The question “Are Mormons Christian?” is probably the most popular question in the world for those just discovering the church and its beliefs. It’s also probably the most polarizing one. How should it be answered?
To help everyone understand the question, I’ve prepared a brief comparison of the beliefs of LDS (if you don’t know, this abbreviation derives from the official name of the Mormon church: “The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints”) to the beliefs of most Christians, from the time of Christ to the present day.
To demonstrate Christian beliefs, I’ll be using the Nicene Creed (or, if you like to nit-pick, the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed). Catholics profess it each Sunday as a statement of our common faith, and many other Christian communions also use it, or at least accept the beliefs contained in it. The LDS church doesn’t have as complete a creed; the nearest thing to it is the “Articles of Faith,” which is contained in one of their volumes of scripture called The Pearl of Great Price. But it doesn’t cover as much of their belief as the Creed does ours. So for LDS beliefs, the reader will just have to take my word for it. I’ve read all of the LDS scriptures and interacted with LDS for a little over two years, so I think I can be fairly accurate. Though LDS authorities sometimes have varying opinions on some points of doctrine, I’ll only include that which is firmly established as official LDS belief at this time.
The words of the Creed will be block-quoted, and then LDS beliefs will follow.
I believe in one God,
LDS believe that there is one God who is responsible for our world and our lives, and to whom we owe contrition, thanksgiving, and worship, but strictly speaking, they believe in infinitely many gods. In LDS belief, human beings have existed eternally, but in a lower or incomplete form known as “intelligence.” Human beings can become gods, and our God was once a man as well. Those who live rightly and participate in the necessary ordinances (including marriage that is “sealed” in a temple) will be exalted to godhood. As gods, the married couple will procreate “spirit children,” which by some means gives spiritual being to the intelligence. These spirit children are then given physical bodies (which are required in order to attain godhood), and enter mortality and the world as we know it in order to be tested. If they prove worthy, they too attain godhood, and thus the chain continues. LDS do not believe in a “First Cause;” this cycle has been occurring infinitely in time past and will occur infinitely into the future.
the Father almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all that is, seen and unseen.
LDS believe that God is almighty or omnipotent, but in a slightly different sense than we do. In LDS belief, God did not and cannot create things ex nihilo or “from nothing;” rather, matter and time have existed infinitely as well. God’s act of creation consisted of organizing the matter into what it is. Also, spirit is a purer or more refined form of matter, but we can’t perceive it (at least at present).
I believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the only Son of God,
Jesus is the only-begotten Son of God in LDS belief, but again in a different sense. LDS believe, as noted above, that gods procreate and beget spirit children. Jesus was the first-born spirit child of God the Father, and we all followed. Lucifer was another spirit child who ended up rebelling and being deprived of a physical body and the chance at mortal existence. Jesus can be said to be the “only” Son of God since He is the only man born in this world with God as a parent.
eternally begotten of the Father,
Again, strictly speaking, LDS would not agree with this as we believe it; the Father was not always God, and thus there was a time when the Son did not exist.
God from God, light from light, true God from true God,
One can find some interesting parallels here in our beliefs. We believe that a being begets beings like itself, and thus God begets God, and so the Son is God. LDS also believe this, so God begets beings ontologically the same, though most of them are not gods right away. The known exceptions to this rule are the Son and the Holy Spirit (whom the LDS always call the Holy Ghost, after the manner of the King James Bible, which they use as their translation of choice). I have not encountered an official explanation as to why the Son and the Holy Spirit are considered gods without having to go through mortality.
begotten, not made, one in being with the Father.
We both believe that the Son is begotten, though it means different things. The phrase “begotten, not made” is in our Creed to oppose the idea that the Son was a creation by God out of nothing. LDS believe He is begotten because all beings are begotten of god parents.
LDS explicitly and definitively reject the homoousion, that is, the consubstantiality or oneness of being of the Son with the Father. They believe that the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are all separate and distinct beings and that each has a separate body (though the Spirit as yet doesn’t have a physical body). The three can be said to be “one” in the sense that they are perfectly united in purpose and will. This is the way that LDS conceive of the Godhead, and what they mean when they say that Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are one God.
Through him all things were made.
We share this belief in part. While we believe that the Son is one in being with the Father, and is the wisdom that orders the universe, Mormonism holds that Jesus took part in the creation of the world through His oneness of will (but not being). On a related note, LDS believe that whenever God is revealed in the Old Testament, it is actually Jesus. They believe that “Elohim” is the name of God the Father, and “Jehovah” is the name of the Son.
For us men and for our salvation, he came down from heaven.
Again, LDS believe this, but it means different things. We believe that God the Son became man, taking on a human nature in addition to His divine nature, humbling Himself in this way in order to save us. We needed to be saved because we were all fallen in Adam and Eve, who sinned against God in Eden. LDS belief is that, before any of us entered mortality, God held council with all his children and desired a plan by which he could exalt them to godhood. Lucifer presented a plan by which men would be forced to love God, and when it was successful, Lucifer himself would get all the glory. Jesus presented the plan that ended up happening. (Lucifer, angry at being rejected, rebelled, and that was the source of his fall.) When Adam and Eve were in the garden, they were made to transgress the commandment of God. LDS do not consider this a sin, because Adam and Eve could not do otherwise, and in fact, knowing sin was necessary in order to be able to know good. Jesus, in his plan, volunteered to enter mortality and redeem us.
By the power of the Holy Spirit, he was born of the virgin Mary, and became man.
There are famous statements by LDS authorities to the effect that the Father had physical intercourse with Mary to bring about the conception of the Lord, but this is not held as official doctrine, and most LDS do not believe it. Though the already-outlined major differences in basic doctrines could lead one to find differences between our faith and the LDS faith regarding this article of the Creed, in general we believe the same about it.
LDS, of course, do reject the Marian doctrines and dogmas of the Catholic Church. Mary is afforded no place of particular honor in LDS doctrine, liturgy, or culture.
For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate, he suffered, died, and was buried.
We also believe pretty much the same about this, although LDS put more emphasis on the suffering of Christ in the garden of Gethsemane. Culturally, they usually shy away from the cross as a symbol of Christ’s redemptive action.
On the third day he rose again, in fulfillment of the scriptures;
Regarding the scriptures, LDS believe that God’s people were consistently and explicitly told of Christ’s coming, passion, death, and resurrection since the beginning. This was lost from scripture because of the constant apostasy of the people.
he ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
As mentioned, LDS would interpret this literally, since the Father and Son are said to have physical bodies.
He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom will have no end.
Again, we believe mostly the same, although LDS have distinct beliefs about how the final resurrection and judgment will occur. They believe that Christ will return to the earth and reign for a thousand years, and that during that time, starting with the righteous and ending with the unrighteous, all who died will be resurrected (that is, reunited with their bodies).
I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son. With the Father and Son he is worshipped and glorified. He has spoken through the Prophets.
Clear, definite LDS belief on the Holy Spirit can be hard to find. It is known that He is another spirit child of the heavenly parents, and that He does not have a physical body (this is how He can dwell in people; a being with a physical body couldn’t do so). He does His indwelling work in the service of the Father.
Obviously, the Holy Spirit is also not eternal, as is the case with the Son. While LDS do believe Him to be God in a sense, I have never heard prayer or worship offered to the Holy Spirit or to Jesus. They believe that Christ’s directives in the Gospels meant that we should pray only to the Father. They would agree that He has spoken through the prophets, and further, they claim that a prophet must always be the leader of the church. They believe that prophets speak directly to God, and give the church continuing revelation. This is contrast to our belief that the perfect and final revelation of God was Jesus Christ, and the Church since then has, by the power of the Holy Spirit, borne consistent witness to it, and has infallibly interpreted and applied it.
I believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church.
LDS do believe in one, organized, hierarchical church, with leaders ordained by God. They esteem the holiness of the church, and do believe that it’s universal. They believe that it’s apostolic, even though it initially apostatized. In their belief, the Apostles came to Joseph Smith and restored to him the keys of the kingdom. They believe that the office of apostle must be a continuing office, and that bishops do not and never have received full apostolic authority. The current manual for LDS missionaries says, “[The current prophet] and the present Apostles trace their authority to Jesus Christ in an unbroken chain of ordinations through Joseph Smith.”
I acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins.
LDS do not accept baptism by other churches; neither does the Catholic Church recognize LDS baptisms as valid. They do not believe in infant baptism, and children must have reached the age of reason (defined as eight years) before they can choose to be baptized (or even be able to sin). They do not believe that baptism irreversibly changes the character of the baptized; if an LDS commits serious sin or is somehow separated from the church, he must be re-baptized.
I look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come. Amen.
LDS also have different beliefs on the afterlife. Immediately after death, a spirit is sent either to paradise (for the righteous who received the ordinances of the church) or to spirit prison (for the unrighteous or ignorant). In spirit prison, they hear the gospel proclaimed to them, and can choose to believe it then. They can receive the ordinances vicariously, if a living person receives the ordinances in their name. This is why LDS perform their ordinances, such as baptism, for the dead, and why they are so committed to genealogical work – they wish to confer the ordinances by proxy on every person who has lived.
After the return of Christ, the resurrected can go one of four ways. The extremely unrighteous (and apparently this refers only to humanity’s very worst, who knowingly, explicitly, and unrepentantly refused God in some way) are cast into the “outer darkness,” the realm of the devil. The unrighteous and unbelievers are placed in the “telestial kingdom,” the lowest of the eternal kingdoms. The righteous ones who were not believers (decent Catholics would fall into this category) go to the “terrestrial kingdom,” a higher one. Faithful and worthy LDS go to the “celestial kingdom,” the best of eternal destinies. The highest in that kingdom are those who were sealed to a spouse, and who can therefore go on to become gods.
In contrast, we believe that there are no divisions into kingdoms or exclusive family units. The righteous will enter into God’s presence, and enjoy complete union of knowledge and love with Him and with every other person who is also in heaven. Catholics also believe that those who have some attachment to sin remaining at the end of their earthly life will be cleansed of it via suffering, in a state known as purgatory, before entering the wedding feast of the Lamb.
So after all that, are Mormons Christian? In all my experience, I’ve concluded that the answer to that question is: it depends on who’s asking and who’s answering. They vigorously claim to be Christians, and if one considers “Christian” to mean “one who loves and serves God the Father and Christ His Son,” without concern for right doctrine, LDS definitely fall into that category. But if one considers “Christian” to include following the teachings of God as revealed through Christ and handed on through the Church, then they are definitely not.
The problem is that in one sense or another, anyone can be called non-Christian, both in the sense of right faith and of right moral living. I was non-Christian today when I broke the speed limit. I could claim that anyone who doesn’t fully submit to the Magisterium is non-Christian. This would encompass everything from paganism to the Orthodox churches. While most would agree with me on the former, few would on the latter. The fact is, for any given person, the meaning of the name “Christian” depends on what that person believes.
So here’s my point. I strongly urge readers never to waste their time trying to convince an LDS that he is not Christian. Nor is it a fruitful question to discuss with a member of any faith regarding any other faith. And for the love of all that is holy, don’t ever tell an LDS that he is a member of a non-Christian cult. Regardless of whether such assertions are right or wrong, the subject of who can be called “Christian” is not a fruitful subject of debate with members of any other communion. Therefore, my answer to the question “Are Mormons Christian?” is not “yes” or “no,” because the question is not as simple as that. My answer is, “They believe in Christ, but they believe some very different things about Him than most Christians do.”
Here is what I found so far…
MORMONS ARE ALL IGNORAMUSES
Dr. John M. Reiner, a Roman Catholic scholar who had nearly a dozen languages at his command and seemed to know a great deal about law, literature, history, and science, visited Salt lake City in January 1898. He and Elder Orson R. Whitney of the Quorum of the Twelve became well acquainted. One day he told Brother Whitney: “You Mormons are all ignoramuses. You don’t even know the strength of your own position. It is so strong that there is only one other position tenable in the whole Christian world, and that is the position of the Roman Catholic Church.
The issue is between Catholicism and Mormonism. If we are right, you are wrong; if you are right, we are wrong; and that’s all there is to it. The Protestant sects haven’t a leg to stand on; for if we are right, we cut them off long ago as apostates; and if we are wrong, they are wrong with us, since they were a part of us and went out from us. If we have the apostolic succession from St. Peter, as we claim, there is no need of Joseph Smith and Mormonism; but if we have not that succession, then such a man as Joseph Smith was necessary, and Mormonism’s attitude is the only consistent one. It is either the perpetuation of the gospel from ancient times, or the restoration of the gospel in latter days.”
Elder Whitney agreed with some that was said, but in no uncertain terms, told him he was mistaken: “Don’t deceive yourself with the notion that we ‘Mormons’ are not aware of the strength of our own position. We know it better than anyone else can know it. We have not all been to college; we can not all speak the dead languages; and we may be ignoramuses as you say. But we know we are right and we know you are wrong”
Everyone always seems to ignore the Eastern Orthodox….