As a consequence, Latter-day Saints hold that God the Father is an embodied being, a belief consistent with the attributes ascribed to God by many early Christians. The true nature of God the Father, His Son, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost was restored through the Prophet Joseph Smith. Chief among the doctrines lost in this process was the nature of the Godhead. Latter-day Saints believe the melding of early Christian theology with Greek philosophy was a grave error.

The key ideological shift that began in the second century A.D., after the loss of apostolic authority, resulted from a conceptual merger of Christian doctrine with Greek philosophy. Early Christian views of God were more personal, more anthropomorphic, and less abstract than those that emerged later from the creeds written over the next several hundred years. Scholars have long acknowledged that the view of God held by the earliest Christians changed dramatically over the course of centuries.

Latter-day Saints Do Not Accept the Creeds of Post–New Testament Christianity Latter-day Saints do not believe scripture consists of the Holy Bible alone but have an expanded canon of scripture that includes the Book of Mormon, the Doctrine and Covenants, and the Pearl of Great Price.Įach of these is examined below. That is, Latter-day Saints are not Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, or Protestant. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints does not descend through the historical line of traditional Christianity. Latter-day Saints do not accept the creeds, confessions, and formulations of post–New Testament Christianity. The most oft-used reasons are the following: In recent decades, however, some have claimed that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is not a Christian church. … His way is the path that leads to happiness in this life and eternal life in the world to come.” 2 When asked what the Latter-day Saints believe, Joseph Smith put Christ at the center: “The fundamental principles of our religion is the testimony of the apostles and prophets concerning Jesus Christ, ‘that he died, was buried, and rose again the third day, and ascended up into heaven ’ and all other things are only appendages to these, which pertain to our religion.” 1 The modern-day Quorum of the Twelve Apostles reaffirmed that testimony when they proclaimed, “Jesus is the Living Christ, the immortal Son of God. They worship God the Eternal Father in the name of Jesus Christ. Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints unequivocally affirm themselves to be Christians.

Church of the lamb of god cult