What do Latter-day Saints believe about other churches?

Question

 

Gramps,

Can you address the following? Why don’t Mormons believe Christians have the “proper authority” to be involved? All Christian denominations are false, and our professors are corrupt, according to Joseph Smith. Do you think Mormons can ever get past that? Are we corrupt? Are we false Christians?  Are all our creeds an abomination? Correcting all those ugly statements would be a great start toward unity. Agreed?

Mark

 

Answer

 

Mark,

One reason for the confusion is Joseph Smith’s account of the First Vision. According to Joseph Smith—History 1:19, when Joseph asked which church he should join, he was told to join none of them. The account also uses some very strong language, stating that the existing churches were wrong, their creeds were an abomination, and their religious leaders were corrupt.

We shouldn’t pretend those words aren’t there. They are part of an important Latter-day Saint scripture, and they have understandably caused concern among Christians of other traditions. However, understanding what Latter-day Saints believe about those statements requires looking at the Church’s broader teachings rather than assuming that every Latter-day Saint believes every other Christian is dishonest, wicked, or insincere.

So, what is the distinction?

According to LDS doctrine, the First Vision marked the beginning of the Restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Latter-day Saints believe that the original Church established by Jesus Christ possessed priesthood authority and that this authority was lost after the deaths of the original apostles. They believe that God restored that authority through Joseph Smith.

This is why Latter-day Saints make claims about priesthood authority that other Christian denominations generally do not accept. The Church’s General Handbook, section 3.1, states that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the only organization on earth with priesthood authority as understood in LDS doctrine.

That is a significant theological disagreement. But notice what the claim is actually about: divine authority and the Restoration. It does not mean that Latter-day Saints must believe every minister in another church is a bad person or that every teaching in another church is false.

In fact, the Church recognizes that people outside its membership can receive inspiration, live righteous lives, and understand important truths about God and Jesus Christ.

Joseph Smith himself taught, “One of the grand fundamental principles of ‘Mormonism’ is to receive truth, let it come from whence it may.” That statement is recorded in History of the Church, volume 5, page 499. It expresses an important principle: truth does not become false simply because it comes from someone outside our own religious tradition.

You can find this quotation and other statements about religious freedom and respect for other faiths on the Church’s official website: 12 Expressions of Religious Freedom by Past Church Leaders

Now, what about the accusation that all Christian denominations are false and their ministers are corrupt?

Here we need to be honest about the language in Joseph Smith—History 1:19. The account really does contain a sweeping criticism of the existing churches and their creeds. It would be inaccurate to claim that the First Vision makes no negative judgment about other religious traditions.

From the LDS perspective, however, the message is that existing churches did not possess the fulness of Christ’s restored gospel and that certain doctrines and religious practices needed correction. The Church does not teach that every individual Christian is personally corrupt or that people in other denominations cannot sincerely love God.

There is an important difference between believing that another church lacks something essential to your understanding of the gospel and declaring that every person in that church is spiritually dishonest.

A Catholic who spends years caring for the poor, a Baptist who faithfully teaches the Bible, or a Methodist who dedicates their life to serving others should not automatically be viewed as a corrupt person simply because they do not accept LDS teachings about priesthood authority. Latter-day Saints can disagree with their theology while recognizing their sincerity, goodness, and devotion to Jesus Christ. But what about the statement that all other churches’ creeds are an abomination?

This is probably one of the most difficult parts of the discussion. The wording in Joseph Smith’s account is strong, and Christians who belong to traditions with historic creeds may understandably feel that their beliefs are being insulted.

Latter-day Saints generally understand this passage as a criticism of religious doctrines and creeds that they believe departed from revealed truth. It should not automatically be interpreted as a declaration that everything in the Apostles’ Creed, the Nicene Creed, or every other Christian confession is evil or that everyone who accepts those creeds is an abomination.

Still, we should acknowledge that the language itself is broad and that people can reasonably interpret it as a serious criticism of historic Christianity. We cannot build unity by telling other Christians that they have no reason to be offended. We can, however, explain our beliefs carefully, listen to their concerns, and avoid turning doctrinal disagreements into personal attacks.

The LDS Church also teaches that religious freedom belongs to everyone. The 11th Article of Faith states,

“We claim the privilege of worshiping Almighty God according to the dictates of our own conscience, and allow all men the same privilege, let them worship how, where, or what they may.”

Joseph Smith also spoke in defense of the religious rights of Presbyterians, Baptists, Roman Catholics, and people of other denominations. These teachings demonstrate that defending the Restoration does not require denying others the right to worship God or treating them with contempt.

Can Latter-day Saints and other Christians ever get past these disagreements? I believe they can, provided that unity does not require either side to abandon its convictions.

Unity does not mean pretending that the LDS Church and other Christian denominations teach exactly the same things. They don’t. There are real differences concerning the nature of God, priesthood authority, baptism, scripture, and the organization of Christ’s Church.

But we can disagree without being disrespectful. We can explain what we believe without misrepresenting what someone else believes. And we can recognize that another person may have a sincere relationship with Jesus Christ even when we disagree about important doctrines.

For Latter-day Saints, this means remembering that believing in the Restoration does not give us permission to look down on other Christians. For Christians of other traditions, it means recognizing that Latter-day Saints sincerely believe their claims about restored authority, even if those claims are rejected by other churches.

Perhaps a good starting point is to ask ourselves whether our conversations about religion are helping people understand one another or simply creating more division. Are we listening? Are we being fair? Are we treating one another as children of God?

Jesus Christ taught His disciples to love one another. That commandment does not disappear when we encounter someone whose religious beliefs differ from our own.

We do not have to agree on every doctrine to show kindness, cooperate in serving our communities, defend one another’s religious freedom, or recognize the good that others do.

So, are members of other Christian denominations false Christians simply because Latter-day Saints believe in a Restoration? No. The LDS Church’s distinctive claims about priesthood authority and the fulness of the gospel should not be confused with a declaration that every other Christian is insincere or morally corrupt.

Can we correct misunderstandings and move toward greater unity? Absolutely. That begins with honesty about our differences, respect for one another’s faith, and a willingness to stop treating disagreement as a reason for hostility.

We may not reach the same conclusions about every religious question, but we can still treat one another with the love, dignity, and compassion that Jesus Christ taught.

And perhaps that would be a very good place to start.

 

Gramps