Did anyone catch the Republican debate last week? I've been watching the Democratic debates, but this was my first Republican debate, and it was a doozy. The YouTube debates of course allow for some interesting questions, but the one I found the most interesting was: "Do you believe every word of this book to be true?" Holding a King James Version of the Bible. This question is interesting to me for several reasons. First of all, this question would NEVER be asked in a Presidential debate, and I think that's probably a good thing. I believe the Bible. However, if our President believed in the Torah or the Qur'an instead, I would be ok with that. Does someone have to believe EVERY WORD of the Bible to be a good President? I don't think so.
Second, this question was interesting for me because one of the candidates is LDS. How would Romney handle this? Would it turn into a golden opportunity for him to present my faith as Christian, as different, as valuable, what? I think mainly what Romney portrayed our religion as was confused. He said "I believe the Bible to be the word of God." (Leaving out the "as far as it is translated correctly" part). When he was asked if that meant that he believed every word of the Bible, he stammered, repeated that it is the word of God, and mumbled a "yeah." Boo.
The problem with this question is you can't make everyone happy with your answer. Some people will be freaked out if you don't say yes, others will be freaked out if you do. So, I would suggest, the best answer would be to tell the truth, even if it is difficult. Romney has been a bishop and stake president. Why couldn't he answer this question? I'm guessing Romney's stammering, blundering reply on Wednesday is a motivating factor in his decision to give a speech on Thursday designed to explain his beliefs. This should be interesting.
On The View this morning, the girls were discussing Romney's decision and made some comments that demonstrate how woefully uneducated people are about faiths outisde of their own. I don't know if Romney's Mormon Speech will hurt or help his campaign (and honestly, I don't really care), but I am interested to see how it affects public perception of the LDS church.
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4 comments:
Hey Lex! Ditto on this post. He bothers me and confuses everyone else. Not exactly an ideal candidate or spokesman for the church...
No kidding. Having Mitt Romney so out there is kind of exciting, but more scary for me. I almost feel like it's too much too soon, especially since he somes off as kind of sleazy.
I agree with you that its a little bothersome to have us so out there for discussion now. [Nevermind that The View girls don't even know about their OWN religions. I seriously saw them once squabble about whether a bishop was an important post in the Catholic church, even though all of them except Elizabeth said they were catholic. Even Joy who I could have sworn was jewish.] That got off topic. But I'm with you.
Also, you should join facebook. All your friends are doing it.
I really admired Mitt Romney when he swooped in to save the Salt Lake City Olympics. I was really proud that a fellow Mormon was doing such a good job managing an event on that scale.
I admired Romney too when he became the government of Massachusetts. He was a political moderate who wasn't afraid to think outside of the political party box. Although he was a Republican, he was also willing to have different views on health care, gun control, and abortion.
But now he has steered so far to the right that I don't even know who he is. He's trying so hard to align himself with evangelical Christians that he's spouting half-truths about his own religion in presidential debates.
There was a very interesting article (I think it was in The Nation) about Mormons feeling hesitant about Romney due to his courtship of evangelicals. Apparently there is a growing group of members of the Church who wonder why Mitt is trying so hard to befriend the same people who call us a cult.
Personally, I love the distinctions in Mormonism that set us apart from traditional Christianity. I love how we believe that God, Christ, and the Holy Ghost are separate personages. I love how we believe in eternal families and eternal progression. I love our different take on certain doctrines---which Mitt Romney continually tries to distance himself from.
Anyway, I'm interested to see what Mitt has to say on Thursday when he finally gives his JFK speech. Should be intriguing...
Hey Girl...I found your blog as I was blog hopping...Welcome back to Vegas! :)
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