MITT ROMNEY, MORMONISM, AND THE BLOGOSPHERE

The blogosphere buzzes today with Andrew Sullivan's statements about Mormonism and Mitt Romney. Most know that Romney may make his bid for President in 08. Sullivan, a Republican and open advocate for gay rights, presumes trouble between evangelicals and Mormons over Romney. Sullivan posts several articles offensive to Mormons on his web sight. He also publishes an articulate synopsis of his views on the matter in the London Times. He concludes his synopsis with these provocative thoughts:

Many evangelicals are keen to look past the issue, arguing that private faith and public office are unrelated issues. But this is a little rich coming from people who believe George W Bush is divinely guided. And the more the actual doctrines of Mormonism emerge, the deeper the awkwardness could be. All humans can become gods? Jesus returned to earth after his resurrection . . . in America? Moreover, the secrecy of the Mormon leadership, its insistence on mandatory tithing, and accusations of cult-like practices are likely to stir at least some controversy among the very religious right whose support Romney badly needs.

Personally, I have no interest in someone’s private faith in his or her pursuit of public office. Romney, to my mind, should be judged on his public record. The trouble is: this is not what the religious right has come to expect in a leader. They look for a religious figure in a political leader, “one of them”.

Romney has made enormous strides in persuading them that on their key issues — abortion, marriage, gays, stem cells — he is indeed one of them. But the worry remains that the base won’t really turn out for a Mormon. And so the religious right, bereft of alternatives, may find itself hoist on its own theocratic petard. Maybe, eventually, they will learn to moderate. But only, I suspect, if the sole alternative is President Hillary Clinton.

And so Romney’s deepest asset may well become finding the right opponent. And that, paradoxically, is up to the Democrats.

Furthermore, Ann Althouse directs our attention toward an editorial written in the Dallas Morning News. The piece basically substantiates Sullivan's claims.

Sullivan gets his theology right. Orthodox Christianity considers Mormonism a cult. By cult, evangelicals mean they view Jesus as divine, a teacher, and a prophet, but refuse to acknowledge Jesus as God incarnate. Mormon history lies riddled with bizarre stories that sound like a page out of Star Wars. Mormons not only possess a track record of bigotry, they traditionally placed woman in a subservient position to that of their husbands. Their seminal theology taught that all human beings can become gods. To make this happen Mormons must marry other Mormons to create god children for the next life. Only Mormons held this unique privilege. An unequally yoked Mormon learned to convert the spouse or divorce them in order to marry another Mormon. And of course the authority in the matter lay with the man. Since the goal was to create god children the man made it his objective to marry as many woman as possible. The more the merrier because of the god children. A great excuse for a concubine. Over the years Mormonism split into several different groups. The fact remains a freakish history checkers their religious landscape.

Having said this, however, one must question Sullivan's motives for his public assessment of the matter. His openly gay life style puts him at odds with many evangelicals and conservatives. He detests the Bush administration and he believes the big tent Republicans lost the elections because they refused to open their tent a little wider. Sullivan infers this with these comments:

The elections this month were a blow to the religious right in America. The most prominent advocate of their policies of banning all abortion, all legal recognition of gay couples, and embryonic stem cell research was Rick Santorum, a senator for Pennsylvania. He was the third-ranking Republican in the Senate, a rising star of the theocratic right, and still lost by a staggering 18 points.
The other champion of the religious right, Senator George Allen, also lost his race in Virginia, after he blurted out a racist comment at a campaign stop. Senator Sam Brownback from Kansas remains an option, but his declaration that he has but one constituent — God Almighty — makes him a long shot, even for the lunatic fringe.

And so the religious right didn’t just lose an election they lost all their candidates for 2008 as well. They have to contemplate a pro-choice, pro-gay Rudy Giuliani or a John McCain, who once called Pat Robertson, the religious broadcaster, an “agent of intolerance” and likened his movement to the Nation of Islam.

Sullivan fails to grasp the true conservative "soul." That soul emerged with the social vote. Seven of eight states voted to ban same sex marriage. Mitt Romney leads the charge on this one. Evangelicals may differ on religious views of other conservative groups, but they increasingly, although not fully, understand political trade offs. Mormon theology may collide with evangelical theology. In the political arena, however, the two groups espouse many of the same values. The Dallas Morning News editorial summed up the relationship nicely:

Yet the case of Tom and Libit Jones suggests that, even under the most strenuous circumstances, a Mormon-evangelical relationship can work – although each will always compete for the other's soul. "We share the same politics, the same morals, and we both try to live a Christ-like life," Ms. Jones says. "Still, I'm always praying for him, for us, and waiting."

Even so, Romney's nomination, because of his non orthodox faith, remains a long shot.

Comments

[Half Canadian]

Never have I read a more garbled and inacurrate description of my faith.

And I've read Ed Decker. Well done lad, you've accomplished quite a thing there!

[Aaron]

Of interest:

MittAndMormonism.com

[Evangelical Chris]

For your list of blogs on Mitt Romney and Mormonism. It's not what you think.