Perhaps you were taught that two topics ought never be discussed in polite company: religion and politics.

Well, that counsel has gone out the window as the latest digital debate lights up the internet surrounding one question:

Are Mormons Christians?

Last week, the U.S. Department of Defense drastically trimmed its list of recognized religions from more than 200 groups down to 31. This new list denoted 20 faiths under the Christian category.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was excluded from this Christian grouping.

That move outraged many Latter-day Saints, including politicians like Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, who said he called President Donald Trump to push for a change.

On Monday, the Pentagon unveiled a revised tally. Were Latter-day Saints now listed as Christians? No, because the directory no longer categorizes faith groups under that or any other label.

In a post on X, the department explained that the Pentagon’s job was not to settle “theological debates but instead to ensure sincerely held faith is respected and encouraged in our ranks.”

[Read The Tribune’s story about the Pentagon’s original relisting and then its revision.]

Latter-day Saints, better known to many outsiders as Mormons, don’t hesitate to call themselves Christians. They simply point to the official name of their church: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

The faith’s leader, President Dallin H. Oaks, affirmed the church’s Christian bona fides in his sermon on peacemaking at the latest General Conference,

“My brothers and sisters,” he said, “as followers of Christ, let us follow him by forgoing contention and by using the language and methods of peacemakers. In our families and other personal relationships, let us avoid what is harsh and hateful. Let us seek to be holy, like our Savior, in whose holy name, the name of Jesus Christ, I testify.”

Not all Christians, however, view Latter-day Saints as fellow worshippers of the carpenter from Nazareth.

Now, many conservative and religious content creators and influencers are voicing their opinions online.

Here are some of those responses:

“Can anyone tell me why The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was left out of the list of Christian churches?”

— Mike Lee, U.S. senator from Utah.

“Because, unlike every Christian denomination, Mormonism rejects the triune God.”

— Allie Beth Stuckey, a Baptist political commentator and host of the podcast “Relatable with Allie Beth Stuckey.”

“It does seem that the LDS are being unfairly singled out here. If the essential criterion for Christianity is Trinitarian theology, why do the Jehovah’s Witnesses, Christian Scientists, Oneness Pentecostals, and even Quakers (in some instances) get a pass here?”

— Michael J. Knowles, a Catholic political commentator and host of “The Michael Knowles Show.”

“Again, I say this with love to my fellow Latter-day Saints: The sooner you give up trying to convince the religious right to validate your faith, the sooner you’ll know peace. Are we real Christians? Only one opinion matters — and it’s not [Defense Secretary] Pete Hegseth’s.”

— McKay Coppins, Latter-day Saint journalist, author, staff writer for The Atlantic and co-host of the podcast “Deseret Voices.”

“I’ve seen some Latter-day Saints read a lot into this, maybe it really is prejudice, maybe the government is taking a stance on the Trinity. But this isn’t the government as a whole, but rather how religions are coded in the military, so that, for example, a chaplain can quickly understand how many religious adherents there are in a given unit. … Removing the label ‘Christian’ altogether makes a lot of sense to me. It avoids the divisive categorizations … and ensures that Latter-day Saint servicemen and women can easily gain access to the religious resources they may require. As a Latter-day Saint, I consider myself to be a Christian and a follower of Christ, but I know not everyone agrees with me, and I don’t necessarily expect the government to weigh in on that.”

— Jasmin Rappleye, Latter-day Saint content creator and co-host of the podcast “Informed Saints.”

“Mormons believe in Jesus. @BasedMikeLee is correct in that. But so do Muslims. So do Buddhists. The problem is that they do not believe in the right Jesus. They do not believe in the Jesus of the Bible: the Jesus Who is God the Son, co-eternal, uncreated, Who took upon Himself a human nature in the incarnation and Who has been ever since, is now, and will forever be the one and only God-Man.”

— Justin Peters, evangelist, author and leader of the Justin Peters Ministries.

“Mormons are strong family-oriented people. Mormons are generous people. Mormons are often nice and loving people. Mormons, however, are not Christians.”

— Texas Family Project, a political advocacy organization.

“When you describe the stereotypical or ideal American: religiously active in both church attendance and scripture study, charitable, civically engaged, large family, intelligent, attractive, patriotic and self-reliant…

You are describing the average American Mormon.”

— Kai Schwemmer, Latter-day Saint and political director of College Republicans of America.

Note to readers • Dylan Eubank is a Report for America corps member covering faith in Utah County for The Salt Lake Tribune. Your donation to match our RFA grant helps to keep him writing stories.