Are Mormons and Unitarians Christians?

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The Trinity seems to be the only thing that all Christians (Catholic, Protestant, Anglicans, Eastern Orthodox) hold in common.
These two do not.
What’s their status?
 
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Can I add to that tier Jehovah’s Witnesses?

Then when we conclude that tier ask your thoughts on 7th Day Adventist, Christian Science, and oneness Pentecostalism?
 
Ontologically, no, because only a proper baptism makes one a Christian. They are still brothers in Christ, despite their gravely flawed understanding of him.
 
It’s like the old adage, “How many legs does a dog have if you call his tail a leg? Four, because it doesn’t matter what you call his tail.” It really doesn’t matter to me what Mormons call themselves. I couldn’t care less. I’m a former Mormon and I can tell you that the Christ that Mormons worship is not the same Christ that Catholics worship. They might be Christians under their definition of Christianity, but to group them with orthodox Christians would not be correct. I think they would even admit to that.

All that aside, why does it matter? I can call myself an alligator if I want to, but that doesn’t make me one. I really don’t care what Mormons call themselves. It’s their right to do so. Only the truth matters.
 
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Mormons are not Christians, because, like you mentioned, they have an heretical view of the
Trinity, and therefore an invalid baptism. I’m not sure about unitarians,
 
Not Christian. Nor are, as mentioned, Jehovas Witnesses or the Salvation Army. To be Christian you just practice baptism (the Salvation Army does not), have Trinitarian beliefs, must use the right words, and you must intend by baptism what the Church does. At least that is my understanding of it.

Even some members of the Protestant groups you mentioned can be individually not Christian. For instance there is a movement that will probably grow which for the sake of feminism denies the Trinity. Such a person may say ‘I baptize you in the name of the Creator, the Redeemer, and the Sanctifier’. That isn’t Christian.
 
The Catholic Church only makes an official determination as to whether the baptism for these organizations are valid- and that’s for the CC’s own baptisms and marriages.

Mormon baptism isn’t valid,and I don’t think the Unitarians baptize at all. However, prospective members of both of these groups might have been baptized before joining those groups.
 
exnihilo said:
For instance there is a movement that will probably grow which for the sake of feminism denies the Trinity. Such a person may say ‘I baptize you in the name of the Creator, the Redeemer, and the Sanctifier’. That isn’t Christian.
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Why? You are certainly not using the original Hebrew or Greek upon which we base the “traditional” words? Do you not know exactly which word corresponds to the word you want? Does the Holy Ghost have a sex? Would not the Catholic church accept these Baptisms as valid? Is you faith that challenged by the words of others with whom you share basic Christian beliefs?
 
It is not Christian because the Church says it is not. The Church has control of the Sacraments. She doesn’t accept such baptisms.
 
Maximilian75 said:
The Trinity seems to be the only thing that all Christians (Catholic, Protestant, Anglicans, Eastern Orthodox) hold in common.

These two do not.

What’s their status?
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A person who is baptized in Trinitarian baptism is a Christian.

Those who are unbaptized (even if they go to a church that is a Trinitarian ecclesial community) and those who are baptized in a non-Trinitarian baptism are not Christians.

Keep in mind that they may believe that they are, may call themselves Christian, may be “followers of Christ”. But to actually be incorporated into the Body of Christ-- one must be validly baptized.
 
No they aren’t Christians. I think they believe that Jesus was a prophet don’t they?
 
Whitney said:
Can I add to that tier Jehovah’s Witnesses?

Then when we conclude that tier ask your thoughts on 7th Day Adventist, Christian Science, and oneness Pentecostalism?
Click to expand...
I don’t know enough about the faith communities you mentioned other than I knew SDA were trinitarian the last I checked.
 
1ke said:
A person who is baptized in Trinitarian baptism is a Christian.
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I don’t think that is exactly correct or it needs to be clarified. The Mormons say the same words the Catholic Church does, but their theology is so far off they mean something totally different. So the words and intention have to be the same as the Catholic Church.
 
One of the things I heard when I first started going to RCIA was that the Mormon baptism was not valid because it was not done in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, however, the exact words (if I remember correctly) of the Mormon baptism is (after calling the person by name) “Having been commissioned of Jesus Christ, I baptize you in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen.” So it’s not about the words. It’s about the doctrine.

I was born and raised Mormon. I received the Mormon baptism at age 8. I accept that it was not a Christian baptism. My real baptism will be in about 35 hours from now! 😎
 
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