Can you tell me about The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (also called Mormons)?

Question

I have a good friend that's Mormon. I just met him about three months ago through another friend, and I haven't really talked to him outside of our circle of friends. He's a cool guy, and there seems to be a possibility of the two of us starting a relationship eventually. I was hoping someone (Preferably someone from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints) could clear up a few rumors I've heard and tell me whether these things are true.

Morman is a Christian Denomination
They believe:...
There are two circles of heaven, one for non-Morman Christians, one for Mormans
In the Bible and The Book of Morman
In Jesus Christ, God, and the Holy Spirit
It is wrong to have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ
You can become like God and rule your own planet


They don't go to college, and instead go on missions
The Morman Church is a cult

Again, I'm sure all of this is not true, just looking for someone who can say what is and isn't.

Thanks!

Edit:
Many of you have asked why I don't ask my Mormon friend these questions.
I didn't quite know how to bring it up, and I didn't know if he would be willing to talk about these questions in front of our entire group of friends, since we really don't get much alone time. Thanks to the answers I got to this question, I now know more about his religion, and I think I will feel more comfortable asking him since everyone here was more than willing to talk about their religion. I hope he will be as polite and open about it as you guys! Thanks.

Answer 1

We do believe there are different degrees of heaven. There are biblical references to it.
No it's not wrong to have a personal relationship with Christ. In fact it is highly encouraged. We believe in God the father, His son Jesus Christ and the Holy Ghost.
God is our Father. But He will always be our God. He wants us to have all that He has. Any loving parent would want the same.
Many go on missions, but that never stops them from going to college. In fact we are strongly counseled to get as much education as we can.
Many who dislike the Mormons only believe what they hear.
Feel free to email me with any questions.

Answer 2

You should have the missionaries come over and get the discussions. You've heard a little and assume a lot. There are 4 or 5 of them and they last 30-45 minutes each. That will clear up many of your misconceptions and give you a better feel for what Mormons are and are not.

1. There is no "Mormon heaven". Mormons will be in each "area" of heaven as well as non-Mormons. Those in the highest level of Heaven must receive Christ's gospel and receive the appropriate ordinances.

2. There are actually 3 levels of heaven, each with multiple tiers.

3. Mormons feel a personal relationship with Christ is ESSENTIAL

4. Like puppies become like thier parents, we have the ability to become like ours. God is our loving father and wants us to have all that he has.

5. Mormons stress education AND missions. BYU is a Mormon owned and operated school with about 35,000 students. There are a number of other Mormon schools. Our prophet has encouraged us to get as much education as possible. Another said that we should learn from the best books. Educations is very stressed.

6. 1 in 50 Americans are Mormons. They make up the 4th largest Church in the US. They are not a cult any more or less than any other organized religion. US presidents regularly meet with the Mormon prophets and leaders.

7. Most Mormons welcome questions regarding our faith (as long as they're not antagonistic or mocking). You can ask your friend anything that you want. We are generally eager to clear up misconceptions and raise awareness.

8. Take some of the answers you'll get with a grain of salt. There are some people that don't like Mormons and purposefully spread lies and partial truths.

Answer 3

Well I am LDS, well for at least the last 17 years. I will do my best and then check out the Mormon website. It'll have a ton of good stuff.

There are two circles of heaven, one for non-Mormon Christians, one for Mormons-FALSE.

In the Bible and The Book of Mormon-TRUE

In Jesus Christ, God, and the Holy Spirit-TRUE. We believe that Heavenly Father (God) is the Father and that His son, Jesus Christ is well, the son. 2 people, not the same, one person.

It is wrong to have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ-FALSE. I pray to Him every night. Not to a saint like some churches do.

You can become like God and rule your own planet_TRUE and FALSE. Mormons believe that Heavenly Father has promised us all that he has. That we can live eternally and be together as families forever.

They don't go to college, and instead go on missions-FALSE. This one made me laugh! I have A Mormon little brother and a Mormon nephew and both are away at college right now. Mormon boys who have remained clean (Morally) leave on their 2 year mission at the age of 19. They do not know where they will be going until about 2-4 months before they leave. Could be any where in the world.

The Mormon Church is a cult-FALSE. Are we satanic? NO. But by definition, all religious groups are cults.

Hope this helps. Read up. But I caution you. If you have a sincere curiosity, stay away from the anti Mormon people. There are a few and they are freaky. I mean REALLY weird. They spread terrible rumors about my faith and it is disgusting.

GOOS LUCK!! Email me if you have more questions.

Answer 4

Mormons are Christians. We believe in Jesus, God, the Holy Spirit, etc.

Circles of heaven? No. We believe there are 3 "areas" of heaven. They have nothing to do with if you're Mormon or not. The top area is for people who lived according to Christ's gospel. The second is for people who lived good lives but refused to accept the Gospel. The third is for people who accepted the gospel but still live in sin and don't repent until after death.

Uhh, no it is not wrong to have a personal relationship with Jesus, it's what we're about. Becoming closer with Jesus and God.(where did you hear that)

That statement is crude, but not far from true.... http://scriptures.lds.org/en/gs/m/4 this link provides scriptural support for the belief, and what it truly is all about.

---------

I didn't see the other stuff...

I'm in college right now. I plan on finishing this semester, I've already enrolled for Spring semester, and I'll enroll for summer. Then I'll take more classes next fall. After that I'll go on a 2 year mission(my choice) and when I come back, I'll finish my schooling.

If my church is a cult...so be it, but I believe with all my heart that it's true. I'm willing to have the truth even if others can't accept it.

Answer 5

There are two circles of heaven, one for non-Morman Christians, one for Mormans
False. There are three levels of heaven, you go to each depending on your faithfulness, not anything else.


In the Bible and The Book of Morman
True. also, Doctrine and covenants and Pearl of great price

In Jesus Christ, God, and the Holy Spirit
True, but not in the Trinity.

It is wrong to have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ
False, we encourage each other to developa a personal relationship with Christ

You can become like God and rule your own planet
Very few of us will achieve exaltation, but yes, this is a teaching, but not exactly like that...

They don't go to college, and instead go on missions
False. Mission work is optional, and you can go to college either before or after you go.

The Morman Church is a cult
All churches start out as cults, because they break away from the mainstream. The mormon church is no longer a cult, they are sociologically defined as a church.

Answer 6

We are a Chrisitian denomination, although some other Christians are very exclusionary and dont like to "count us" based on differences in doctrine. We believe there are 3 different "glories" of heaven. Celestial, terrestrial, and telestial. As there are differing levels of righteous people and followers of God. There is also a hell, which we call "outter darkness". Few will be there. These are for the sons of perdition mentioned in the Bible. Salvation is generally a free gift and even people who arent christians will at least be in the lower level of glory because of that salvation. EXALTATION is completely different and is reserved for followers of Christ who have lived righteously and faithfully and obeyed commandments to have certain ordinances done. ie: baptism, confirmation, temple marriage...etc.. The three degrees of glory ARE biblical, but other churches interpret those scriptures differently. I will post it below. We do read both the KJV of the Holy Bible and the Book of Mormon. Both are separate testaments of Jesus Christ. WE do believe in the Godhead consisting of God the father, his son Jesus Christ and in the Holy Ghost. It is **VITAL** to have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ!!! He is our savior! They only way possible for us to be saved by his grace and his sacrifice. It is because of this that we can even have the opportunity to repent of our sins and be able to reunite with our Heavenly Father. We are all trying to become perfected, as God is. In fact we were commanded to. "Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect." And we know we are commanded NOTHING which we are not able to accomplish. As for the ruling your own planet, that has been voiced as opinion but is not doctrine. So you have to take it as nothing more than opinion. COuld be right, could be wrong. We do go to college, college is VERY strongly advised of for both young men and women. However, the guys DO leave at 19 for a two year mission. They normally resume studies when they return, Its not a cult. Not in the traditional sense. That is ridiculous and simply a fear tactic other religions use to scare people away. There are almost 14 MILLION members of the church WORLDWIDE. We are not some stupid cult. Email me if you have any other questions ok?

Answer 7

I am Mormon and have been for many years (and will be to the day I die and beyond). We believe that Jesus Christ is the Savior of the world. That no man can have salvation excerpt through the atoning sacrifice and merits of Jesus Christ and Christ only. We worship Christ. Eternal life comes through, and by and of Jesus Christ.
We believe the Bible to be the word of God. We also believe the Book of Mormon to be the word of God as well. The Book of Mormon is another testament of Jesus Christ.
We believe in the same organization of the church as existed in Christ's day. That there needs to be prophets and apostles, just like what Christ set up. We believe that a man must be called of God to receive the proper priesthood authority to administered the ordinances of the Gospel. We believe that God restored that autoed to the earth through Joseph Smith and that such divine authority continues now again on the earth.
We have prophets that guide the church in these days. God has not forgotten mankind in this day and age. He does not sleep. But is actively aware of our needs and reveals his will to us in this day and age, just like in times of old.

Answer 8

Hi. Good questions. Is there a reason you're not comfortable asking these questions of your friend? In the meantime, here is the official church website with answers to those and other questions.
lds.org
There are lots of misconceptions about the church out there so it's good (like with any research) to get information from the source.
Yes, we believe that Jesus is the Christ, the son of God who suffered for our sins and died so that we may live again.

We believe that there are different "degrees" of Heaven but not necessarily depending on your religion but by how well you live God's laws as well as you've been taught them and that everyone who has ever lived will get a chance (in this life or after this life) to learn about Jesus Christ and accept his gospel or not.

God, Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit are three separate beings. (Not a trinity)

It is important to have a personal relationship with God, our Heavenly Father and his son, Jesus Christ.

God wants us to continue to progress throughout this life and afterwards in our quest to become more like him.

We can go on volunteer missions but education is also highly valued and encouraged. We go to college.

Lot's of people define a "cult" as being anything they don't understand or that isn't Catholic. No, we're not one.
Check out the website for more info and talk with your friend. I'm sure he'd be happy to answer your questions.
-Peace!

Answer 9

Mormons believe that Jesus Christ was the only Begotten Son of God the Father and seek to follow him.

No, there aren't 2 circles in heaven, one for believers, one for non.

We believe the Bible to be the history of God's dealings with ancient Israel & Judah. We believe the Book of Mormon to be a history of God's dealings with some peoples upon the American continent.

We believe in God, the Eternal Father; and in His Son, Jesus Christ; and in the Holy Ghost.

By getting to know our Savior, Jesus Christ, and seeking to understand his example and his atonement, we hope to be able to obtain exaltation. Without a personal relationship with Christ, one is simply going through the motions [like taking a fork to your mouth that is empty].

We believe in eternal families and eternal progression. Ruling a planet has never entered into it.

Mormons do go to college -- but are also encouraged to go on missions [at the age of 19 for young men, 21 for young women]. The Church even owns Brigham Young University -- and has one of the top MBA & Law school programs in the nation, as well as excellent undergraduate programs.

The Mormon church is not a cult by modern definition -- but the basic definition of cult could be applied to nearly all religions and denominations.

For more questions -- ask your friend. We're not secretive and we like people who ask honest questions. We're not going to kidnap you or brainwash you. But often, we enjoy sharing our testimonies of Christ and modern prophets with our friends.

Thanks for asking.

Answer 10

im LDS
I dont believe there are two circles of heaven for mormons and non-mormons.
I dont believe its wrong to have a personal relationship with jesus. Infact, its encouraged! ive never heard that rumor.
No you cannot become like god and rule your own planet. thats what of the stupidest rumors ive ever heard.
We dont go on missions instead of college, we go onmissions before college. and its a choice, you dont have to go on a mission.
if you wanna know about the religion, why dont you ask your friend?