Posted on 05/04/2007 5:46:36 AM PDT by Saundra Duffy
They Shoot Mormons, Don't They? Religious bigotry, alive and well today
May 4, 2007 - by Saundra Duffy-Hawkins
I wouldnt vote for a Mormon for dogcatcher, much less President of the United States! Theres a lot of that kind of hateful rhetoric going around since Mitt Romney decided to throw his hat in the ring as if Mormons are some kind of hideous evil monsters. The loudest anti-Mormon shouts, sad to say, are coming from Americas so-called Christian right. How can Mitt Romney hope to get a fair shake in this spiritually polluted atmosphere?
There was another man running for President who faced the same dilemma John F. Kennedy only he was the target of anti-CATHOLIC bigotry. In his 1960 speech to the Greater Houston Ministerial Association, JFK said the following: . . .I believe in an America where religious intolerance will someday end - where all men and all churches are treated as equal - where man has the same right to attend or not attend the church of his choice - where there is no Catholic vote, no anti-Catholic vote, no bloc voting of any kind - and where Catholics, Protestants and Jews, at both the lay and pastoral level, will refrain from those attitudes of disdain and division which have so often marred their words in the past, and promote instead the American ideal of brotherhood. John F. Kennedy Library & Museum (Speeches, 1960). By the way, if you listen to the audio version of JFKs speech, you will hear the hurt and frustration in his voice and the unfair treatment surely must have caused many a sleepless night.
Fast forward to 2007 where JFK might as well have been whistlin Dixie. The hostility toward Mormons today, in my opinion, is even worse than that suffered by JFK. Although it is said that JFK lost about a million votes to religious intolerance, Romney stands to lose even more if the anti-Mormon evangelicals hang together.
According to Media Matters for America - . . . a Web-based, not-for-profit, 501(c)(3) progressive research and information center dedicated to comprehensively monitoring, analyzing, and correcting conservative misinformation in the U.S. media - FOX News is not reporting accurately on the level of evangelical hostility to the Romney run. Media Matters for America points out that among evangelical leaders rejecting Mormons: Shirley and James Dobson (National Day of Prayer and Focus on the Family, respectively), the Southern Baptist Convention (collectively), Pat Robertson (Christian Broadcasting Network), and Dr. D. James Kennedy (Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church in Florida). Among many conservative evangelicals who comprise a significant part of the Republican base Mormonism is considered an un-Christian cult. Media Matters for America (2007)
While stumping in Florida, a man in the audience stood up during the Q&A portion and said the following to Romney: You, sir, youre a pretender. You do not know the Lord. Youre a Mormon. Media Matters for America (2007). This is the kind of un-American, disrespectful treatment Mitt Romney will apparently have to endure throughout the entire campaign as if just being a Mormon is reason enough to open the floodgates for free flow of pent-up hatred and vindictiveness.
For the record, the Mormon bashers know full well that the official name of Romneys church is The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and the members should rightfully be called members of the LDS Church but the words Mormon and Mormonism have an aura of negativity so they prefer to use the M word as if it were dirty.
Less than five minutes cruising around the official LDS website (LDS.org) will show anyone whos interested that the Church is a Christian organization, with Jesus Christ at the Head. There are no paid clergy all are volunteers. Humanitarian aid is legendary. Members of the LDS Church believe in strong family values; they are patriotic, they are law-abiding upstanding citizens of their community. Many LDS young men right out of high school go on two-year missions you know, the guys on bikes and during their mission they dont date, read newspapers, go to movies or watch TV; but rather they dedicate two years of their lives to serving others. Many women go on missions as well, and couples, only theirs is 18 months in length but the obligations are basically the same. Most members do not shop or go out to eat on Sundays reminiscent of the good old days when shops and stores were closed in obedience to the Commandment, Remember the Sabbath and keep it holy. If they can help it, LDS Church members do not work on Sundays, either, preferring to spend the day at church and with their families. Church members are encouraged to store up a years supply of food and water so they will be able to care for their families in the event of an emergency. The LDS Church believes in self-sufficiency and self-reliance but in the event of a financial hardship the Church distributes food and supplies through their welfare (Bishops Storehouse) program. Members of the LDS Church do not drink alcohol nor do they use illicit drugs; they do not drink coffee and tea. A Mormon in good standing, therefore, will not be found in a drunken stupor puking her guts out at 3 a.m. anywhere in the world. Furthermore, members of the church are encouraged to dress modestly, be polite and courteous. And members of the LDS Church are faithful tithe payers. Come on, people, whats not to love?
So what on earth is their beef, the anti-Mormon zealots? Why is there such disdain for the LDS Church and its members? In Hugh Hewitts book, Mormon in the White House? he states his thesis that the fierce anti-Mormon sentiment among main-stream Christians stems from one or two or all three of the following factors (in order of importance):
1) It is just too weird.
2) A Mormon president will supercharge Mormons missionary work.
3) If there is a Mormon in the White House, Salt Lake City will call the shots, at least on the biggest issues. Hewitt (2007, p. 221-227)
Hugh Hewitt has written an exquisite book about the Romney campaign and overcoming the Mormon problem. Its a good read and I highly recommend it. Of the three problem points listed in the previous paragraph, Hewitt believes unless some unforeseen blunder destroys his chances none of the three is insurmountable for Mitt Romney. (Plus, he has the best hair.)
Well, Im no Hugh Hewitt, not even close; hes an icon on the conservative radio talk show circuit. Hewitt could talk circles around me (Ive seen him in action in Sacramento); hes brilliant; hes well educated, well read, no doubt a genius, plus hes kind of cute. Im basically a nobody an overweight grandma but after having researched for this paper, I have come to a totally different conclusion as to why there is such in-your-face angst over Romneys religion of choice: Its all about money, power and control (in that order). I think theyre (the evangelical religious bigots, that is) scared half to death and are revving up their attacks, not to save souls, but to save their reputations (which if tarnished would lead to financial ruin).
As I said, all one must do is browse around the LDS official web site to see what the LDS Church believes and stands for. Any reasonable person would conclude that Mormons are not evil monsters at all. In fact, they are God fearing, Christ believing, Holy Ghost following people going about doing good. You will know them by their fruit and the LDS has plenty of fruit and they are willing to share.
Earlier, I stated that some high-powered ministries have publicly condemned Mormons: Shirley and James Dobson, the Southern Baptist Convention, Pat Robertson, and Dr. D. James Kennedy just to name a few. There are hoards of others. Sunday after Sunday, preachers, evangelists, reverends and ministers from all Christian denominations pound the pulpit with anti-Mormon rhetoric. I heard the message loud clear when I was a Baptist and when I tiptoed through evangelical/Pentecostal territories. Was I ever miffed when I later learned for myself the Gospel truth about the LDS Church.
Just think about it, please. If Dr. D. James Kennedy, for example, who wrote the book, The Wolves Among Us, were to admit hed been wrong in labeling the LDS Church a cult that leads unwary ignorant people astray (to hell), what would become of his multi-million-dollar ministry? Suffice it to say, theres big money to be had by sale of books, tapes, CDs, videos, and other anti-Mormon propaganda, not to mention speaking engagements and world-wide religious crusades. Were talking trillions, all told. I realize the anti-Mormon aspect of these ministries is but a small portion of the business, but if the truth came out, that they had been using falsehoods about the LDS Church as a cash cow, their entire empires could tumble.
The ABC News program 20/20 aired on March 23, 2007, exposed the lavish lifestyles of some of the top evangelical preachers million dollar mansions and personal jets. ABC News - 20/20 (2007) (Again, the LDS Church has no paid clergy.)
Its nothing new. Severe harassment and persecution has been the lot of the LDS Church since its inception in 1820 when a 14-year-old boy named Joseph Smith saw visions and communed with heavenly beings. Rather than discuss the spiritual aspects of the LDS Church, however, lets stick to facts of history. Taken from a college-level early American history textbook, Joseph Smith, upon experiencing the visions and visitations, believed that God had work for me to do, and that my name should be for good and evil among all nations, kindreds and tongues. Ayers, Gould, Oshinsky, and Soderlund (2004, p. 292). The textbook continues, They were met with hostility virtually everywhere they went . . . . As the movement gathered momentum, hundreds of people joined the church; entire congregations of churches of other faiths joined . . . Ayers, Gould, Oshinsky, and Soderlund (2004, p. 293)
During the dark time of American history when slavery was flourishing and when Native Americans were forced from their lands, the pioneers of the LDS Church also suffered at the hands of unscrupulous politicians, governmental leaders, and angry hate-filled mobs. In the face of relentless persecution, Joseph Smith, the founder of the church, had led his flock to Illinois. There they had established the town of Nauvoo, which by the mid-1840s had become the largest city in Illinois with over 15,000 people. . . In June 1844, a mob of non-Mormons broke into the jail where Smith was being held and killed both him and his brother. . .The Mormons abandoned Nauvoo in the spring of 1846 as anti-Mormons pounded the town with cannon, destroying the Great Temple. In a well-coordinated migration, 15,000 Mormons moved in stages to the Great Salt Lake. Ayers, Gould, Oshinsky, and Soderlund (2004, p. 334-335) Many walked all the way and many died along the way, including innocent babes.
Joseph Smith at one time was tarred and feathered by a mob. No jury, no trial, no judge and they had planned to castrate him, too. On October 27, 1838, the then governor of Missouri issued an extermination order: The Mormons must be treated as enemies, and must be exterminated or driven from the State if necessary . . . Far West History (n.d.) Please note that the order called for exterminating Mormons making no distinction between men, women and children, and indeed women and children were subject to the extermination order.
In an event known in LDS history as the Hauns Mill Massacre, precipitated by the extermination order, 30 to 40 LDS families were surprised by some 200 to 250 militia. After the smoke cleared, seventeen LDS people lay dead including a ten-year-old boy. Thirteen LDS members were wounded including a woman and a seven-year-old boy. A few Missourians returned the next day and took plunder. LDS FAQ (n.d.) No Missouri militiamen were killed but three were wounded. Just a few years earlier, the LDS folk who died that day had been members of other churches - Congregational or Methodist or Baptist or Presbyterian.
In l976, Governor Bond of Missouri officially rescinded the extermination order and presented apologies for the unfortunate developments it caused. Quoting from Governor Bonds Executive Order: WHEREAS, Governor Boggs order clearly contravened the rights to life, liberty, property and religious freedom as guaranteed by the Constitution of the United States, as well as the Constitution of the State of Missouri; and . . . Expressing on behalf of all Missourians our deep regret for the injustice and undue suffering rescind Executive Order Number 44 dated October 27, 1838, issued by Governor W. Boggs. . . Far West History (n.d.) The individuals who harassed, abused, and even murdered Mormons in cold blood were never tried for their crimes.
I read Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr.s Letter from Birmingham Jail and it really touched my heart. There he was, suffering for the Lord in jail, and these religious leaders with highfalutin titles on the outside wrote an open letter (A Call for Unity) in which they criticize Kings tactics and basically blame King for the racial turmoil of the time. Though you can tell King is upset and hurt by the attack made worse because hes stuck in jail and cant confront the religious leaders face-to-face his response is gentle genius. I wish you had commended the Negro sit-inners and demonstrators of Birmingham for their sublime courage, their willingness to suffer, and their amazing discipline in the midst of great provocation. One day the South will recognize its real heroes. Barnet and Bedau (2005, p. 881)
King has a few choice words for the Church, too: If todays church does not recapture the sacrificial spirit of the early church, it will lose its authenticity, forfeit the loyalty of millions, and be dismissed as an irrelevant social club with no meaning for the twentieth century. Every day I meet young people whose disappointment with the church has turned into outright disgust. Barnet and Bedau (2005, p. 880)
King signs off with Yours for the cause of Peace and Brotherhood.
Theres an eerie commonality between what JFK and MLK endured at the hands of the religious bigots of their day and what Mitt Romney is facing today. I hope and pray that Romney will be able to fend off these undeserved attacks from the religious hypocrites with the same grace, dignity and God-inspired resolve displayed by the other two.
A few popular bumper stickers read: Honk if you love Jesus and Christians arent perfect, just forgiven or Jesus is my co-pilot. Yet, apparently, these same bumper-sticker Christians are the ones waging war against Mitt Romneys run for the Presidency solely on the basis of his chosen faith in a Church that bears the name of the Savior of the world.
References
ABC News - 20/20 (2007). Philanthropic donations come from your heart, but where do they end up? Ex-money manager says "enough!" to secretive Christian Ministry spending. Glenn Ruppel & John Stossel. United States: ABC News.
Ayers, E. L., Gould, L. L., Oshinsky, D. M., & Soderlund, J. R. (2004). American Passages - a history of the United States - Volume I: to 1877 (2nd ed.). Belmont, California: Thomson/Wadsworth.
Barnet, S., & Bedau, H. (2005). Letter from Birmingham Jail. Current Issues and Enduring Questions - a guide to critical thinking and argument, with readings (7th ed., pp. 867-882). Boston and New York: Bedford/St. Martin's.
Far West History. (n.d.). The Extermination Order and how it was rescinded. Retrieved April 28, 2007, from http://www.jwha.info/mmff/exorder.htm
Hewitt, H. (2007). A Mormon in the White House? 10 things every American should know about Mitt Romney. Washington, D.C.: Regnery Publishing, Inc.
John F. Kennedy Presidential Library & Museum. (1960, September 12). Address of Senator John F. Kennedy to the Greater Houston Ministerial Association. Retrieved April 22, 2007, from http://www.jfklibrary.org
Lds Faq. (n.d.). What was the Haun's Mill Massacre? Retrieved April 28-2007, 2004, from Brigham Young University Web Site: http://ldsfaq.byu.edu/view.asp?q=57
Media Matters for America. (2007). Fox News whitewashes evangelical hostility to Romney's faith. Retrieved April 22, 2007, from http://mediamatters.org/items/printable/200702280002
Years ago I read several books about Mormons and Mormonism and it is the history of the sect that is off putting. Joseph Smith found golden tablets from God and then he lost them before he could show them to anyone else? The members of his sect were encouraged to have multiple wives?
I am sorry but that is just plain weird. He must have been very charismatic to get others to follow him or maybe it was just the multiple wives part.
What did he save you from? Just death?
And what did he save her to, as well? Being one of millions of celestial wives of an exalted man who is a god, so she can produce spirit babies to inhabit his planet?
However if he gets the primary nod, then I will fully support him. However, if Rudy gets the primary nod, I will not be voting for a Republican for president. Rudy is an UNREPENTANT abortion proponent. Romney is a repentant and allegedly former abortion proponent who is running now on his opposition to abortion. It's a hard pill to swallow, but not impossible.
If Fred Thompson were a Mormon, I would still be hoping and praying that he enters the race. It would make no difference to me at all.
I will even accept a recanting of his abortion position by Rudy IF he does so in a way that PROVES it is real and not just a matter of expediency.
1. Must be full and public recantation for all media outlets to run.
2. Must pledge to fully support fully pro-life planks in the party platform.
3. Must pledge to appoint as chief WH counsel and judicial picks advisors pro-life jurists AND name those persons and get their agreement to serve.
4. Must pledge to support pro-life and pro-family amendment to Constitution.
BTW, given Romney’s RECENT past, I expect the same thing from him.
Because Jesus told us to pray to Our Father.
Mormonism is not what makes Utah conservative. Utah is conservative because it is a member of the Intermountain States and all those States are governed by individual rights. They are rugged indivualists and abhor Federal Government intrusion precisely because of their status as minority (and therefore overruled) by large urban interests. We see this in every single ‘Red’ State, and not just Utah. Your assumption is incorrect.
Now let us address your assumption that we cannot win without Mormon backing. There are about 5,000,000 Mormons withing the United States (by their own recogning). 1,000,000 of them live in Utah. That leaves 4,000,000 divided between the rest of the 49 States. California has the highest number of LDS (about 2,000,000), but California’s electoral votes almost always go Democrat. Mormonism’s effect in California is negliglble.
Between California and Utah, the balance of Mormons live in the West and so the States where they reside have few electoral votes to consider. Of the 3,000,000 or so Mormons that live in the US (besides Utah and California,) by all estimates only 1/2 of them are active LDS. EX-Mormons and inactive Mormons are predominantly liberals as can be viewed by opinions on this site. http://www.exmormon.org
So, of those 1,500,000 active LDS living in the balance of the 48 States, only 1/2 of those are of voting age (if that many, since Mormons have a high preponderance of their membership in children due to their birth rate). So we are left with 750,000 voting LDS members (some of whom will vote democrat)
Now let us divide those 750,000 members by 48 States, and if every active Mormon who is able to cast votes does so for the Republican candidate, we would have an average of 15,625 Mormon votes per State.
The effects of those votes even if they went 100% in favor of Democrats would be nothing. Mormons, if they turn tail and run to the Democrats would show the preposterousness of their own political position.
Believe me, Mormons need the Republican party FAR more than we need them. They are using us IMO to further their own political agenda. They get away with it by accusing us of bigotry, hate, and prosecution. This is clearly a liberal tactic.
In the realm of politics, if you think you have something better, then prove it. If we don’t accept your proof, that’s just too bad. That’s politics.
If Romney were gay instead of Mormon, we would never even be discussing the issue. A gay politician has beliefs that conflict with ours, we are not required to accept the position that somehow we must accept him or be labled as bigoted, hateful, persecutors.
Also, the White Horse Prophecy of Mormonism, and it's effect on Mormons in high office decision making process is also a cause for scrutiny.
Just to name a couple.
Also, Romney, and along with him, the GOP, could not withstand the scrutiny of a Presidential campaign.
Romney has already flip flopped on homosexual marriage, abortion and embryonic stem cell research, as well as other issues of the economic and security variety.
The original post on this thread certainly does.
When you start bashing Romney over Mormonism, just remember that it's not you who is winning or losing a debate. It's Keith Obertroll who is winning. It's Dan Rather who is winning. It's the New York Times and the Washington Post who is winning. It is, in short, all our libmedia enemies who will rejoice at having sown such discord and fanned the flames of intra-party warfare here at FreeRepublic, the bastion of online conservative discussion.
A little hyperbolic here, IMO. There is a difference between discussion and "bashing" in the first place and secondly, I certainly wouldn't describe this as warfare or even "sewing seeds of discord." If you follow some threads closely, you will see, in some cases, a spirit of competition over "who is the better theologian" rather than "warfare".
Don't fall for it. Don't let libmedia (and a few hotheads) split the party and elect the Wife Of Clinton.
This is a point I have made time and again on FR. The media right now is playing these cards. As an example, the PBS special on mormonism this past week. A Romney nomination will bring on an onslaught from the media on the peculiarities of mormon beliefs with the specific intent of both tarring all Christians with the same brush, and keeping evangelicals from the voting booth.
[JimRob, I hope you'll read this and consider it. I think I'm right about libmedia's intent to split the Party Of Reagan with a multi-pronged RINO-Giuliani and anti-Mormon strategy.]
Agreed.
I agree. That was an UGLY and VICIOUS smear against evangelicals. if there is anything that would change my open mind about Romney, it is that type of stuff.
Do you seriously think Mormons would abandon the GOP and vote dem, if we don’t nominate Romney?
Even when Senator Smoot was under investigation and not seated in Congress, the Momons support the Republicans.
The Mormon political agenda is very similar to the Republican agenda. Family values, States rights, the protection of the unborn. Like I said they need us more than we need them. Don’t get confused. The GOP supports their lifestyle. We needn’t get confused and think that we are dependant upon them. The GOP is FAR, FAR more in need of the Evangelicals whom (if we can use the OP as any indication) are completely despised by the LDS. I would think twice before alienating Christians over Mormons.
The GOP has a big tent. We have always protected Mormons as well as anyone. We don’t need to “prove” it to the Mormons. We need to stick to our principals. It is our principals that make our ideas valuable. Part of our principals in a belief in One God. I will not pretend to think that electing a Commander in Chief who believes he will become a god is not an important aspect of his character.
When it comes down to each individual who votes his own conscience are we going to worry about alienating gays, or abortionists, or socialists (of which there are far more in number than Mormons)? Must we bend to this special interest group to show our lack of bigotry?
BTW, Utah will continue to be conservative (unless the socialists from other States continue to move in in alarming numbers). As will the rest of the Intermountain West. What we need to fear is the influx of liberal agenda into the lifesyle and politics of traditionally conservative States. This is something to fear!
“Now, you would think that evangelicals would welcome Mormons as political allies for the very same reasons that the liberals reject them. You’d be wrong. Evangelicals, many of whom believe the cosmos and world did not exist a little over 6000 years ago, reject Mormons because they have some “weird” beliefs. “
The 6000 year thing IS a weird belief and isn’t the doctrine of any major denomination I know of. Seems Christians reject things over time that that have found flat out wrong (like the world is flat), Mormons appear to offer a new Revelation and then pretend nothing happened.
I am a Lutheran - good old Martin was a beer drinking good old boy who besides rocking the world and starting a major protestant war was also a bit of a semite. BUT HE WASN’T GOD AND HE WASN’T A PROPHET!!! So I’m happy to reject his failings. How’s about you rejecting Joseph Smith’s failings. Oh, that’s right, if some of his grifting turns out to be true, the whole foundation of Mormonism collapses. That’s why you have to defend Joseph to the Death, no matter how much evidence of craziness is presented.
Having an open mind to the point of having your brains spill out is not a good idea.
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