Pastor’s anti-Mormon blast exposes split in US right

Published on Tuesday 11 October 2011 08:45

A SPAT over a presidential hopeful’s Christian credentials has exposed concerns among America’s religious right over a would-be candidate’s Mormon faith.

Former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney is a front-runner to take the Republican nomination for a run at the White House in 2012’s election.

But innuendo over his faith has turned to outright accusation over the weekend, reopening a debate over whether the party’s sizeable evangelical wing will fall behind Mr Romney.

The Mormon question had largely been avoided so far by rivals fighting it out for the Republican presidential candidacy.

But what appeared to be a gentlemen’s agreement over a candidate’s faith is slowly ebbing away following comments by an evangelical preacher on Friday.

Texas pastor Robert Jeffress branded Mormonism a “cult” and implied that Mr Romney was not a true Christian.

The comments were made just minutes after he introduced Texas governor Rick Perry – seen by many to be Mr Romney’s main rival – to an enthusiastic 2,000-strong crowd ay the First Baptist Church of Dallas.

Mr Perry, a devout Christian, attempted to distance himself from the TV evangelist’s words. But the pastor himself remained unapologetic, telling reporters on Sunday that Mormonism is a “false religion” and urging Republicans to vote for a true Christian, such as Mr Perry.

Mr Jeffress is no stranger to controversy, having previously denounced Islam and accused chat show queen Oprah Winfrey of being a tool of Satan.

With a sizeable and influential chunk of Republican voters holding evangelical views, presidential contenders have been keen to pander to the religious right of the party.

This should fall into the hands of candidates such as Mr Perry, former pizza mogul Herman Cain and Minnesotan politician Michele Bachman, all of whom are by nature social conservatives.

At a disadvantage is Mr Romney, a moderate who has been seen to flip-flop on issues such as abortion, gun control and gay rights.

Despite having now swung behind the conservative agenda on all three issues, the former Massachusetts governor is still eyed with suspicion by some on the right of his own party.

His faith only serves to raise the eyebrows further. Mormonism was founded in the 19th century by Joseph Smith, who believed early Americans were descendants of the lost tribes of Israel.

The Book of Mormon – a text Mr Smith said he translated from scriptures revealed to him on golden tablets buried in a hill in modern day New York State – is a key religious text for followers, as is the Bible.

But despite its roots in Christianity, many evangelical Christians refuse to acknowledge Mormons – about 5.5 million of whom live in the United States – as fellow believers.

Mr Romney’s political rivals were far from quick in defending him from that charge over the weekend.

“He’s a Mormon, that much I know,” offered Mr Cain, when asked if he believed Mr Romney to be a Christian. Ms Bachmann likewise dodged the question, saying the focus should be on “religious tolerance”.

Republican pollster Dan Judy said: “For most voters it will be down to the candidates’ record. But there are some hard-line evangelicals who will not support a Mormon candidate.”

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Tartancult

Tuesday, October 11, 2011 at 10:26 PM

People like your imaginary friend - its you they dislike.

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Never A Fake

Tuesday, October 11, 2011 at 08:02 PM

Your imaginary friend is merr ludicrous than ma imaginary friend

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