Posted on 09/24/2009 10:46:07 AM PDT by delacoert
The official position of the United Methodist Church on Mormonism is that Mormonism is not Christianity.
The official position of the Roman Catholic Church on Mormonism is that Mormonism is not Christianity.
Question: Whether the baptism conferred by the community «The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints», called «Mormons» in the vernacular, is valid.
Response: Negative.
The official position of the Presbyterian Church (USA) on Mormonism is that Mormonism is not Christianity.
It is the practice of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) to receive on profession of faith [i.e., a new profression] those coming directly from a Mormon background and to administer baptism. Presbyterians do not invite officials of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to administer the Lord's Supper.
The official position of the Lutheran Church, Missouri Synod on Mormonism is that Mormonism is not Christianity.
A. The Lutheran Church--Missouri Synod, together with the vast majority of Christian denominations in the United States, does not regard the Mormon church as a Christian church. That is because the official writings of Mormonism deny fundamental teachings of orthodox Christianity. For example, the Nicene Creed confesses the clear biblical truth that Jesus Christ, the second Person of the Trinity, is "of one substance with the Father." This central article of the Christian faith is expressly rejected by Mormon teaching -- thus undermining the very heart of the scriptural Gospel itself. In a chapter titled "Jesus Christ, the Son of God: Are Mormons Christian?" the president of Brigham Young University (Rex Lee, What Do Mormons Believe? [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1992] summarizes Mormon teaching by stating that the three persons of the Trinity are "not... one being" (21), but are "separate individuals." In addition, the Father is regarded as having a body "of flesh and bone" (22). Such teaching is contrary to the Holy Scriptures, destructive to the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and indicative of the fact that Mormon teaching is not Christian.
The official position of the churches of the Southern Baptist Convention on Mormonism is that Mormonism is not Christianity.
So what ?
Every one of these groups criticizes something different. That they don't "accept" Mormons is no big surprise. I notice that the Catholic comment is that they don't accept LDS baptisms as valid - nothing more.
Does this seem odd ? Of course they don't accept LDS baptisms. They weren't done by ordained Catholic priests.
And this "apostolic" dodge is terribly silly. If it's true that ALL these religions come directly from the apostles, why are they all different ? The Catholic church has some legitimate claim to that, if you disregard the anti-popes. But the rest ? They're no more "apostolic" than I'm pink with purple polkadots.
One of them claims the Mormons are not Christian because they say God has a physical body. Please show me proof that God does not have a physical body.
Personally I don't know. But one thing I do know is that the writer has no more hard knowledge than I do.
That long series of quotes does not prove they’re not Christian. What it does prove is that they consider other churches to have fallen away from true Christian beliefs.
Gee, have I heard that before ????
Thank you for your reply. It was the most coherent, by far. But what you've said here would take an day's reply to do it any justice - and I'm not sure enough of my limited knowledge of Mormon theology to make a perfectly accurate one. I do know they would not say Christ was conceived by a sexual act, like Leda and the swan.
Perhaps some day your ecumenism will stretch to include Mormons.
Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself: handle me, and see; for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have. (Luke 24:39)
..Christ... Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature: (Colossians 1:15)
Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath showed it unto them. For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen... (Romans 1:19-20)
Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, be honour and glory for ever and ever. Amen. (1 Timothy 1:17)
...who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords; Who only hath immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto; whom no man hath seen, nor can see: to whom be honour and power everlasting. Amen. (1 Timothy 6:15-16)
By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king: for he endured, as seeing him who is invisible. (Hebrews 11:27)
No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him. (John 1:18)
Not that any man hath seen the Father, save he which is of God, he hath seen the Father. (John 6:46)
They weren't meant to.
What they DO 'prove' is that - it's meant for all those who blare they have the true path while others are evil and going to hell.
Hence between that and the very clear positions of the faith of the true Christian linage shared above by others on the thread, there is little chance if any of coming together, at least in a religious context.
However they are always welcome to join us in the light of the True Christ.
See this article for the detailed explanation. But as they say, the short LDS answer is "no", God did not have sex with Mary.
The Mormons DO believe they have the "true path", as does every other denomination I've run across. They DO NOT believe the others are going to "hell".
To put it simply, they believe the others will go to a "paradise" where they can learn the true path after death - hence their "baptising the dead" practice.
They believe the only people who are really going to "hell" are those who have literally KNOWN God and rejected Him - like Lucifer did.
Some Christian theologies say when you're dead, that's it - which is kinda tough on those who never really had a chance to know and accept Christ.
Mormons do not.
Not that any man hath seen the Father, save he which is of God, he hath seen the Father. (John 6:46)
These two contradict each other.
How about Adam and Eve ?
None of the quotes say to me that God has no body. Of course God is a spirit - so are you.
God did not appear to man (other than Adam & Eve ?) in his perfected physical body. He sent Christ instead, in an earthly physical body.
The beauty of the LDS doctrine is it can be changed as needed. With the new marketing efforts of the past couple of decades you will struggle to find any mention of this now, at least publicly. In trying to market being "Christan" now, efforts at changing their overall history and the words of their forefathers have be moving along at a brisk pace. Seems all those "odd" ideas are a stumbling block in recruitment now.
As far as the Virgin Mary subject, it is the same as trying to nail them down on how many gods they believe in. Jello does not nail very well.
Indeed at one point in searching the actual links to the Journals and Discourses and such I found pages missing on the subject at LDS web sources. No surprise there.
However God will provide...
“The birth of the Saviour was as natural as are the births of our children; it was the result of natural action. He partook of flesh and blood—was begotten of his Father, as we were of our fathers,” (Journal of Discourses, v. 8, p. 115).
“The birth of the Savior was a natural occurrence unattended with any degree of mysticism, and the Father God was the literal parent of Jesus in the flesh as well as in the spirit,” (Religious Truths Defined, p. 44, as cited in the book, Mormonism: Shadow or Reality, by Gerald and Sandra Tanner, Utah Lighthouse Ministry, P.O. Box 1854, Salt Lake City, Utah 84110, bookstore at 1350 South West Temple, 1982, p. 260).
“The man Joseph, the husband of Mary, did not, that we know of, have more than one wife, but Mary the wife of Joseph had another husband,” (Deseret News, October 10, 1866, as cited in the book, Mormonism: Shadow or Reality, by Gerald and Sandra Tanner, Utah Lighthouse Ministry, P.O. Box 1854, Salt Lake City, Utah 84110, bookstore at 1350 South West Temple, 1982, p. 261).
Mormon apostle Bruce McConkie, in perhaps the most explicit denial of the virgin birth, wrote,
“Christ was Begotten by an immortal Father in the same way that mortal men are begotten by mortal fathers.” (Mormon Doctrine, 1966, p. 547)
You might ask, “How can Mormons who believe this say that Christ was born of a virgin?” This is done by changing the definition of the word “virgin”. The virgin Mary did not have sexual relations with a mortal man, they say, but instead was impregnated by an immortal man. Bruce McConkie wrote,
“Our Lord is the only mortal person ever born to a virgin, because he is the only person who ever had an immortal Father.” (Mormon Doctrine, 2nd ed., p. 822)
Moving goal posts is a very time honored LDS practice. Hard to be wrong when whatever you say is “right” and your detractors can't hit a moving target, at least for a few minutes.
Other sources:
http://www.mrm.org/virgin-birth
http://www.exmormon.org/mormon/mormon385.htm
http://www.carm.org/religious-movements/mormonism/was-lds-jesus-born-virgin-mary
Interesting.
Just like greek mythology
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