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Now Franklin Graham has backtracked on his statements. This phony certainly isn't the man his father is. Maybe now he'll learn to keep his mouth shut on such matters.
I can see both points of view here, but I'm going to add a third one. I agree that he definitely did not call Mormonism a cult. I guess Mormons should appreciate that. He also did not come right out and say that he doesn't personally believe that Romney is a Christian. On the other hand, he certainly could have cleared up the matter once and for all (with respect to his personal opinion, that is) by being a little less vague.
The problem, as Mormons see it, is that even when the word "cult" is not used, when non-LDS Christians say that Mormons are not Christians, what that tells people is that Mormons do not believe that Jesus Christ is the divine Son of God, that Jesus Christ was born to a Virgin in Bethlehem, that He performed all of the miracles described in the New Testament, that He was tortured and killed to atone for the sins of mankind, that He was resurrected, being the first person ever to overcome death, and that He reigns in Heaven today with the Father -- when, in fact, we do believe all of those things. I wonder how any Christian who believes those things would feel if he were constantly being told he wasn't a Christian.
The insanity of the matter is this: Everything in bold is exactly what the vast majority of Christians think of when the world "Christian" comes up.
What the ministers of religion, priests, pastors, etc are referencing: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints does not accept to decisions made at the First Council of Nicea in 325 AD -- an event that occurred about 300 years after Jesus of Nazareth was killed, resurrected and ascended into heaven.
The 300 year time gap is bad enough. But this approach is more than a little disingenuous since the vast majority of Protestants to not accept Nicea 1 in it's entirety.
Frankly, ministers parroting the claim, "Mormon's aren't Christians" are cowards. They throw out the statement without explanation or qualification. The vast majority of their followers would not even begin comprehend their explanation , much less agree with it. Their case for making this statement is that pathetic.
I find it interesting that so many evangelical Christians have no qualms supporting a Catholic but not a Mormon. Actually, the Mormon religion has much more in common in practice than the Catholic religion does.
Every other major Christian denomination recognizes the Catholic church as a legitimate part of the apostolic tradition and vice versa, but not LDS. That's all Graham was getting at.
Even though he met with President Obama, who discussed his Christian faith, the good Reverend has "no idea what he really believes," but could be a "son of Islam."
When asked about Mitt Romney, Graham said "He’s a Mormon. Most Christians would not recognize Mormonism as part of the Christian faith."
But Rick Santorum's Christianity must be intuitively obvious because there is "no question about it … I think he is, no question, a man of faith."
So is Franklin Graham:
A) Applying a double-standard.
B) Prejudiced against anyone who doesn't subscribe to his particular narrow interpretation of Christianity
C) Hypocritical
D) All of the Above
I vote pie.
Graham is no authority on who is and who is not a Christian, or any other faith for that matter.
Every other major Christian denomination recognizes the Catholic church as a legitimate part of the apostolic tradition and vice versa, but not LDS. That's all Graham was getting at.
I am pretty sure that Franklin Graham was misrepresented in this article and did not say who was or wasn't a Christian. He would not do that and I have heard him say he would have no problem voting for Mitt Romney and does not have an issue wiith his being LDS.
He wasn't misrepresented. There is a video out there from his appearance on The Morning Joe show where he says exactly what is outlined in the OP.
Anyone who has confessed Jesus Christ to be his or her Lord and Savior is a Christian. Period. End of story.
He wasn't misrepresented. There is a video out there from his appearance on The Morning Joe show where he says exactly what is outlined in the OP.
Anyone who has confessed Jesus Christ to be his or her Lord and Savior is a Christian. Period. End of story.
To suggest otherwise is the height of arrogance.
Are the words I highlighted Grahams quote or is that you speaking? Which ever, it is exactly right and no one really knows anothers heart, we can only judge by their actions and behavior.
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