Romney's rise brings attention to Mormonism and a battle over the language

Mark Davis

 

 Published: 08 May 2012 11:08 PM

 

 

Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints can be excused if they wince upon hearing from non-Mormons how nice they are. That faint praise is often followed by criticism, some of it ill-informed.

As the stage is set for the possibility (I’d be happy to say likelihood) of our first Mormon president, unprecedented attention will be paid to the LDS faith, which brings positives and negatives.

The positives include a lesson millions of Americans will get in what Mormons do and do not believe. There was some attention directed at this in 2008, when Mitt Romney was a strong candidate. But as the actual Republican nominee, he will usher his faith into an unprecedented spotlight, as millions ask questions about a religion they may have no familiarity with.

Learning is inherently good, but with it comes a tug-of-war, as competing interests rush into the vacuum to score points.

Much has been made of some faction of fundamentalist Christians who seek to denigrate Mormonism as a cult. This may be the most exaggerated slice of the American population since activist Mitch Snyder’s 6-million-homeless scam.

Do some people express disregard for Mormons? Sure, as there are those who speak ill of other faiths for reasons of mere “differentness.” The actual number of people with overt hostility to Mormons is as small as it should be in a society that stresses religious tolerance.

As for the cult designation, there is an academic theological definition that arguably applies, as in a group deviating significantly from the orthodoxy of a faith yet retaining many of its basic precepts.

But most voices identifying the LDS church as a cult seek merely to insult it. The church’s defensiveness against this is as understandable as the Jewish community recoiling against anti-Semitism.

As Mormons properly seek to protect the reputation of their faith, many make an unreasonable demand as evidence of tolerance: They require a definition of Mormonism as just another form of Christianity. The prospects of an LDS president will only increase this pressure.

For those making that argument, the bad news is that it will not work. The good news is that it does not matter.

Definitions do not exist to make people feel better or worse about themselves. They exist to make things clear. Christianity, as a term, has a definition that embraces various denominations following the same Bible and only that Bible.

If a thoroughly well-meaning sect devised another entire holy book based on appearances by Jesus in Europe or Asia, adding beliefs that differ broadly on the status of Jesus and the details of the afterlife, are those people still followers of Jesus? Yes, they are. But are they Christians? Most would justifiably say they are not.

The LDS faith teaches of Jesus in North America, a story Mormons have every right to believe, along with the right to have that belief respected in a pluralistic society.

But they cannot expect that most Christians will view Mormonism as just another denomination, like Lutherans or Methodists. The differences are theologically sharp and unreconcilable according to biblical teaching.

But as Romney makes his push for the presidency, I consider his magnificent values and life story to be far closer to my values than the teachings ladled out in Barack Obama’s supposedly Christian church — that America-bashing cauldron of racial hatred lorded over by the poisonous Jeremiah Wright.

Ultimately, I would have no problem with a Jewish president, who would not even share my belief that Jesus is the son of God. Christian differences with Mormonism are smaller than that and ultimately play no part in my vote. As we practice proper deference toward one another’s beliefs, no one should be pressured to sacrifice clarity on the altar of empathy.

Conservative talk show host Mark Davis is on Twitter at @markdavis and may be contacted at [email protected].

 

Comments

[Randall Woodman]

For a detailed description of Mormonism, read Kingdom of the Cults by Walter Martian. Chapter 6 goes into great detail about what they believe as compared to what the bible teaches.
http://tsbalan.com/books/Kingdonofcults.pdf

[Bryan Wicks]

One should worry more about the disciples of Statism than the believers of Mormonism as elected members of the former will bring the country into the financial abyss faster than the latter.

Harry Reid, being the exception, of course. ;-)

[Peter S]

Mark,
One thing you didn't mention is that Mormons have a different definition of who Jesus is than mainstream Christianity. It would be like saying that Mormons and Jehovah's Witnesses and Christians all have the same definition of who Jesus is. On the surface, you can stop at "son of God" and yes, that sounds accurate. However when you probe into what that means to each group, you find that the definitions of those words have very different meanings. It would be nice if there were some real discussion about those differences and why mainstream Christianity rejects Mormonism as just another type of Christian.

Frankly, I'm not crazy about the idea of Mitt Romney as POTUS, but his religion is not the main reason for it. I don't think he'll "get his orders" from the Mormons any more than JFK got his orders from the Pope. I just think he's too much like the current president in many ways, but once again TX doesn't get a real say in the primary.

[Scott Robison]

As a Mormon, I'm not going to engage in an "am too - are not" debate. I feel sad that some people can't see past the differences to accept me as a Christian based on the similarities of our ideals, but I really wish that those that *don't* accept me as a Christian would state their reasons as well and as clearly as Mark does. Too many people (a very vocal but decidedly tiny minority) use the terms "cult" or "not Christian" in an attempt to marginalize and denigrate. Ultimately a person's religion does not really matter to their elective office. I can say that because I'm not enthusiastic about Mitt Romney (though I prefer him over Obama) even though we share the same faith. I may vote for him come November but I haven't yet decided. I can say, despite sharing a common faith, I would almost certainly never cast a vote for Harry Reid. And I only give myself a little wiggle room just in case the alternative was even worse politically.

[Scott Mulhollen]

The word "cult" is used very liberally in the Christian world. Growing up fundamental Baptist, I was taught that any religion that taught something from outside the Bible was a cult. By this definition, the Catholic church would be a cult! Good luck finding any where in the Bible that teaches about praying to saints. However, the religion that a person follows does not make them a Christian or not. It is their belief that Jesus took the penalty for our nasty sins, and dedicating our lives to Him. Only God knows who had done this our not whether they are Mormon, Catholic, Baptist or any other flavor.

[Cece Weaver]

Mark, I really miss hearing your show daily on WBAP and really look forward to your next adventure.

As a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, I thank you for remaining respectful in stating your position in this blog post. I fully consider myself Christian in that I define Christian as someone who believes in Jesus Christ as my Savior. I joined the church 8 years ago and am so very blessed as a result.

The comment above from the gentlemen referencing a place to get a "detailed description" of Mormonism gave me a little bit of a chuckle. If you'd like a detailed description of what we believe, please visit www.mormon.org. There is so much misinformation out there, it's best to go to the real source to learn the facts. Think of it like this, if someone wanted to know what you believed, would you rather they just ask you or turn to someone else, like a neighbor, co-worker or even ex-wife? :-)

www.mormon.org

[Dr. Ken Taylor]

Mark I too really miss your show and wish you well in your next adventure. I do want to make a comment about your quote below.

"Definitions do not exist to make people feel better or worse about themselves. They exist to make things clear. Christianity, as a term, has a definition that embraces various denominations following the same Bible and only that Bible."

As I am fond of hearing both you and Rush Limbaugh say, "Words mean things" and I think you are making a conflation of words here. What you have defined is not the word "Christianity" or "Christian" but "Historical Christianity." LDS certainly are not Historical Christians as we don't believe only in the Bible as the word of God, but if you look up the word Christian in any dictionary you will find the word Christian defined as someone who believes in the teachings of Jesus Christ. Some of those teachings are that he was the Son of God and that he died for the sins of mankind. Under this definition, LDS certainly are Christians, however we are not historical Christians or mainstream Christians. I think those distinctions need to be made.