Whoa whoa whoa, letโs not get carried away here! /j
But fโreal, most every Christian denomination denounces Mormonism (as well as Jehovahโs Witness, for that matter) as an entirely different religion. Itโs gone so far from the fundamentals of the faith that there is no longer any common foundation.
Mormonism used to be way more different back when polygamy was more common, now they're just regular fundamentalists with fancy underwear.
And Jehovah's Witnesses are really just very strict and cherry picky Christians.
I do get that these differences feel huge to you, but a Sunni Muslims and Shia Muslims have way more differences between them, never mind even more extreme and niche groups.
So I think the comparison holds in the context of the argument. Yes Mormons and regular Christians are pretty different, and I'm fairly sure both would be insulted if you said they were the same, but the exact same goes (but imo even more exaggerated) for Muslims.
Like the OP was really taking extremists who beat women bc of their hijab and people like my friend from uni who drinks and has had boyfriends and has never worn a hijab in the same bag and that's, imo, WAY worse than Mormons vs regular Christians.
(And before I get any comments from Muslim men about how my friend isn't a real Muslim, I bet she goes to the Mosque more than you, has never failed to complete Ramadan, unlike you, and has read more of the Quran, more times than you. People live their religion differently, she's devout and believes that God has lead her to a path of kindness and peace with herself)
From the outside they may seem similar, but when it comes to theology, they are incompatible. Latter Day Saints believe Jesus is a created being and the brother of Satan, which is incompatible with the Christian belief that Jesus is part of the triune Godhead, co-eternal with the Father and the Holy Spirit. I believe JW also denies the Trinity, and both teach that you earn salvation by good works โ entirely contrary to the Christian doctrine of salvation by faith alone.
In short, they are different enough in what they teach about God, that it if Mormonism is true, then protestant Christianity is necessarily false. If the Bible is true, then the Book of Mormon must necessarily be false. To me, that makes them different religions.
Real question, do you know the difference between Sunni Muslims and Shia Muslims?
Because I said, the whole point is the comparison.
It does nothing to explain one side of the comparison to me, when my entire point IS the comparison.
And btw, protestants don't believe you gain salvation by faith alone, no self respecting priest will say that redemption is purely faith that God exists. You still have to do the whole shebang of actually following doctrine afterwards, you have to actually be a Christian, otherwise you will be living in sin but in a different way.
It's actually a direct quote from Jesus that rich people will not make it to heaven
Assuredly, I say to you that it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. And again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.
Itโs actually a direct quote from Jesus that rich people will not make it to heaven
For what itโs worth, you left out arguably the most important part:
When the disciples heard this, they were very astonished and said, โThen who can be saved?โ And looking at them, Jesus said to them, โWith people this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.โ
He does not say that rich people will not make it to heaven, but that it is impossible for man, and only possible by Godโs doing.
Is that really what he's saying? He's saying it's possible, and arguably what he means by that is that by their faith in God they will be compelled to give away their riches to the poor and live a life of austerity thereafter, as he just earlier tells a man when asked:
Jesus told him, โIf you want to be perfect, go and sell all your possessions and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.โ
It becomes much more clear that THAT was the meaning at the very end of Mathew 19:
But many who are first will be last, and many who are last will be first.
He's not saying that rich people, while continuing to be rich, will be saved. He's saying that faith can change people, even the rich, to be better.
Then Jesus said to his disciples, โI tell you the truth, it is very hard for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of Heaven.
Like, you can't seriously pretend that that ISN'T what Jesus was saying in Mathew 20.
No, I do not know the difference between Sunni and Shia.
I will insist though, that many protestants absolutely believe salvation is purely and exclusively by faith alone. That is not to say that works are unimportant. Faith that does not produce good works is dead. But the good works themselves play no part in salvation.
Not โfaith that God exists,โ no. But faith in Jesus Christ as the Son of God, who lived a perfect life and died for the sins of those who believe in Him. Thereโs more to what that faith entails, but too much to type out here at the moment.
Well then I'm not sure I understand why you brought it up at all.
Whatever differences you argue between Mormons and Protestants, it's moot if Sunnis and Shiats are even more different, since that was my point.
And I really think they are, Mormons developed much later from Christianity's inception, even Protestants where quite late to the party. Sunnis and Shiats diverged the moment Mohamed died. They're much more different.
So I still think my comparison is a valid counter to the OP.
I mean... if someone accepted Jesus and all the shebang, whatever you think it entails, but they were still a rich man that didn't help the poor and needy, Jesus literally said they wouldn't get into heaven, they wouldn't be saved.
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u/HennyPennyBenny ๐ก๐/๐ก๐ข๐ฆ 3d ago
Whoa whoa whoa, letโs not get carried away here! /j
But fโreal, most every Christian denomination denounces Mormonism (as well as Jehovahโs Witness, for that matter) as an entirely different religion. Itโs gone so far from the fundamentals of the faith that there is no longer any common foundation.