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What Is the Difference between Mormons and Catholics?
Catholics confess one God in three persons. Latter-day Saints teach three separate beings. In 2001 the Catholic Church answered that Latter-day Saint baptism is not valid.
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Catholics and Latter-day Saints both use the name of Jesus Christ. They do not confess the same God. The Catechism of the Catholic Church says the Trinity is one God in three persons, not three Gods. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints teaches three separate beings, one in purpose. In 2001 the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith answered that baptism conferred by that church is not valid. Nicene Christians, Catholic and Protestant, confess the creed’s one substance. Latter-day Saint scripture does not.
Key points
- Catechism paragraph 253: the church does not confess three Gods, but one God in three persons, the consubstantial Trinity. (1)
- Gospel Topics, Godhead: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost are three separate beings, one in purpose and doctrine. (5) Doctrine and Covenants 130:22
The Father has a body of flesh and bones as tangible as man’s; the Son also; but the Holy Ghost has not a body of flesh and bones, but is a personage of Spirit. Were it not so, the Holy Ghost could not dwell in us.
Doctrine and Covenants 130:22 · English, churchofjesuschrist.orgOpen source gives the Father and the Son bodies of flesh and bones. (6) - Catechism paragraph 82: the church does not derive her certainty about all revealed truths from Scripture alone. Scripture and Tradition are honored together. (2)
- Articles of Faith 1:8
We believe the Bible to be the word of God as far as it is translated correctly; we also believe the Book of Mormon to be the word of God.
Articles of Faith 1:8 · English, churchofjesuschrist.orgOpen source says the Bible is the word of God as far as it is translated correctly, and the Book of Mormon is the word of God. (4) - On June 5, 2001, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, with John Paul II’s approval, answered “Negative” on whether Latter-day Saint baptism is valid. (3)
- What do Catholics believe? and the Catholic hub are the Catholic shelf. Do Mormons believe in the Trinity? is the Godhead page.
What do Catholics confess about God?
The Catechism is the Catholic Church’s summary of its doctrine, published by the Holy See. Paragraph 253 states the Trinity. (1) On that pageThe Trinity is One. We do not confess three Gods, but one God in three persons, the "consubstantial Trinity".
Catechism of the Catholic Church 253 · English, Holy SeeOpen source:
The Trinity is One. We do not confess three Gods, but one God in three persons, the “consubstantial Trinity”.
Paragraph 254 adds that the persons are really distinct, and that God is one but not solitary. The creed of 381 says the Son is begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father. (9) Matthew 28:19Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
Matthew 28:19 · King James VersionOpen source names the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost in one baptismal name. (7) The Trinity is that confession. What do Catholics believe? follows it through the Catholic sources on this site.
What do Latter-day Saints confess about God?
Gospel Topics, Godhead, says the members of the Godhead are three separate beings. The Father and the Son have tangible bodies of flesh and bones, and the Holy Ghost is a personage of spirit. They are one in purpose and doctrine. (5) Doctrine and Covenants 130:22The Father has a body of flesh and bones as tangible as man’s; the Son also; but the Holy Ghost has not a body of flesh and bones, but is a personage of Spirit. Were it not so, the Holy Ghost could not dwell in us.
Doctrine and Covenants 130:22 · English, churchofjesuschrist.orgOpen source, Latter-day Saint scripture, says the Father has a body of flesh and bones as tangible as man’s, and the Son also. (6) Do Mormons believe in the Trinity? stays on that contrast.
The King Follett sermon goes further. The church’s Ensign text says God himself was once as we are now, and is an exalted man. Do Mormons believe they will become gods? quotes that sermon, the Lorenzo Snow couplet, and the essay on a Heavenly Mother. Catholics do not teach that the Father was once a man, or that the faithful become gods, or that there is a Heavenly Mother. Are Mormons Christians? states why this site does not place the Latter-day Saint church inside Nicene Christianity. The Catholic Church’s own answer on baptism is below. It is the same parting, in Catholic words.
Scripture and authority
Catechism paragraph 82 says the church, to whom the transmission and interpretation of revelation is entrusted, does not derive her certainty about all revealed truths from the holy Scriptures alone. (2) On that pageAs a result the Church, to whom the transmission and interpretation of Revelation is entrusted, "does not derive her certainty about all revealed truths from the holy Scriptures alone. Both Scripture and Tradition must be accepted and honoured with equal sentiments of devotion and reverence."
Catechism of the Catholic Church 82 · English, Holy SeeOpen source:
As a result the Church, to whom the transmission and interpretation of Revelation is entrusted, “does not derive her certainty about all revealed truths from the holy Scriptures alone. Both Scripture and Tradition must be accepted and honoured with equal sentiments of devotion and reverence.”
That is the Catholic claim: Scripture and Tradition together. It is not a second bible written in the nineteenth century.
Articles of Faith 1:8We believe the Bible to be the word of God as far as it is translated correctly; we also believe the Book of Mormon to be the word of God.
Articles of Faith 1:8 · English, churchofjesuschrist.orgOpen source is Latter-day Saint scripture in the Pearl of Great Price. (4) It says they believe the Bible to be the word of God as far as it is translated correctly, and the Book of Mormon to be the word of God. The Doctrine and Covenants and the Pearl of Great Price stand with it. Joseph Smith—History says the Personage who addressed him said that the creeds were an abomination. Joseph Smith and Revelation quotes that line. Catholics receive the creed of 381 as the church’s confession. Latter-day Saints receive Joseph Smith’s account that the creeds were wrong, and a book they say he translated from plates. Who wrote the Book of Mormon? is that account, including the seer stone. The Book of Mormon is what the book says about Jesus.
Is Latter-day Saint baptism valid in the Catholic Church?
On June 5, 2001, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith published a response, approved by John Paul II and signed by Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, on whether baptism conferred by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is valid. (3) The response is one word. On that pageResponse: Negative. The Supreme Pontiff John Paul II, in the Audience granted to the undersigned Cardinal Prefect, approved the present Response, decided in the Sessione Ordinaria of this Congregation, and ordered it published.
Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, 5 June 2001 · English, Holy SeeOpen source:
Response: Negative. The Supreme Pontiff John Paul II, in the Audience granted to the undersigned Cardinal Prefect, approved the present Response, decided in the Sessione Ordinaria of this Congregation, and ordered it published.
Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, 5 June 2001 · English, Holy See
The Catholic Church does not regard that baptism as the baptism of the creed, even though the words Father, Son, and Holy Ghost are used. The reason is the doctrine those words carry in Latter-day Saint teaching: three beings, not the consubstantial Trinity. What do Mormons believe? quotes the church’s own pages on Jehovah as the premortal Jesus under the Father’s direction, and on Satan as a spirit son of God. Those are not the Catholic, or the Nicene, account of the Son.
Marriage and salvation
Both churches teach that sexual relations belong to the marriage of a man and a woman. The Latter-day Saint statement is on What do Mormons believe?, from Gospel Topics on chastity and from the 1995 family proclamation. Catholics teach the same pattern in their own catechism, which What do Catholics believe? points to. The difference is the Latter-day Saint history and the temple. Do Mormons practice polygamy? quotes Doctrine and Covenants 132, the 1890 Manifesto, and the church’s statement that members do not practice plural marriage now. Catholics do not have that canon or that manifesto. Latter-day Saints also teach sealing for eternity and exaltation to the life God lives. Catholics do not.
2 Nephi 25:23For we labor diligently to write, to persuade our children, and also our brethren, to believe in Christ, and to be reconciled to God; for we know that it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do.
2 Nephi 25:23 · English, churchofjesuschrist.orgOpen source, Book of Mormon, says they are saved by grace after all they can do. What do Mormons believe? quotes the sentence. Ephesians 2:8–92:8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
2:9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.
Ephesians 2:8–9 · King James VersionOpen source says salvation is the gift of God, not of works. (8) Catholics and Protestants dispute how grace and works stand in a person who already confesses the Trinity. That dispute is not this one. Latter-day Saint scripture adds “after all we can do,” and Gospel Principles, quoted on the exaltation page, says the faithful become like Heavenly Father.
Frequently asked questions
Are Mormons Catholic?
No. Catholics confess one God in three persons. Latter-day Saints teach three beings, and their Articles of Faith set the Book of Mormon beside the Bible. The Catholic Church’s 2001 response says their baptism is not valid.
Do Mormons and Catholics believe in the same Jesus?
Both call him the Son of God, the Savior, born of Mary, crucified, and risen. Catholics confess that Son as one substance with the Father. Latter-day Saints call him the Firstborn and the Great Jehovah, a separate being from the Father, which What do Mormons believe? quotes from the church’s own declaration.
Do both churches reject polygamy now?
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints says its members do not practice plural marriage today. The Catholic Church does not teach it. Doctrine and Covenants 132 remains in the Latter-day Saint canon. The Manifesto is why members do not live it.
Keep reading
References
- Catechism of the Catholic Church, 253–254
The Trinity is One. We do not confess three Gods, but one God in three persons, the "consubstantial Trinity".
Catechism of the Catholic Church 253 · English, Holy SeeOpen source (Holy See. The Trinity is one God in three persons, the consubstantial Trinity.) - Catechism of the Catholic Church, 82
As a result the Church, to whom the transmission and interpretation of Revelation is entrusted, "does not derive her certainty about all revealed truths from the holy Scriptures alone. Both Scripture and Tradition must be accepted and honoured with equal sentiments of devotion and reverence."
Catechism of the Catholic Church 82 · English, Holy SeeOpen source (Holy See. Scripture and Tradition are received with equal devotion.) - Response on Latter-day Saint Baptism, Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, 5 June 2001
Response: Negative. The Supreme Pontiff John Paul II, in the Audience granted to the undersigned Cardinal Prefect, approved the present Response, decided in the Sessione Ordinaria of this Congregation, and ordered it published.
Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, 5 June 2001 · English, Holy SeeOpen source (Approved by John Paul II. The response is Negative.) - Articles of Faith, 1:8
We believe the Bible to be the word of God as far as it is translated correctly; we also believe the Book of Mormon to be the word of God.
Articles of Faith 1:8 · English, churchofjesuschrist.orgOpen source (Pearl of Great Price. The Bible as far as it is translated correctly, and the Book of Mormon as the word of God.) - Gospel Topics, Godhead (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Three separate beings, one in purpose.)
- Doctrine and Covenants, 130:22
The Father has a body of flesh and bones as tangible as man’s; the Son also; but the Holy Ghost has not a body of flesh and bones, but is a personage of Spirit. Were it not so, the Holy Ghost could not dwell in us.
Doctrine and Covenants 130:22 · English, churchofjesuschrist.orgOpen source (Latter-day Saint scripture. The Father and the Son have bodies of flesh and bones.) - Gospel of Matthew, 28:19
Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
Matthew 28:19 · King James VersionOpen source. King James Version - Letter to the Ephesians, 2:8–92:8
For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
2:9Not of works, lest any man should boast.
Ephesians 2:8–9 · King James VersionOpen source. King James Version - Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed, 381 (English text at New Advent. The Son is being of one substance with the Father.)
See also
- Are Mormons Christians? — Latter-day Saints worship Jesus Christ and use his name. Their teaching of God, of Jesus, and of salvation is not the Nicene confession, so they are not a denomination inside Trinitarian Christianity.
- Do Mormons Believe in the Trinity? — No. Latter-day Saints teach that the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost are three separate beings, one in purpose. That is not the Nicene confession of one God in three persons.
- Do Mormons Believe They Will Become Gods? — Gospel Principles says exaltation is the kind of life God lives. The King Follett sermon says God was once as we are now, and that the faithful must learn to be gods. Isaiah 43:10 says no God was formed after the LORD.
- Do Mormons Celebrate Christmas and Easter? — The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints keeps Christmas as the season of Christ’s birth and Easter as the celebration of his resurrection, with Easter Sunday services.
- Do Mormons Practice Polygamy? — Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints do not enter plural marriage today. Doctrine and Covenants 132 taught it. The 1890 Manifesto told the Saints to stop.