In Peggy Fletcher Stack’s piece in the Salt Lake Tribune on Nov. 25, there were lots of reasons given why The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints wants to emphasize Jesus Christ in its name, rather than use the familiar term Mormon. Most notably, the new title is to let people know they are Christian. However, I’m not sure how having Jesus Christ in the title of their church makes them Christian. Nowhere did I see any reference to the theology of Christianity.
Traditional Christian theology is mostly based on the belief in the Holy Trinity, which is one God in three persons (the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit). That is the foundation of Christianity. The Holy Trinity is both a mystery and a complex understanding of the faith.
What I got out of Stack’s article is that behaving like Christ makes one a Christian. Stack quoted Carolyn Homer, saying, “Members need to talk of Christ, rejoice in Christ, preach of Christ, prophesy of Christ, and finally, love like Christ.” This makes me wonder if someone is confusing Christianity with what they do instead of what they believe. It involves both.
I don’t want to minimize the fact that Mormons consider themselves Christian. Most of them do, and that is fine. A group can define itself as it desires. I just think the justification for the name change is misguided.
Sandra Motes, Sandy