CLEVELANDUnited Methodist Church delegates approved a new policy statement Wednesday declaring that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, "by self-definition, does not fit within the bounds of the historic, apostolic tradition of the Christian faith." As a result, Mormon members who become Methodists should be treated as converts from another faith and be re-baptized, the policy said. The United Methodist Church is the nation's third largest religious body, with 8.4 million members, while the Mormon church ranks seventh, with 5 million members.

A nine-page paper, passed by the Methodist General Conference without floor discussion, said Mormonism has "some radically differing doctrine on such matters of belief as the nature and being of God; the nature, origin, and purpose of Jesus Christ; and the nature and way of salvation."

The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) and Southern Baptist Convention have issued similar assessments of Mormon doctrine. In a prepared official response, the Mormon church stated, "Latter-day Saints embrace both ancient and modem revelations that proclaim Jesus Christ as the living, divine Son of God, the Savior and Redeemer of the world."