Hat tip to D for bringing it up...
Swedish theologian Krister Stendahl, Lutheran Bishop of Stockholm and the former dean of Harvard Divinity School, offers three rules of engagement when trying to understand faiths other than your own. Space in this column allows reference to only the first: When trying to understand a religion, first ask its adherents.
The question, “Are Mormons Christian?” is a good starting point for this discussion. When some conservative Protestants say Mormons aren’t Christian, it is deeply offensive to Latter-day Saints. Yet when Latter-day Saints assert their Christianity, some of those same Christians bitterly resent it. Why? Because both sides are using the same terms to describe different things.
http://onfaith.washingtonpost.com/on...hristians.html
Keep in mind the author's byline - director of media relations for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints since 1997