Do Mormons Base Truth on Emotions?
The Latter-day Saint claim that spiritual truth is not based on emotion, even as they cite Moroni 10:3–5 and emphasize an internal witness by the Holy Ghost, is misleading and fundamentally flawed. The idea that feelings of peace or joy are merely byproducts of spiritual truth—rather than the measure of it—is contradicted by the very scriptures and testimonies Mormons use to defend their faith. They assert that “the Holy Ghost provides truth to the minds of men” and then quickly follow this with passages emphasizing the burning of the heart and emotional recognition of truth. This creates a logical contradiction: either truth is independently revealed, or it’s measured by emotional response—but it cannot be both simultaneously. What makes this even more problematic is the closed-loop reasoning it promotes. Moroni 10 doesn't invite you to objectively examine the Book of Mormon; it conditions your conclusion on an expected emotional outcome. You read the Book of Mormon, pray about it...