.
Rating: 
Summary: Too Zealous..
Review: He titles his book "Mormon Doctrine" and then goes on to explain that this is his personal study of Mormon doctrine. I don't like the author, I don't like the material, I don't find it helpful, I find it long, drawn out, confusing, bigoted in many areas. His style is to set the record straight on everything he can think of. I give it two stars as opposed to one because he actually references his words.
If I were Mormon, I would give it a higher rating. This is a book for Mormons who are already ingrained in the faith. It will be of no help to investigators or the just plain curious.
Rating: 
Summary: The title says it all
Review: I agree with Gene Fojtik's opinion of this book, as recorded in an earlier review. As an evangelical Christian, I do not agree with much (if anything) Mr. McConkie said as a Latter-day Saint apostle. Yet this man was an authority who held one of the highest positions you could possibly have in the LDS church, which is comprised of 10 million + adherents. Who better to learn about LDS doctrine than from an LDS general authority? However, by utilizing this encyclopedic book, the reader will notice that Mormonism and evangelical Christianity are at polar opposites. Both cannot be true. One must be false. We must consider the words of McConkie very seriously, then, and determine if he is speaking the truth as recorded in the Bible. Having studied the issues out, I believe McConkie was very sincere, though sincerely wrong in his doctrine. And, as Mr. Fojtik pointed out, he did change his mind on certain teachings, including the black issue, as church policy was reformed. While I disagree with his theology, I still believe Mormon Doctrine is an important read for those who want to better understand what Mormonism is all about.
Rating:
Summary: A Great Resource
Review: I grew up with several Mormon friends and my brother has converted to Mormonism. As a result I have had quite a few dialogs with Mormons. I found that I was woefully unprepared. So I began to study the Mormon religion. When I asked Mormons such as my brother about their beliefs I would get responses that were couched in terminology I as an "mainstream" Christian would find palatable. It was hard to find out what Mormon's really believed. I had other resources that were produced by "mainstream" Christians. However, these resources dealt with archaine theologies that while they are historically accurate are different from what most LDS believe today. MORMON DOCTRINES is an invaluable resourse to understand the current beliefs of the LDS Church. The first step in being able to talk to someone about their faith is understanding their faith. This is especially important in being able to bridge the language gap between Mormonism and "Mainstream" Christianity. MORMON DOCTRINE is especially good for this due to its encyclopedic format. Common terms such as Salvation, God, The Holy Ghost and Heaven can clearly be examined. While I strongly disagree with the doctrine promoted in MORMON DOCTRINE it is an indispensible resource for understanding what Mormons believe.
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