Mobaituanti (lit. worship group) is a term used to describe religious sects that are often considered to be cults. Some scholars prefer the use of this term to that of the more commonly used term in China, xiejiao (evil religion) because of the latter’s association with the government’s anti-cult campaigns.
The Church of Almighty God (CAG, also known as Eastern Lightning) has been classified as a cult within China, but outside of China there are some scholars who argue that it is merely a sect of Christianity. The author of this paper, a house church pastor, argues that the teachings of the Church of Almighty God, not only differ from the teachings of Christianity, but that they contradict it.
This paper, written originally in Chinese and translated into English, analyzes the religious nature of the Church of Almighty God (CAG) and compares it with orthodox Christianity from four aspects: doctrine, leadership, believers, and the church. This paper concludes that CAG is quite different from Christianity in these four main aspects, contradicting Christianity in its core beliefs and therefore cannot be considered to be orthodox Christianity.
Both the Chinese original document and the English translation are available for download below. The English version is not a complete translation of the original Chinese paper. Charts, lists, and some footnotes are not included in the English version. Also, unless noted with page numbers or website address, CAG quotations have not been verified.
