What makes Mormons different than other Christians?

I think Latter-day Saints have a lot in common with Catholics, Protestants, Born again Christians, etc. Still, there is a lot of confusion and uncertainty about our church. 

In response to friends asking about what makes The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints different than other Christian churches, I've put together these twelve basic statements of belief. I made them concise, salient, and understandable. 

1. We believe Jesus is the Son of God who suffered for our sins, died for us and was resurrected. Because of him, we all will be resurrected; it is a universal gift. And because of the Atonement (his suffering for our sins), we have the opportunity to be freed from our sins and return to live with God if we have faith in Jesus Christ, repent, be baptized by the proper Priesthood authority, receive the Gift of the Holy Ghost through confirmation, and faithfully keep the commandments. 

2. We believe God chose righteous people as prophets in Bible times, but that was not the end of prophets. God chose prophets in other places/periods of time, and has continued to call prophets in our day. Prophets hold the keys of authority to administer the ordinances of salvation, receive revelation from God, and lead the church.

3. We believe Jesus established doctrine, established The Church of Jesus Christ, and gave people priesthood authority to administer the church during his earthly ministry. Unfortunately, in the decades following his death those doctrines were perverted and ultimately the authority was lost.

4. We believe that God called Joseph Smith to be a prophet to restore the Church of Jesus Christ to the earth, reestablish the true doctrines of the gospel, and restore the Priesthood authority. We believe in modern revelation. 

5. We believe the Bible to be scripture/the word of God. We also believe God has given additional scripture through other prophets. One example of additional scripture is The Book of Mormon, an account kept by prophets living in ancient America 600 BC-400 AD, translated by the prophet Joseph Smith. One of the ultimate purposes of The Book of Mormon is stated by one its writers Nephi: "We talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, we prophesy of Christ, and we write according to our prophecies, that our children may know to what source they may look for a remission of their sins." 

6. We believe we are children of God and have divine potential. We believe in eternal progression. We strive to become more like our Exemplar, Jesus Christ, and like God our Heavenly Father. "Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect" (Matthew 5). This growth can occur day by day and continue after our life on earth ends.

7. We believe that family relations can continue after death through sacred temple ordinances and continued faithfulness and obedience. This is why we place such emphasis in strengthening the family. 

8. We believe the ordinances of salvation (like baptism) and family sealing are not exclusive to "Mormons" living after The Church's organization in 1830. We believe everyone in the history of the world will have an opportunity to hear the gospel in the spirit world after death where they may accept Jesus Christ if they had no opportunity while living on the earth. This is why we perform vicarious work for the dead in holy temples. This sacred service provides an opportunity for those departed spirits who accept the gospel of Christ to receive those ordinances of salvation, before they receive Judgment and Resurrection. 

9. We believe that all children who die before reaching the age of accountability and people with significant mental handicaps are heirs of salvation and do not require baptism. 

10. We believe in being honest, true, chaste, benevolent, virtuous, and in doing good to all people. We seek after anything virtuous, lovely, of good report or praiseworthy. We believe in being good neighbors, good citizens, obeying the law, and working hard. We strive to follow Christ's teachings to not judge others and to forgive. We are imperfect but we humbly try do better.

11. We believe our physical bodies are precious gifts and we aim to master our body, be healthy and treat this gift well. "Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?" (1 Corinthians 3)

12. We follow Jesus' commandment to lovingly share our beliefs with others. "Go ye therefore and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you" (Matthew 28). This is why we have a strong missionary presence. This commandment also influences other members of the church to extend loving invitations to their friends, family, and neighbors. 

Although we are often referred to as "Mormons" and may go by LDS for short, we prefer to be known as "members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints." Mormons was a nickname given based on our belief in The Book of Mormon, named after an ancient historian prophet who compiled the book in 400 AD. Our full name reflects our true position as Christians with Jesus as the head of our church and the subject of our worship.

I hope these thoughts clear confusion and alleviate a few concerns. This obviously isn't a comprehensive list of our doctrine as I focused on a few prominent differences.

If you have questions about our church I invite you to email me, contact the missionaries, ask your friends or neighbors who are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, or check out mormon.org or lds.org.