The Church of Jesus Christ (LDS) is often accused by Evangelical pastors of not believing in Christ and, therefore, not being a Christian religion This article helps to clarify such misconceptions by examining early Christianity's theology relating to baptism, the Godhead, the deity of Jesus Christ and His Atonement.

• Baptism: .

Early Christian churches, practiced baptism of youth (not infants) by immersion by the father of the family. The local congregation had a lay ministry. An early Christian Church has been re-constructed at the Israel Museum, and the above can be verified. http://www.imj.org.il/eng/exhibitions/ 2000/christianity/ancientchurch/ structure/index.html

The Church of Jesus Christ (LDS) continues baptism and a lay ministry as taught by Jesus’ Apostles. Early Christians were persecuted for keeping their practices sacred, and prohibiting non-Christians from witnessing them.

• The Trinity: .

A literal reading of the New Testament points to God and Jesus Christ , His Son , being separate , divine beings , united in purpose. . To whom was Jesus praying in Gethsemane, and Who was speaking to Him and his apostles on the Mount of Transfiguration?

The Nicene Creed”s definition of the Trinity was influenced by scribes translating the Greek manuscripts into Latin. The scribes embellished on a passage explaining the Trinity , which is the Catholic and Protestant belief that God is Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The oldest versions of the epistle of 1 John, read: "There are three that bear witness: the Spirit, the water and the blood and these three are one."

Scribes later added "the Father, the Word and the Spirit," and it remained in the epistle when it was translated into English for the King James Version, according to Dr. Bart Ehrman, Chairman of the Religion Department at UNC- Chapel Hill. He no longer believes in the Nicene Trinity. .

Scholars agree that Early Christians believed in an embodied God; it was neo-Platonist influences that later turned Him into a disembodied Spirit. Harper’s Bible Dictionary entry on the Trinity says “the formal doctrine of the Trinity as it was defined by the great church councils of the fourth and fifth centuries is not to be found in the New Testament.”

Divinization, narrowing the space between God and humans, was also part of Early Christian belief. St. Athanasius of Alexandria (Eastern Orthodox) wrote, regarding theosis, "The Son of God became man, that we might become God." . The Church of Jesus Christ (LDS) views the Trinity as three separate divine beings , in accord with the earliest Greek New Testament manuscripts.

• The Deity of Jesus Christ

Mormons hold firmly to the deity of Christ. For members of the Church of Jesus Christ (LDS), Jesus is not only the Son of God but also God the Son. Evangelical pollster George Barna found in 2001 that while only 33 percent of American Catholics, Lutherans, and Methodists (28 percent of Episcopalians) agreed that Jesus was “without sin”, 70 percent of Mormons believe Jesus was sinless. http://www.adherents.com/misc/ BarnaPoll.html

• The Cross and Christ’s Atonement: .

The Cross became popular as a Christian symbol in the Fifth Century A.D. . Members of the Church of Jesus Christ (LDS) believe the proper Christian symbol is Christ’s resurrection , not his crucifixion on the Cross. Many Mormon chapels feature paintings of the resurrected Christ or His Second Coming. Furthermore, members of the church believe the major part of Christ’s atonement occurred in the Garden of Gethsemane as Christ took upon him the sins of all mankind.

• Definition of “Christian”: .

But Mormons don’t term Catholics and Protestants “non-Christian”. They believe Christ’s atonement applies to all mankind. The dictionary definition of a Christian is “of, pertaining to, believing in, or belonging to a religion based on the teachings of Jesus Christ”: All of the above denominations are followers of Christ, and consider him divine, and the Messiah foretold in the Old Testament. They all worship the one and only true God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and address Him in prayer as prescribed in The Lord’s Prayer.

It’s important to understand the difference between Reformation and Restoration when we consider who might be authentic Christians. . Early Christians had certain rituals which defined a Christian http://sacred-texts.com/chr/ecf/207/ 2070037.htm , which members of the Church of Jesus Christ (LDS) continue today. . If members of the Church of Jesus Christ (LDS) embrace early Christian theology, they are likely more “Christian” than their detractors.

• The Parallel with the “Rise of Christianity”

Rodney Stark in his book “The Rise of Christianity” found parallels with the rise of Mormonism:

A similar growth rate (40 percent for Christianity, and 43 percent for Mormonism) for both nascent religious movements. Conversions proceeded along social networking lines, primarily. While Christianity retained Jews’ belief in the Old Testament, Mormonism retains Creedal Christians’ belief in both the New and Old Testaments. The Romans martyred the Christian leaders, the mobs in Missouri and Illinois martyred the Mormon leaders. In both cases, they expected the fledgling movements to fail without their leaders.

• The Need for a Restoration of the Christian Church:

The founder of the Baptist Church in America, Roger Williams, just prior to leaving the church he established, said this:

"There is no regularly constituted church of Christ on earth, nor any person qualified to administer any church ordinances; nor can there be until new apostles are sent by the Great Head of the Church for whose coming I am seeking.” (Picturesque America, p. 502.)

Martin Luther had similar thoughts: "Nor can a Christian believer be forced beyond sacred Scriptures,...unless some new and proved revelation should be added; for we are forbidden by divine law to believe except what is proved either through the divine Scriptures or through Manifest revelation."

He also wrote: "I have sought nothing beyond reforming the Church in conformity with the Holy Scriptures. The spiritual powers have been not only corrupted by sin, but absolutely destroyed; so that there is now nothing in them but a depraved reason and a will that is the enemy and opponent of God. I simply say that Christianity has ceased to exist among

those who should have preserved it."

The Lutheran, Baptist and Church of Jesus Christ (LDS) churches recognize an apostasy from early Christianity. The Lutheran and Baptist churches have attempted reform, but Mormonism (and Roger Williams, and perhaps Martin Luther) require inspired restoration, so as to re-establish an unbroken line of authority and apostolic succession.

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• Christ-Like Lives:

The 2005 National Study of Youth and Religion published by UNC-Chapel Hill found that Church of Jesus Christ (LDS) youth (ages 13 to 17) were more likely to exhibit these Christian characteristics than Evangelicals (the next most observant group):

1. Attend Religious Services weekly

2. Importance of Religious Faith in shaping daily life – extremely important

3. Believes in life after death

4. Does NOT believe in psychics or fortune-tellers

5. Has taught religious education classes

6. Has fasted or denied something as spiritual discipline

7. Sabbath Observance

8. Shared religious faith with someone not of their faith

9. Family talks about God, scriptures, prayer daily

10. Supportiveness of church for parent in trying to raise teen (very supportive)

11. Church congregation has done an excellent job in helping teens better understand their own sexuality and sexual morality

LDS Evangelical

1. 71% 55%

2. 52 28

3. 76 62

4. 100 95

5. 42 28

6. 68 22

7. 67 40

8. 72 56

9. 50 19

10. 65 26

11. 84 35

So what do you think the motivation is for the Evangelical preachers to denigrate the Mormon Church? You would think Evangelical preachers would be emulating Mormon practices (a creed to believe, a place to belong, a calling to live out, and a hope to hold onto) which were noted by Methodist Rev. Kenda Creasy Dean of the Princeton Theological Seminary, as causing Mormon teenagers to “top the charts” in Christian characteristics. (see http://MormonTeenagers.blogspot.com)) It seems obvious pastors shouldn't be denigrating a church based on First Century Christianity, with high efficacy. The only plausible reason to denigrate Mormons is for Evangelical pastors to protect their flock (and their livelihood).

I just saw your response. There is room for leeway. I was just pointing out that the act of 'believing in Jesus Christ' is not sufficient to be considered a Christian. I used Muslims as an example of people who believe in Jesus Christ but are not considered Christians. Muslims say of Jesus Christ that he was perfect (sin free) but not divine. I wasn't implying that Mormons are not Christians but rather that the argument presented was flawed.

"People of the Book" is a blanket term used by a majority of Muslims to denote Christians, Jews, or anyone who holds the Bible as a primary source of text. When using that terminology, in no way do Muslims indicate or imply that Christians are Muslims. The phrase "people of the Book" stems from the Islamic belief that the Bible, while still the Word of God, is a text corrupted by time and translation - only the Qur'an in its original Arabic is the pure source of God's Word. The Bible isn't necessarily the "wrong book", it is simply not as holy as the Qur'an, according to Muslims.

I'd say they are, and that's just the beginning of whats wrong with them.

It's Called the Church of JESUS CHRIST of Latter-Day Saints. Isn't that the definition of Christian?

Mormons believe that Jesus Christ was the son of god and he died to atone for the sins of humanity. Therefore they are Christians. End of argument.

The day I see a real Christian is the day I see Jesus descend from the sky and throw my gay, pagan behind into the lake of fire.

I have never once met a Christian who:

A) Knew anything about the bible they carry.

B) Practice anything the bible teaches (unless it was by complete accident or directly profitable to them).

C) Weren't utter hypocrites about their beliefs, picking and choosing what they liked about the bible and ignoring the rest.

The Mormons are about as "Christian" as any other Christian sect or individual, which generally doesn't mean much.

Most Christians are far more pagan in practice and beliefs than they are followers of Christian gospel. The only thing that separates a Christian from a pagan is the belief in a single god, and in many cases this is a stretch (as the tri-god of the Catholics and Protestants, Father-Son-Holy Ghost is rather iffy in the singular department).

The major holidays are all Pagan, most of the rituals and practices are pagan, and almost all the beliefs that Christians hold dear are held by most other religions or were taught to them by secular philosophers and politicians.

I would like to know what this is: 'fairy tale story about Christ' ???? i just dont understand what you mean by this.

Thank you! you have a very open mind.....it is much appreciated.

MORMONS STUDY THE BIBLE! THE BIBLE TEACHES ABOUT CHRIST! HOW IS THAT NOT CHRISTIAN???

'Joseph Smith's Gospel'? there is no such thing. Joseph Smith was the Prophet who restored the same gospel that Jesus Christ taught when he walked among the Jews. No, we dont worship quite like others...but if you look, we have never changed how or when we worship. we have held by the same standards since the begging, which does not happen in other churches.

What a lot of people dont realize is that a 'Mormon' is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. (i would know i am a member) We believe in the bible and the bible speaks of God and teaches of Jesus Christ. Why wouldn't we be Christians. Especially if we are members of the Church of JESUS CHRIST of Latter Day Saints? The Book of Mormon...which is where the term 'mormons' came from...also talks of God-more than the bible actually. It is what we study most.

Yes Mormons are Christians too.

What makes your fairytale more true than the mormons'?

According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary the word Christian means, "one who professes belief in the teachings of Jesus Christ." So, if you use that definition then I would say that yes, Mormons are Christians. The full name of their church is The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints so I think it is safe to say they believe in Jesus and their church is based around his teachings.

Pao

I read three of the links you gave and based on those they are definately Christian.

It's a matter of interpretation but the bottom line is that they believe in Christ therefore they're Christian.

Toe-may-toe...toe-ma-toe...they carry a bible and believe in Jesus. If you believe in Jesus then you're a Christian.

They have a million wives and go house to house wearing suits. Not christians.

Not at all, my good man. It's what you THINK about Jesus that makes you a Christian or not.

Josh says Mormons suck!

Are Christians Jews? They took the Jewish religion and added a whole new book to it. Of course not. Well the Mormons took a whole new book and added it to Christianity. It is a whole new document that no Christians believe but all Mormons believe. If Mormons follow a different book of theology than they are not Christian. Even if they label themselves Christian they are not reading Christian Theology therefore they are just delusional in thinking that they are Christian.

Where does the Book of Mormon contradict the Bible?

Mormons differ from Christians in the same way Muslims do: They consider Jesus very important, but they don't believe he IS God. Mormons believe he is the son of God. They also believe that Lucifer is his son, and that the two are brothers, so he isn't the son of God in the same way at all.

No, absolutely not. The Book of Mormon contradicts the Bible in many places. Mormonism is a cult, and it certainly is not Christian.

Shunted

I figured someone would bring this up. Mormans carry a Bible with them. They believe Christ is the son of God. They just don't have the same views of God that most traditional Christians have.

So what? Do they have to interperet everything the exact same way as everyone else? Is there no room for a little leeway?

Toe-may-toe...toe-ma-toe get over it.

This is Impossible. I am going to research this more, BUT they are not Christian when they believe in a fairy tale story about Christ, not what the Scripture says about the Son of God.

If you are going to contribute something at least make it constructive and not based on anecdotal evidence.