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Amy Perkins wrote:

Hi, Mike —

I'm 22 years old and have been dating a Mormon guy for five years.

We have discussed getting married but there is only one problem: I want to stay Catholic and believe very much in the faith of the Church and he wants to stay Mormon.

I know we could still get married in the Catholic Church if he does not convert, but on the issue of raising our children:

  • Is it true that if you get married in the Church, you have to raise your kids Catholic?
    The requirement isn't in the wedding vows.

I would appreciate any answers you could give me or any other references.

Thank you for your time.

Amy

  { If I want to stay Catholic and he wants to stay Mormon, do we still have to raise the kids Catholic? }

John replied:

Hi, Amy —

This is not as simple as, if you were to marry, a Protestant. Mormons are not Christians.
There are major theological heresies in their set of beliefs.

Example: They deny the Trinity, just for starters. To be honest with you, if it were not for their numbers, it would be correct to call them a cult, as it is a pagan religion that believes God the Father was a man and lives on a planet near the star, Kolob.

It would be a serious, serious matter to allow your children to be raised in a faith that could lead them to eternal damnation!

Yes, the Catholic spouse must agree to raise their children Catholic. They also have to get a dispensation from their local bishop to marry any non-Catholic.

Hope this helps,

John DiMascio

Richard replied:

Hi, Amy —

As John mentioned, a Catholic entering a mixed marriage has to commit to doing everything within (his/her) power to raise the kids Catholic.

The non-Catholic partner may not object: he may even agree to raising the kids Catholic, for the sake of harmony. The eventual result, in spite of all good intentions, is that the religious difference eventually brings tension between the parents. The result is a lack of a fatherly example in living the Catholic faith. The result is also a bad message to the children:

That the difference between the Mormon religion and the Catholic religion doesn't matter much.

That will make it easy for the children to fall away, when they leave home.

  • Do you really want all those troubles making your family life harder?

It's not as if the two religions were very close, like Catholicism and Greek Orthodoxy.

Mormonism doesn't even believe in the Christian concept of what God is.

— Richard Chonak

Mike replied:

Hi, Amy —

Just an addendum to what John and Richard have said:

I'm still single, and would rather wait for my Ms. Right : )

I would encourage you to:

  • find out more about the Mormons and the faith of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (LDS) really believe, and more importantly,
  • wait for a handsome looking Catholic man who practices his faith as seriously as you appear to do. Trust me Amy, it will be worth the wait!

In another reply, my colleague John said:

Mormons don't believe in the same Jesus as the orthodox (small o) Christians do. Hence, they profess faith in a different Jesus.

They believe among other things that Jesus and Lucifer were soul brothers. They believe the Father is separately God not, just a Person in the Trinity. This Father God lives on a planet near the star Kolob.

We have received objections from some Mormons who have never heard this. If we state something about someone else's faith, we should be able to back up what we say.

For Mormons or members of the LDS (Latter Day Saints) who have never heard this, they can check out the following references on Wikipedia:

If you are interested in the Catholic reply to Mormon beliefs check out some of the web pages from our colleagues at Catholic Answers.

Hope this helps,

Your brother in prayer, your brother in Christ,

Mike

Please report any and all typos or grammatical errors.
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