Posted by
Virginia Daddy on Monday, June 04, 2007 3:57:37 PM
Mitt Romney is a Mormon. Romney is running for president, so like it or not, Mormonism is running for president as well. This is well known, and much debated in terms of the religion's influence on his views. I've held back on commenting for the most part, but feel led to give my thoughts. So, here's the question: is his religious background an issue?
There are two answers:
The first, no. There should be no issue with his religious belief, as long as he does not enforce too much Mormon dotrine into how he governs and what he puts forth. This is true for anyone, and we should all strive to give folks the benefit of the doubt whenever possible. So, his religion should not be an issue.
The second, yes. They are an issue, and they should be. Here's why this is a second, valid answer. A person's faith greatly dictates how he lives his life. As such, if a person's religions says various things, those things are open to scrutiny, just as the candidate himself. Mormonism, or Christianity, or pick your religion, all are open for attack/defense if that candidate is an open professor of that religion.
So, in this particular example, we have a Mormon as a candidate. Mormons are by and large good people. They have excellent conservative traditions and place high value on families. However, they have some faults, as we all do. But Mormon's are interesting in that they call themselves something they are not necessarilly: Christian. They must profess in Joseph Smith as much as they do Christ. They must do and complete certain rights before they are fully accepted into their fold, and are constantly working to achieve salvation. The Temple is as important as the state, so it seems. Is this in and of itself dangerous, perhaps not. But given equal talents and conservative credentials, I will vote for the one who most closely fits all of my beliefs, and so should we all. This is why Romney's beliefs are an issue.
Much of this argumentation is the same JFK went through as a Catholic. Valid? Who knows. But they are real, and to deny this is to render their religion meaningless. It has an effect on how we view them, the candidates. It may be unfortunate, but it is real.
So, does Mitt's religion bar him from being a true candidate, not necessarilly. But it will be a hinderance. In theory, it should not. In reality, it is.