Posted on 06/23/2007 1:28:02 PM PDT by Extremely Extreme Extremist
(AP) SALT LAKE CITY -- Mitt Romney said Saturday that criticism of his Mormon religion by rival GOP presidential campaigns is happening too frequently.
“Clearly, any derogatory comments about anyone’s faith—those comments are troubling. The fact they keep on coming up is even more troubling,” Romney said during a fundraising trip in the home state of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
The Mormon church is one of the fastest-growing religions and claims about 12.5 million members worldwide. But many evangelical Christians in crucial primary states such as Iowa and South Carolina consider the faith a cult.
Romney’s remarks follow an apology from GOP rival John McCain’s campaign for comments about the Mormon church allegedly made this year by a volunteer.
Also recently, Republican presidential hopeful, Sen. Sam Brownback of Kansas, issued a similar apology for a campaign worker’s e-mail to Iowa Republican leaders that was an apparent attempt to draw unfavorable scrutiny of Romney’s religion. Former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani apologized after the New York Sun noted that a campaign aide had forwarded to a blogger a story about unofficial Mormon lore. Legend has it that a Mormon would save the Constitution, the story said. The campaign aide passed the story along with a note: “Thought you’d find this interesting.”
Romney said in a large presidential race there always will be some volunteers or workers who cannot be controlled. But he said the difference between derogatory comments that originated from the McCain campaign and others is that the Arizona senator has not personally apologized to him.
“In the case of Senator Brownback and Mayor Giuliani ... they called immediately. They each spoke with me personally. I don’t have any issue with that at all,” Romney said.
He said McCain “can do whatever he feels is the right thing. There’s no need for me to suggest how people respond to things that go on in the campaign.”
Tucker Bounds, a McCain campaign spokesman, said the McCain campaign has already apologized.
“It’s a very sincere apology. There is absolutely no place for those type of comments in our campaign,” he said.
Romney, a former governor of Massachusetts, said he had not spoken with McCain since the last presidential debate, on June 5.
Romney used a fundraiser hosted by Utah Jazz owner Larry Miller to criticize the McCain-Feingold campaign finance law. It banned unregulated, unlimited contributions from corporations, unions and wealthy individuals to national political parties and federal candidates.
“The bill ought to be repealed,” he said. “It’s been the wrong course for American campaigns.”
Romney said he favors unlimited donations as long as they are immediately disclosed on the Internet.
Romney was attending fundraisers in Salt Lake City and in Logan on Saturday.
Or a NON-responsive one either!
I may APPEAR to be grieving over this 'slight'; but in truth; I just LOVE it!!
I can play the martyr and claim victimhood with the rest of the downtrodden of America.
It also validates that MY religion is correct, or else we would NOT be 'persecuted' so.
This extraterrestial stuff reminds me of scientology.
Where’d the LIST go?
Or them Heaven’sGate dudes; looking behind the comet!
Silly nitpick? You sure? Well, if you say so.
CUH,
You are making a huge assumption that the “goats”
had faith - apparently based on one word, “Lord”.
Correctly identifying someone in authority, as they
do, since Christ separates two groups (sheep and goats),
they call him Lord. That is different than faith.
The demons believe, but don’t have faith.
best,
ampu
~”See Romans 3:27 concerning works v fiath...”~
It’s a great verse, and full of truth. What we seem to disagree on is that I equate faith with works - I propose that you cannot have one without the other. Therefore, the two verses are not contradictory. Faith is necessary, as the scriptures state. Works are necessary, as the scriptures state. The two are joined - one leads to the other.
~”You twist the scripture message to support a different notion than is being taught in the context of Matthew 10:22...”~
You missed the point. My point was that agency continues beyond acceptance of Christ, and that a person can, indeed, fall away, and Christ will not violate that choice. My point was not about faith vs. works.
To be frank, the “you twist the scriptures” accusation is getting worn, particularly when those who accuse me of such proclaim innocence in the face of their ignoring scriptures that appear to invalidate their own position.
I do not twist the scriptures. I apply my own perspective; and that leads to a perfectly reasonable, albeit different, interpretation than your own. I am being no more intellectually dishonest than you - and you are not known for that particular weakness. My embracing of a different perspective is not a sign of said dishonesty. It is a sign of honest disagreement.
I look at it as the demons don't have "repentant faith" -- they believe (actually they know) God exists but do not repent.
I’m afraid your red herring was not well-executed, Greg F.
You said: “My embracing of a different perspective is not a sign of said dishonesty. It is a sign of honest disagreement.”
You are good.
:^)
I think the same of Smith's prophecies and life . . . not well executed at all. Smith's prophecies are such a small stumbling block, when looked at fairly and examined carefully, that the prophecies shouldn't catch a man and trip him. I think it's harder for those who have their whole culture wrapped up in Smith . . . it is hard to break from an entire culture . . . but for those examining the religion itself, it is clearly not true, with lies and wrongdoing by the prophet, and false prophecy after false prophecy.
If you want to change the scriptures or tear pages out of your Bible, that’s your problem, not mine.
You still haven’t answered my last question. Are you an adult?
John 3: 5
5 Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.
What part of this don't you understand?
Tantiboh,
One simple question.....what is the “work” of the Father?
Does it have anything to do with tithing, Word of Wisdom (abstaining from “food stuffs”), Temple Ordinances and sacred clothing, or circumcision?
Or is it simply to love one another, love our enemies, feed and clothe the poor, children and widows?
Job 38:4
Where were you when I laid the earth's foundation?
Tell me, if you understand.
"and sit in His throne"
You misuse Revelations 3:21. It does not imply equality with God, but eternal life. See Job above.
“At this point, I am left scratching my head. What is so different about our positions? You have accepted Christ as your Savior and accepted His grace, and your faith is borne out by good works. I have accepted Christ as my Savior and accepted His grace, and my faith is borne out by good works, as best I can, in any case.”
Tant, friend, after all these months of interaction, I
believe you must know the answer to this question. Let me
sketch out some crucial differences between Biblical
Christianity and mormonism...
1. Different God - your was created. Was a man. Now is a god.
Biblical God was always God. Never a man.
1b. Different God - Biblical Christianity is MONOTHEISTIC -
and believes in only ONE God. Mormonism believes there are
many gods - perhaps billions or trillions. Polytheism.
2. Different Jesus - Biblical Christianity teaches the Savior
was God in eternity past - never having been created -
and after his birth to Mary, fully God and fully man. Mormonism
teaches Jesus was a created spirit and not always God.
3. Different Gospel - Biblical Christianity teaches that
the Gospel is Christ’s completed work on the cross that
is a gift to those who exercise believing faith. Mormonism
teaches that you must do good works before you can apprehend
grace.
4. Different Heaven - Biblical Christianity teaches that to
die (for a Believer) is to be in the presence of God for
eternity. Mormonism has three layers of heaven, God (the man)
only being in the top level, which is accessed by works
and man made rituals.
5. I could go on, because the only thing Christianity has in
common with mormonism is the name Jesus Christ... and
mormonism has changed that, as noted above. I’ll stop here.
1b. Different God
“The only difference between us, then, is that I think God holds us to His commandments to perform good works, and that if we don’t make an honest effort to do so, grace is withdrawn.”
Our salvation as believers does not rest on our own ability
to cling to it. It rests fully on the Grace and Completed
Work of Christ. All our sins and failings were in the future
when He died for them.
“I cannot think that this is an offensive position to you, particularly as it only serves to incentivize me to try to be a better person; so why do we continue to argue about it?”
You do not offend me. You (mormonism) distort the Gospel
and the truth of God. This is both heresy and blasphemy.
It leads others astray from the grace of God and from
salvation.
best,
ampu
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