Franklin Graham: Mormonism Will Never Be Labeled a ‘Cult’ Again
During a recent interview with CNN, Franklin Graham, son of Billy Graham and president of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association (BGEA), advised that a page that was removed from the ministry website last month following Graham’s endorsement of Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney, which classified Mormonism as a cult, is “not going to come back.”
“I was shocked that we even had that on there,” Franklin Graham said. “[W]e’re calling people names. If I want to win people to Christ, how can I call them names?”
“So, we just took it off,” he continued, insinuating that he made the final decision in the matter. “And it’s not going to come back, because I don’t want to be involved in calling a person a name.”...
Neil wrote: Then why did you act as if I was mistaken? ...
We need to consult Mormon works... summarize their doctrine, then show how they contradict Scripture... here's some salient points of Mormon doctrine: 1.God came from another planet 2.God is a man with a body of flesh and bones 3.There is a mother goddess 4.God and his goddess wife are married 5.You can become gods Any *one* of these puts Mormonism well outside anything remotely Biblical...
I didn't act as if you were mistaken but rather you presumed I was acting as if you were mistaken.
Then the king Ahasuerus answered and said unto Esther the queen, Who is he, and where is he, that durst presume in his heart to do so? And Esther said, The adversary and enemy is this wicked Haman. Then Haman was afraid before the king and the queen.
Esther 7:5-6
All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.
2 Timothy 3:16-17
I trust that there are men and women interested in receiving benefits outlined in 2 Timothy 3:16-17, which is why I like to quote Scripture, including Esther 7:5-6
Dopey wrote: Neil, there are men and women who can benefit from what I quoted from you.
Then why did you act as if I was mistaken? If I wanted to define Mormonism, I wouldn't be so naive as to employ a one-sentence dictionary definition. Just the same, all the verses you post do is beg the question that Mormonism is a false religion, so you haven't really improved on what I said anyway.
We need to consult Mormon works, summarize their doctrine, then show how they contradict Scripture, before anyone can be further edified. Just labeling it a false Gospel gets no further than I did. Just to put my hat in the ring, here's some salient points of Mormon doctrine: 1.God came from another planet 2.God is a man with a body of flesh and bones 3.There is a mother goddess 4.God and his goddess wife are married 5.You can become gods
Any *one* of these puts Mormonism well outside anything remotely Biblical. Even Islam is a better counterfeit.
Neil wrote: Why is that in response to my post? I was referring to the definition of the word “cult,” not Mormonism.
Neil, there are men and women who can benefit from what I quoted from you. I trust that you want to benefit people from what you write hence the quote from you.
The last part of what you quoted from me is a colon. What follows that colon is scripture that is not the scripture quoted below:
All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.
2 Timothy 3:16-17
I also trust that there are also men and women interested in receiving benefits outlined in 2 Timothy 3:16-17, which is why I like to quote Scripture, including Galatians 1:9
Much as I dislike agreeing with Graham, in the interest of terminological precision, I think he is correct, since none of the dictionary definitions adhere to Mormonism very well: • It is not a fringe group led by a charismatic nut-job like Jim Jones. It is very organized with hierarchical, diverse leadership; • Its doctrine is not much more Christian than Hinduism (i.e., radical polytheism), yet no one calls the latter a cult.
So “cult” is just a theological term of abuse, not really descriptive in this case. Keep it simple & call Mormonism a false religion.
Jesus wasnt afraid to call a spade a spade. I am saddened to see that BGEA is. Mr. Grahm how can you win people to Christ if you dont speak the truth. Is calling someone a sinner "name calling"?
I can understand that the BGEA has many Mormon friends and wants to witness amongst the Mormons without offending them. But there's a danger of blurring the distinction between what is Biblical and what is not Biblical. There is NO Christianity in Mormonism.
It was Graham the elder, that said that good people, as long as they turn to something, even if they don't know Christ, are saved. A voodoo whitch doctor is "saved" because he has turned to something. BGEA emphasises eccumensim. Christianity emphasizes it's distinctness.
Christopher000 wrote: How is a proper, accurate label considered name calling? Dear Mr Graham, even I know it's a cult so that's pretty sad.
If Franklin Graham still wants to win Mormons to Christ, then he is calling them non-Christians. Since they are an organised religion then he is effectively calling them a non-Christian organised religion. That would be a ... cult.
Sheer stupidity and confusion on his part. God is not the author of confusion. I wonder where he gets it from...
So I guess Christians aren't supposed to use terms such as, adultery, homosexuality, gluttony, greed, fornication, etc because that would be name calling?!
...while Mormons profess to be Christians, they are outside orthodox Christianity and the Mormon Church is considered to be, theologically, a cult of Christianity. Source: Mormon Church, Apologetics Index entry Back To Top
Here the term 'cult' is used to indicate that the group in question has separated itself from the mainstream religion it claims to represent. (In this case, given that the theology and practice of the Mormon Church violates essential Christian doctrines, Mormonism does not represent historical, Biblical Christianity, is not a Christian denomination, and is not in any way part of the Christian church.)
Dwayne wrote: What is the proper way to evangelize?
"if they would expect to be made fishers of men. First, Christ took not on him the work of preaching the gospel without a call: 'For(says he) the Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek, he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound' (Isa. 61:1). In this he must be followed by those that would be catchers of men. He was sent by the Father to preach the gospel; he went not to the work without his Father's commission. Men must have a call to this work (Heb. 5:4). They that run unsent, that take on the work without a call from God, cannot expect to do good to a people (Rom. 10:14; Jer. 23). I sent them not, therefore they shall not profit this people. Tell me then, O my soul, whether thou has thus followed Christ or not? Hadst thou a call from God to this work of the preaching of the gospel? Or hast thou run unsent?" (Thomas Boston)
San Jose John wrote: Declare the Word of God to people, making sure you yourself are blameless so they will "have" to listen to you. Spirit of God does all the work, but you are His means to do so. People like Ray Comfort are on the right track, using God's law and teaching that it must be kept perfectly, to convict people and show them that it cannot be kept perfectly so as to introduce Christ as the only alternative to man's natural capacity for self-justification. Check out his YouTube channel.
Comfort's good on sin and hell. However, he badgers the heck out of folks in his 180 video. Eventually most of them cry uncle and agree with him just so they can get on with their lives. Are they saved? Probably about the same percent as at a BG Crusade: 10%. And most of these were already baptized. Re-saving the saved.
Dwayne wrote: What is the proper way to evangelize?
Declare the Word of God to people, making sure you yourself are blameless so they will "have" to listen to you. Spirit of God does all the work, but you are His means to do so.
People like Ray Comfort are on the right track, using God's law and teaching that it must be kept perfectly, to convict people and show them that it cannot be kept perfectly so as to introduce Christ as the only alternative to man's natural capacity for self-justification.
Beware wrote: Canons of Dordt writers were correct Arminianism is dangerous, unBiblical and heretical.
95% of Evangelicalism is heresy.
Jay Diamond, Larry. Plattner, Marc F. and Costopoulos, Philip J. World Religions and Democracy. 2005, page 119 saying "Not only do Protestants presently constitute 13 percent of the world's population—about 800 million people—but since 1900 Protestantism has spread rapidly in Africa, Asia, and Latin America."
Thus, 760 million Christians in the pew are damned and don't know it. Nobody's even whispering the Reformer's words to them.
Beware wrote: The implication of this statement by Franklin Graham and his daddy's organisation is that they accept Mormonism as of equal status to their theological beliefs. In other words they see them as Christian and Biblical. Where does this blindness come from? Arminianism. The Biblical Reformers such as the Canons of Dordt writers were correct Arminianism is dangerous, unBiblical and heretical. "What the Arminian wants to do is to arouse man's activity: what we want to do is to kill it once for all---to show him that he is lost and ruined, and that his activities are not now at all equal to the work of conversion; that he must look upward. They seek to make the man stand up: we seek to bring him down, and make him feel that there he lies in the hand of God, and that his business is to submit himself to God, and cry aloud, 'Lord, save, or we perish.' We hold that man is never so near grace as when he begins to feel he can do nothing at all. When he says, 'I can pray, I can believe, I can do this, and I can do the other,' marks of self-sufficiency and arrogance are on his brow." (C. H. Spurgeon) Be Warned!!
Excellent post! Thanks!
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