Posted: 8/9/2015 9:09:09 PM EDT
I have friends and acquaintences who are Mormons, but I fear asking them these questions will only damage our friendship. I should add that I have only met one Mormon I did not like. I cannot say this for other religions, including my own. 
I believe I have read comments in this forum saying that Mormons are not Christians. I'm assuming Mormons would take exception with being told that they are not Christians. My questions are: 1) Has there been, is there, or will there ever be more than one God in the universe? Universe meaning all creation, visible and invisible. 2) If the answer to 1) is no, is this God God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit? 3) If the answer to 1) is yes, what other gods have there been, are, or will be in the universe? 4) If the answer to 2) is no, what is the difference between what I stated and what you believe in? 5) Do you accept the full divinity of Jesus? I have wondered about these for some time, but I recently listened to a Catholic radio show where a Mormon called in. Poor guy got pummeled, philosophically speaking, but to be fair, he was going against professional apologists. That's why I'm hoping to get the answers here in a low pressure environment. I would not blame anyone for thinking that this is a trap, and I don't know what else to say other than you have my word that it isn't so. |
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Your questions can not be definitively answered.
My questions are: 1) Has there been, is there, or will there ever be more than one God in the universe? Universe meaning all creation, visible and invisible. 2) If the answer to 1) is no, is this God God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit? 3) If the answer to 1) is yes, what other gods have there been, are, or will be in the universe? 4) If the answer to 2) is no, what is the difference between what I stated and what you believe in? 5) Do you accept the full divinity of Jesus? |
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The name of the church is The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints so yes Mormons are Christians.
Answer to question 1 is unknown as none of us is God and only he or Jesus can answer that. We do believe that God, Jesus and the Holy Ghost are three separate beings. #5. Yes |
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Quoted:
Your questions can not be definitively answered. Quoted:
Your questions can not be definitively answered. Why not? Maybe my experience is limited, but I've never met a Christian who could not answer those questions. ETA: Please don't feel an obligation to continue, but if you are inclined to continue, I'm interested to know why they cannot be answered definitively. Edited this piece because I may have come across condescending. Quoted:
The name of the church is The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints so yes Mormons are Christians. Answer to question 1 is unknown as none of us is God and only he or Jesus can answer that. We do believe that God, Jesus and the Holy Ghost are three separate beings. #5. Yes Thank you. |
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Quoted:
I have friends and acquaintences who are Mormons, but I fear asking them these questions will only damage our friendship. I should add that I have only met one Mormon I did not like. I cannot say this for other religions, including my own.
I believe I have read comments in this forum saying that Mormons are not Christians. I'm assuming Mormons would take exception with being told that they are not Christians. My questions are: 1) Has there been, is there, or will there ever be more than one God in the universe? Universe meaning all creation, visible and invisible. I don't know. I will have to ask God someday. 2) If the answer to 1) is no, is this God God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit? God the Father, Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit are three distinct beings. 3) If the answer to 1) is yes, what other gods have there been, are, or will be in the universe? 4) If the answer to 2) is no, what is the difference between what I stated and what you believe in? Are you referring to LDS members being Christians? I believe that salvation can only be found through the atonement of Jesus Christ. 5) Do you accept the full divinity of Jesus? Jesus Christ is the son of God. He came to earth, led a mortal life, died for all of our sins, and was raised three days later. I have wondered about these for some time, but I recently listened to a Catholic radio show where a Mormon called in. Poor guy got pummeled, philosophically speaking, but to be fair, he was going against professional apologists. That's why I'm hoping to get the answers here in a low pressure environment. I would not blame anyone for thinking that this is a trap, and I don't know what else to say other than you have my word that it isn't so. I am by no means a model LDS member. My answers above are based solely on my beliefs and interpretations from scripture and Church teachings. Articles of Faith 1 We believe in God, the Eternal Father, and in His Son, Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost.
3 We believe that through the Atonement of Christ, all mankind may be saved, by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the Gospel. |
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4) If the answer to 2) is no, what is the difference between what I stated and what you believe in? [span style='color: blue;']Are you referring to LDS members being Christians? No, I was asking if you don't believe that the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are the same God, then what is the difference. You answered that in 2), stating that they are three distinct beings. Thanks for the answers and for providing a link. |
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The following are just auxiliary questions, but after reading the articles:
6) Do you believe there was a time when Christ was not fully divine? 7) When did the Primitive Church cease to exist or deviate from God's intended path? 8) What is the correct translation of the Bible? |
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The following are just auxiliary questions, but after reading the articles: 6) Do you believe there was a time when Christ was not fully divine? No. 7) When did the Primitive Church cease to exist or deviate from God's intended path? After the apostles died. 8) What is the correct translation of the Bible? There is no 100% correct translation of the bible. Again, my thoughts/beliefs only. |
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As a Mormon I've been asked some of these questions many times. I never mind by the way you should ask any follow up questions to your Mormon friends. After much contemplation I have a slightly different answer than some fellow members of my faith. Are we Christians? The answer is no if you hold 'Christians' (with a capital 'C') to mean as being from general protestant or Catholic origins. We are not generally accepted as being part of the cultural 'Christian' faith that represents such a wonderful part of the fabric of our society. Neither do we (I) want specifically to be thrown in as being part of that group, though I have nothing but respect for our Christian brothers and sisters.. I count my self very blessed to have y'all out there fighting a very similar battle. There are so many things that we can agree on it makes me sad that we spend so much time focused on that which we cannot.
I might however classify myself and Mormons in general as 'christians' (with a small 'c'). Small 'c' because we have less emphasis on Christ? Or believe in Him less? Not in the slightest. We believe Christ to be our Savior, the divine Son of the Everlasting Father, and that having faith on His Holy name is the ONLY means by which a man can be saved. It is only by His infinite grace and mercy that we have any possibility of salvation. If you know nothing else about Mormons, know that. So why would I accept a small 'c' designation? Simply to get along with others and to recognize that we do indeed have fairly profound doctrinal differences that truly and understandably separate us from the beliefs of main stream Protestant/Catholic Christianity. |
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A good example of this is our view of the Holy Trinity. We do indeed believe them to be 3 separate and distinct members of a God head that is completely and perfectly unified in purpose, thought, and power. Whether there are other God's besides these three is relatively irrelevant as they would also be aligned perfectly and completely in purpose and thought, don't know about power.
We believe the King James Version of the bible to be the best translation currently available, but it is important to understand that we also believe in revelation and spiritual gifts. We believe not only personal revelation for our own stewardship such as ourselves and our families but we also believe that just like in the Old Testament we have a modern day Prophet or someone who has authority to receive revelation and direct affairs for the entire church (i.e. his stewardship). Though we believe the Bible to be the word of God in so far as it is translated correctly, we supplement the Bible with what we consider to be holy writ that was translated by the gift and power of God, through a modern day prophet; The Book of Mormon. We consider Bible and the Book of Mormon co-equals neither complete without the other. To better understand Mormons you need to understand how highly we regard modern revelation. All the devil? Deceived? Maybe, but like I said if you know nothing else about Mormons, know that we believe it is only by faith on the Holy name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ that we can be saved. I believe that to be the standard which most 'Christians' hold themselves to. |
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The name of the church is The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints so yes Mormons are Christians. Answer to question 1 is unknown as none of us is God and only he or Jesus can answer that. We do believe that God, Jesus and the Holy Ghost are three separate beings. #5. Yes So you are saying that just because someone has the name Jesus in their church that makes them a Christian? so you are saying that just because someone has the name jesus in there church that makes them a christian? What if I started a church called I believe in satan not jesus christ. And no I am NOT saying that the LDS Church is satanic. Just making a point about the name . |