So says a court in Arkansas. I know lawyers are necessary, but since when do they believe they can determine the answer to longstanding theological, historical, and sociological questions? Oh well… I guess the next time someone asks if Mormonism is Protestant you can cite actual legal precedent when saying no. 🙂
It’s Official: Mormonism is not a Protestant Religion
When I was a kid, I was taught that Mormonism isn’t just a branch of Protestantism.
Well, the court sort of has to determine if Mormonism is Protestant in order to adjudicate the parties’ claims. Is the court institutionally competent to do so? You could argue no, but it sounds to me like a question of fact, and courts always have tp determine difficult questions of fact. And law.
It’s what they do.
So, in your opinions, do you think Mormonism is a Protestant religion? Did the court get this wrong?
Of course it isn’t Protestant.
We try to establish an ecclesiarchy under a centralized Priesthood structure, we call all their religions apostate, and introduce a whole slew of new doctrines.
Now any one of those, on it’s own, might not do the trick. But put them altogether and it’s pretty clear that we are no more Protestant than the Pope is.
Could the Maxwell Institute be considered Protestant?
In my opinion, the question can be decided more narrowly, Seth. Mormons are not Protestants because we are not even Niceans. The restoration of the priesthood excludes us.
Most other churches accept each others credentials. Mormons, however, cannot possibly link up with St. Peter’s succession in the Roman Catholic sense.
Instead we claim an alternative succession myth to Peter. Most Protestant churches proclaim the priesthood of the faithful rather than an authority account. However, most Protestant ministers happen to link up wit the bishop of Rome.
Yeah, but this seems uncontroversial to me. I was always taught, quite officially, that we weren’t Protestant and damn proud of it. 😉
Exactly!