Should the Mormon Church Be Categorized as Christian?

LDS Perspective

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints unequivocally affirms that it is a Christian faith. The very name of the Church, given by revelation from the Lord Jesus Christ Himself, is "The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints" (Doctrine and Covenants 115:4). This name declares that the Church belongs to Jesus Christ and that its members are His disciples. The central purpose of the Church is to invite all to come unto Christ, worship Him, and follow His teachings. As the official Style Guide of the Church states, the Church is "the restored Church of Jesus Christ," and its members are "Latter-day Saints" who believe in Jesus Christ as their Savior and Redeemer. The charge that Latter-day Saints are not Christian often stems from a narrow definition of Christianity that is based

Historical Perspective

The question of whether The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (often colloquially called the Mormon church) should be categorized as Christian is a matter of significant debate, hinging on differing definitions of the term "Christian" itself. From a historical and sociological perspective, the LDS Church has been widely categorized as a Christian denomination by numerous secular and interfaith organizations. According to the FAIR Latter-day Saints resource, sources such as the BBC, the National Council of Churches (NCC), the World Council of Churches (WCC), Encyclopedia Britannica, and the U.S. Department of State have all classified the LDS Church as Christian (Source: fairlatterdaysaints.org). This inclusion is based on a broad, established usage of the word "Christian" to ref