The conversation began informally, as the missionaries introduced themselves and their backgrounds. The group consisted of three missionaries who had grown up in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints—commonly referred to as Mormonism or LDS Church—with varying levels of prior knowledge and personal belief.
The missionaries asked about my familiarity with their faith and explained their intention to clearly present their beliefs and answer any questions. We agreed it would be helpful to explore the basics together.
After a brief prayer expressing gratitude and inviting spiritual understanding, we began our structured discussion.
I provided a basic summary of what I knew about Mormon origins and scriptures to verify my understanding:
“From what I've gathered, around 600 BC there was a man named Mormon who recorded writings on golden plates. His son Moroni later buried these plates in America. Eventually, Joseph Smith received revelation from an angelic being (Moroni) to recover these plates, translate them, and thus produce the Book of Mormon. These plates were said to contain the history of Christ's ministry and revelation in the Americas, supported by various witnesses.”
The missionaries confirmed this basic understanding as accurate. They suggested spending time on several core topics: the origin of the Book of Mormon, Joseph Smith, and the modern LDS Church, as well as exploring foundational theological concepts—particularly God's plan for humanity.
We agreed to discuss each briefly to gain a broad overview.
The missionaries began by outlining a foundational LDS belief: premortal existence.
According to Mormon doctrine, each person lived previously as a spirit being created by God—referred to as Heavenly Father—before being born on earth. In this premortal state, humanity existed in God's presence as spirits. Heavenly Father presented a plan for spiritual progression, explaining that spirits needed to obtain physical bodies, gain experiences through personal choices, and learn to discern good and evil firsthand.
Two beings offered to fulfill this crucial role in the plan:
Heavenly Father chose Jesus Christ’s plan, preserving human agency, and rejected Satan’s alternative. This decision resulted in a division: a third of the spirits followed Satan, becoming separated from God, while the remaining two-thirds chose Christ's path and received the opportunity to experience mortal life on earth.
We next discussed mortal existence. According to LDS teachings, earthly life serves two main purposes: