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For this topic to work, I believe there must be some ground rules set forth so that we do not veer off into tangential side-topics. I believe we must also assume--for the sake of argument--that the Judeo-Christian god of the Bible exists, and that the Bible generally (read: not necessarily infallibly) declares God's word to humankind.
- First, for this to work, I think there should not be any other Mormon criticisms brought up in this thread, other than the question of whether Mormons are Christian using the text of the Bible as the standard by which this question shall be resolved.
- Second, any attempt to discuss other topics as a means of distraction (i.e. Joseph Smith's beliefs, his use of the word 'translation', political issues relating to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, The Book of Abraham, Polygamy and church history, temples, and etc.) will be ignored by me, and, I would hope by others here who are interested in genuine discussion about this single question.
- Third, any signs of copying and pasting large amounts of text from a website without addressing questions and concerns of other participants here will certainly be ignored by me, and, I would hope by others here who are interested in genuine discussion about this single question.
- Finally, mocking the sacred beliefs of another faith-group, as well as personal insults toward participants will also be ignored (and reported) by me, and, I would hope by others here who are interested in genuine discussion about this single question.
I realize I have no control over what participants say here, but I do have the ability to ignore certain behaviors and will not hesitate to do so.
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I will begin:
Mormons are Christian. We believe in the mission of Jesus Christ: that He died so that we might live again, that he is the great redeemer, that he was resurrected on the third day.
Robert L. Millet says it well in his paper entitled Are Latter-day Saints Christian?
Millet wrote:The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has always accepted Jesus of Nazareth as testified of in the Bible: the divine Redeemer and Son of God who atoned for the sins of all mankind and ensured our universal resurrection. The church has never ceased to affirm that there is no other name given whereby man can be saved (see Acts 4:12). Another book that the church reveres as scripture, the Book of Mormon, declares on its title page that it was written "to the convincing of the Jew and Gentile that Jesus is the Christ, the Eternal God, manifesting himself unto all nations."
He goes on to say
Millet wrote:Latter-day Saint beliefs are in harmony with what the Bible calls Christian. The terms Christian or Christians occur only three times in the New Testament (at Acts 11:26; 26:28; and 1 Peter 4:16). In each case these terms simply refer to those who follow Christ, which applies fully to Latter-day Saints.
Some traditional Christians look to the creeds to define, for them, who is or is not Christian. My belief is that the creeds are not in the bible--yes, some of the ideas are found therein, but the most important ideas are not (trinitarianism, for example).
Christianity is about inclusion, not exclusion. Jesus accepted all who sought Him, and we as Christians should do the same.
I invite all who are interested to participate in this discussion.