Welcome to MormonVoices. Our volunteers respond to public discussions and comments from public figures that misrepresent The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. We encourage and direct Mormons to get involved in online discussions and thereby help shape the public understanding and perceptions of the Church. Please join your voice with ours, and become a member of MormonVoices.
MormonVoices is an independent organization that is supportive of, but not
controlled by or affiliated with, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
search the site
4 May 2012
Mormonism in the News: Getting It Right | May 4
May 4, 2012
“Mormonism in the News: Getting It Right” presents several recent news articles, blog posts or videos that, in our view, provide accurate and fair reporting on The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, as well as those that misrepresent the faith to readers. Don’t forget to discuss these stories on Facebook, Google+ and Twitter.
Today’s edition of “Getting It Right” includes stories about the Church’s political neutrality, current and future Mormon missionaries, several accounts of the Kansas City Missouri Temple open house, the Church’s humanitarian work in Africa, the Mormon Helping Hands Day of Service in California and Hawaii, commentary about the “Mormon Moment” and inaccurate reporting about Mormons and polygamy.
http://www.mormonnewsroom.org/article/mormonism-news-getting-it-right-may-4-2012
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Political Neutrality: Whiteboard Animation ‘Draws Out’ Church Position (VIDEO)
May 4, 2012
Newsroom introduced a new way of talking about the issue of political neutrality today. An explanation of the Church’s position has been on Newsroom for several years. But in an Internet age many people prefer a more immediate way to view and learn about topics and issues of the day than simply reading text.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Another Look at Baptism for the Dead
May 4, 2012
FAIR Blog
THE topic of vicarious or “proxy” baptisms performed by members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has recently received a lot of attention, both positive and negative. (And both factual and lacking in accuracy, it’s fair to say.) I’m sure the topic will come up again, so even though it’s not at this moment a hot topic bouncing around the news, I’d like to share a few of my own thoughts about this issue and the way it’s been characterized as a horrible, disrespectful thing to do on behalf of the deceased.
http://www.fairblog.org/2012/05/04/another-look-at-baptism-for-the-dead/
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
How did Mormons grow so fast? They changed how they counted
May 4, 2012
Washington Post
If you suspected the newly released U.S. Religion Census overstated the Mormons’ growth rate, you were right. That’s because, this time around, the Utah-based Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints changed the way it reported its membership to the researchers.
The once-a-decade study was assembled by the Association of Statisticians of American Religious Bodies, which included self-reported data on adherents for 153 participating bodies.
Its report pegged U.S. Mormon growth at 45.5 percent, jumping from 4.2 million in 2000 to 6.1 million in 2010. The 2000 figure, however, was much lower than the 5.2 million listed in the LDS church’s own almanac for that year. If researchers had been given that figure, the percentage of growth would have been considerably smaller, closer to 18 percent.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Mormon-Bashing Bryan Fischer says He’s “More Mormon” than Mitt Romney
May 4, 2012
Religion Dispatches
The American Family Association’s Bryan Fischer is at it again, today attacking Mitt Romney for not being Mormon enough. In a May 4 tweet, Fischer asserted: “Romney’s problem on homosexuality: I’m more Mormon than he is. LDS: gay sex is ‘offensive to God.’ I agree, Mitt doesn’t.”
Mormon-basher Bryan Fischer more Mormon than Mitt Romney? Yeah. Right. We’ve seen radical anti-gay conservative Christians use this line before. Evangelical Christian leader John Stemberger did it last fall in endorsing Rick Perry when he said that Romney was “not Mormon enough” on social values. And how Mormon is Mitt Romney? Plenty.
Fischer based his tweet, as this April 23 video shows, on a cherry picked excerpt from the Encyclopedia of Mormonism–which is not a doctrinal text. While there is no question that homosexual sex is a sin according to LDS doctrine, the idea that homosexuality is especially “offensive to God” is an abuse of Mormon beliefs. Church leaders have taught that many kinds of sinful and un-Christian conduct are “offensive to God.”
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Why So Many Good Business Leaders Are Mormons
May 4, 2012
Business Insider
The Mormons have produced a striking number of successful businesspeople.
JOKES about sacred underpants have reached epidemic proportions, thanks to Mitt Romney’s presidential bid and the musical masterpiece by Matt Stone and Trey Parker, “The Book of Mormon”. But the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, to give it its full name, is fighting back. A huge advertising campaign features ordinary people doing ordinary things–a white man sporting a beard, a black man sporting a moustache and a young skateboarder flying through the air–with the tag line: “I’m a Mormon.”
The snag is, not everyone will buy the idea that Mormons are just like the rest of us. They don’t get drunk. They have large families, stable marriages and a three-month supply of food in the larder in case of Armageddon. They are usually clean-cut and neatly dressed (the facial hair in the “I’m a Mormon” ads is thankfully atypical). And they have a passion for business.
http://www.businessinsider.com/why-the-mormon-faith-produces-so-many-good-business-leaders-2012-5
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
The Mormon way of business
May 5, 2012
The Economist
JOKES about sacred underpants have reached epidemic proportions, thanks to Mitt Romney’s presidential bid and the musical masterpiece by Matt Stone and Trey Parker, “The Book of Mormon”. But the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, to give it its full name, is fighting back. A huge advertising campaign features ordinary people doing ordinary things–a white man sporting a beard, a black man sporting a moustache and a young skateboarder flying through the air–with the tag line: “I’m a Mormon.”
The snag is, not everyone will buy the idea that Mormons are just like the rest of us. They don’t get drunk. They have large families, stable marriages and a three-month supply of food in the larder in case of Armageddon. They are usually clean-cut and neatly dressed (the facial hair in the “I’m a Mormon” ads is thankfully atypical). And they have a passion for business.
http://www.economist.com/node/21554173
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Mormons, once a regional tradition in the Mountain West, now growing fastest outside the US
May 3, 2012
Minneapolis Star Tribune (Minnesota)
AMERICAN ROOTS: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was organized in 1830 by Joseph Smith in upstate New York. He said he had a revelation that God wanted him to restore the true Christian church by revising parts of the Bible and adding additional scriptures. Church headquarters are in Salt Lake City.
BY THE NUMBERS: Mormonism is one of the fastest-growing religions in the world, claiming 14.4 million members. Since the 1980s, the church has been expanding faster outside than inside the United States. Within the U.S., Mormons comprise just under 2 percent of the total population, or about 6 million people.
http://www.startribune.com/politics/national/150037855.html
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Jon Stewart Back to Insulting Catholics
May 3, 2012
Opposing Views
Jon Stewart opened with a replay of Lawrence O’Donnell’s recent bigoted tirade against Mormons that aired on MSNBC. Here is what Stewart said next:
“Mormons aren’t the only religion whose origin story can be explained as a convenient alibi. You can easily say that Christianity was created by a knocked up teenage girl who told her parents an angel had come down and….”
Stewart was then interrupted with laughter, but not before they showed a huge picture of a pregnant Virgin Mary on the screen. He then made a light joke about Buddha. As usual, he had nothing insulting to say about Judaism or Islam.
We will be sure to inform everyone about Stewart’s latest bigoted outburst. And I don’t mean just by issuing news releases and doing interviews. Stay tuned.
http://www.opposingviews.com/i/religion/jon-stewart-insults-catholics-again
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Team Romney: Defense Of Mormonism Proves He Can Stand Up To Social Conservatives
May 4, 2012
Talking Points Memo
Last October, Mitt Romney defended his Mormon faith against widely criticized attacks from a subset of conservative evangelical Christians. Now, under fire from activists and others upset at the resignation of Romney’s openly gay national security spokesperson, Team Romney is pointing to that defense as proof their candidate is willing to stand up to intolerant voices in the party.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Romney campaign reckons with gay rights after aide’s exit
May 4, 2012
MSNBC
“Poisonous language does not advance our cause. It has never softened a single heart nor changed a single mind,” he said at the Values Voters Summit last fall. (This line was the instance Fehrnstrom had cited as an example of Romney confronting intolerance. However, that remark was directed toward another speaker who had called Romney’s Mormon faith a “cult,” and wasn’t specifically referencing same-sex marriage.)
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Romney defends gay staffer who resigned, calls Grenell ‘very accomplished’
May 4, 2012
Washington Post
“One of the speakers who will follow me today has crossed that line,” Romney told the crowd last fall. “Poisonous language does not advance our cause.”
In his remarks, Romney also alluded to the controversy that was ignited after Texas pastor Robert Jeffress, a supporter of Texas Gov. Rick Perry, called Romney’s Mormon faith “a cult.”
Fischer was among those strongly criticizing Romney for hiring Grenell.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Mitt Romney lets the religious right call the shots on gays
May 4, 2012
Los Angeles Times (California)
As far as I know, Richard Grenell’s wrists are firm. I can’t say the same about Romney and his team. Romney is about to become the leader of his party and, perhaps, leader of the Free World. It would be nice to see him man up and tell the medieval wing of his party that it will not dictate to him about whom he hires to run his foreign policy. Instead, as he has for months on the campaign trail, Romney continues to suck up to the anti-gay religious activists, most of whom find his Mormon beliefs repugnant.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Romney says he wanted gay spokesman to stay on job
May 4, 2012
Atlanta Journal Constitution (Georgia)
At the conference, Romney also implicitly criticized figures on the religious right who were attacking his Mormon faith, including evangelical pastor Robert Jeffress. At the time, Jeffress was supporting Texas Gov. Rick Perry, who was running against Romney in the Republican presidential primary.
http://www.ajc.com/news/nation-world/romney-says-he-wanted-1431306.html
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Mitt Romney’s Eldest Son Has Twins Via Surrogate
May 4, 2012
ABC News
According to the official handbook of the Church of Latter Day Saints, to which the Romney’s are members, surrogacy is not encouraged. “The Church strongly discourages surrogate motherhood,” the handbook reads.
A Romney aide, when asked about the church’s view on the procedure, said that Tagg had made the bishops at his church aware of his family’s plans.
http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2012/05/mitt-romneys-eldest-son-has-twins-via-surrogate/
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Romney and Mormons brace for mean election season
May 3, 2012
Boulder Daily Camera (Colorado)
As 20,000 Mormons streamed from the church conference center, a ragtag group of protesters stood across the street shouting that the Latter-day Saints were going to hell. Mormon families, who had gathered here for two days of speeches and spiritual guidance called General Conference, ignored the hecklers or laughed and kept walking.
This, after all, is a church accustomed to much worse.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Mormons brace for election
May 4, 2012
Winston-Salem Journal (North Carolina)
As 20,000 Mormons streamed from the church conference center, a ragtag group of protesters stood across the street shouting that the Latter-day Saints were going to hell. Mormon families, who had gathered here for two days of speeches and spiritual guidance called General Conference, ignored the hecklers or laughed and kept walking.
This, after all, is a church accustomed to much worse.
http://www2.journalnow.com/news/2012/may/04/wsnat01-mormons-brace-for-election-ar-2241170/
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Romney, Mormons brace for a mean political season
May 4, 2012
The Times and Democrat (South Carolina)
As 20,000 Mormons streamed from the church conference center, a ragtag group of protesters stood across the street shouting that the Latter-day Saints were going to hell. Mormon families, who had gathered here for two days of speeches and spiritual guidance called General Conference, ignored the hecklers or laughed and kept walking.
This, after all, is a church accustomed to much worse.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Mormonism: Made in America, popular worldwide
May 3, 2012
Sun Herald (Mississippi)
AMERICAN ROOTS: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was organized in 1830 by Joseph Smith in upstate New York. He said he had a revelation that God wanted him to restore the true Christian church by revising parts of the Bible and adding additional scriptures. Church headquarters are in Salt Lake City.
BY THE NUMBERS: Mormonism is one of the fastest-growing religions in the world, claiming 14.4 million members. Since the 1980s, the church has been expanding faster outside than inside the United States. Within the U.S., Mormons comprise just under 2 percent of the total population, or about 6 million people.
http://www.sunherald.com/2012/05/03/3923958/mormonism-made-in-america-popular.html
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Mormons, once a regional tradition in the Mountain West, now growing fastest outside the US
May 3, 2012
Washington Post
Mormonism has been in the spotlight in recent years because of the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, the popular Broadway satire “The Book of Mormon” and the presidential aspirations of Republican Mitt Romney. The former Massachusetts governor, once a top Mormon leader in the Boston area, is about to become the first Mormon presidential nominee from a major party. Here are some basics about his church:
AMERICAN ROOTS: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was organized in 1830 by Joseph Smith in upstate New York. He said he had a revelation that God wanted him to restore the true Christian church by revising parts of the Bible and adding additional scriptures. Church headquarters are in Salt Lake City.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Romney, Mormons brace for a mean political season
May 3, 2012
Detroit Free Press (Michigan)
As 20,000 Mormons streamed from the church conference center, a ragtag group of protesters stood across the street shouting that the Latter-day Saints were going to hell. Mormon families, who had gathered here for two days of speeches and spiritual guidance called General Conference, ignored the hecklers or laughed and kept walking.
This, after all, is a church accustomed to much worse.
http://www.freep.com/article/20120503/NEWS15/120503067/Romney-Mormons-brace-mean-political-season-
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Mormon, Muslim faiths see boom
May 3, 2012
Houston Chronicle (Texas)
Mormons and Muslims may have long been considered minority religions, but in Houston and across the country, their numbers have grown since 2000.
New data show the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and Islamic congregations had significant growth in the past decade, while more familiar faiths – Catholics, Baptists and Methodists – grew as well.
In Harris County, the Mormon Church brought its numbers up to 45,000, and Muslims began at least a dozen congregations and grew to an estimated 117,000 members, making it our fifth most-populous faith, according to the Association of Religion Data Archives.
http://www.chron.com/life/houston-belief/article/Mormon-Muslim-faiths-see-boom-3532972.php
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Mormon Helping Hands volunteers at El Toro Memorial
May 4, 2012
Orange County Register (California)
About 275 Mormon Helping Hands volunteers, in bright yellow vests, worked at El Toro Memorial Park in Lake Forest on April 28 to benefit the community. The Santa Margarita Stake members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints were part of the 70,000 volunteers participating in California’s Mormon Helping Hands 2012 day of Service.
http://www.ocregister.com/news/hands-352683-helping-mormon.html
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Sea of Yellow Brightens Cañada Vista Park
May 4, 2012
Rancho Santa Margarita Patch (California)
A sea of yellow descended on Cañada Vista Park in Rancho Santa Margarita last weekend, and when the tide rolled out, the park had a new look.
More than 200 volunteers with Mormon Helping Hands from the Santa Margarita Stake were involved. Decked out in their yellow vests, they were part of an estimated 70,000 Helping Hands volunteers from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints who joined in efforts statewide to restore parks throughout California on April 28.
http://ranchosantamargarita.patch.com/articles/sea-of-yellow-brightens-ca-ada-vista-park
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
JT Ready a baby killer. Mormon church ought to consider taking Temple Cards away from their members who advocate hate
May 3, 2012
Tucson Citizen (Arizona)
JT Ready was a neo-nazi baby killer who was ordained into Mormon priesthood by ousted and former Arizona State Senator Russell Pearce. Pearce has advocated Operation Wetback (his words not mine) policies and self deportation laws that have spurred a series of increased hate crimes in Arizona due to the nature of xenophobic political Arizona leaders. Latinos have been sounding the alarm to this regard when we saw Russell Pearce and Sheriff Joe Arpaio begin their racial profiling tactics against my people.
Now we have a situation where we see another baby who was murdered and hate crimes continue to increase in our State of Arizona. I believe the Mormon Church (and all religious organizations for that matter who “preach” loving our neighbors) should take a stronger position regarding their members who are part of hate groups and advocate hate laws against fellow man. I’m not saying excommunicating individuals is the right thing, however, I believe the Mormon Church ought to consider taking Temple Cards away from people like JT Ready, Russell Pearce, and even Mitt Romney. [For the record: Mitt Romney has aligned himself with Kris Kobach (legal arm of FAIR) who helped lay the legal groundwork for S.B. 1070, Arizona's recently passed anti-immigrant law.]
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Would America elect a Mormon?
May 4, 2012
Chicago Tribune (Illinois)
While a sizable share of voters still would refuse to support any gay or atheist candidate for president, those numbers also have dropped significantly, according to the most recent Gallup poll on the subject. But in a trend that may prove troubling to Mitt Romney, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, nearly one-fifth of voters surveyed nationwide told Gallup last year that they would not support a Mormon for president — about the same as when Romney’s father, George, ran for president more than four decades ago.
To be sure, those numbers may have changed, with Romney having all but secured the GOP presidential nomination in recent weeks. Still, David Campbell, a political science professor at the University of Notre Dame, said opinions on Mormonism haven’t budged much despite public information campaigns dating to the 1970s aimed at dispelling myths about the religion.
“In a way, it’s no longer socially acceptable to say you won’t vote for a black person because of his race,” Campbell said. “But it’s still acceptable to say you won’t vote for a Mormon, all other things being equal, because of his religion.”
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/ct-met-trice-voter-prejudices-xx-20120504,0,1145283.story
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Lynchburg doctor once did missionary work with Romney
May 3, 2012
WSLS 10 (Virginia)
Dr. Dane McBride treats children and allergy sufferers in Lynchburg today, but as a young man he was doing something entirely different.
He was trying to win converts to Mormonism in France with another young missionary named Mitt Romney.
http://www2.wsls.com/news/2012/may/03/lynchburg-doctor-once-did-missionary-work-romney-ar-1890039/
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Clay Christensen’s Life Lessons
May 3, 2012
Bloomberg Businessweek
Christensen likes to say that he “left one half of my heart in Rose Park, one half in Korea, and one half at Oxford.” Rose Park is the blue-collar Salt Lake City neighborhood where he grew up, the second of eight children. He traveled to Korea for two years in the early ’70s to serve his mission with the Mormon church. It was while studying econometrics at Oxford, though, that he confirmed his religious faith.
“I’d been raised Mormon, but there comes a time where you are not following what you’ve been taught, but discovering for yourself if it’s true,” Christensen says. Each night from 11 to midnight, he huddled near a space heater in a pre-Columbian Oxford building, read chapters from The Book of Mormon, and prayed to know “if some charlatan had written this, or was it really from someone who talked to God?” While praying one night, he found himself enveloped in a feeling of love so profound he wept. This feeling stayed with him for an hour, and left him certain he was a son of God.
http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2012-05-03/clay-christensens-life-lessons#p2
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
BRIEF: Church members participate in day of service
May 4, 2012
Chicago Tribune (Illinois)
About 400 local members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints turned out April 28 to participate in the third annual “Mormon Helping Hands” day of community service at Seccombe Lake Park and Pioneer Cemetery in downtown San Bernardino.
In addition to restoring tombstones and planting hedges at Pioneer Cemetery, congregants at the park picked up trash, painted over graffiti, trimmed trees and cleaned out the lake.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
TEMECULA: Helping Hands event spruces up ranch
May 4, 2012
The Press-Enterprise (California)
The Temecula Stake of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints did a work project on April 28 for the Mormon Helping Hands event.
Volunteers worked with the Vail Ranch Restoration Association to clean and fix up the historic site in Temecula and to paint a stretch of fence on De Portola Road. Work ranged from painting to raking and picking up leaves.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Why Mitt Romney’s Upcoming Liberty Commencement Address Fits the University’s Past Speakers
May 4, 2012
Christianity Today
Mitt Romney will speak at next week’s commencement at Liberty University, an addresss that follows the university’s history of politically conservative speakers. For Romney, the speech is an outreach to conservative Christians who have been wary of him, both for his political positions and his Mormon faith. For Liberty, Romney will continue a long line of speakers who find common ground with Liberty on conservative politics, not religious affiliation.
http://blog.christianitytoday.com/ctpolitics/2012/05/why_mitt_romney.html
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Romney is a grandfather again
May 4, 2012
Seattle Times (Washington)
Tagg Romney spoke with the Mormon Church about his family’s plans before the children were born, a campaign aide said. Michael Purdy, a spokesman for the LDS Church, said, the church discourages surrogate motherhood but leaves the decision to individual members.
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/politics/2018140769_apusromneygrandchildren.html
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
You stay classy, Russell Pearce
May 3, 2012
Tucson Citizen (Arizona)
Russell Pearce, the former BFF and Mormon mentor of neo-Nazi JT Ready, is correct when he points out that he had nothing to do with Ready’s horrific killing spree in Gilbert yesterday. But it was inevitable that multiple reporters were going to ask him for a statement on it because, duh, they had a long association with each other.
http://tucsoncitizen.com/in-the-aggregate/2012/05/03/you-stay-classy-russell-pearce/
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
JT Ready’s Last Rant: Before The Massacre, The Neo-Nazi Border Vigilante Named Names
May 4, 2012
Talking Points Memo
Ready was often on the fringes of Arizona politics and aspired to someday hold elected office. Here, he named the people who helped him with those ambitions, including a religious and political fundraiser.
I became the fastest promoted CS3 within Jay Mount’s conservative fundraising power wagon MDS. I started my own charity “Manna for Mesa” and fed hordes of homeless. I worked tirelessly in Mormon charitable endeavors. Still, friends and neighbors considered me an opinion molder and prodded me into local politics. From President of the Mesa Community College Republican’s Club, to shadowing elected officials such as former Speaker of the House Jeff Groscost who took me under their wing, to working my way up the food chain in the state republican party with Senator Russell Pearce, I had an innate knack for delivering powerful speeches, winning debates, and delivering one line knock out blows to political rivals. I became a precinct committeeman, precinct captain, county delegate, state delegate, and national delegate alternate as well as making a strong show in a city council race where I came in ahead of a well-funded Latina activist in a largely Hispanic district.
http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2012/05/jt_ready_email_rant_massacre.php
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
NOTE: This is posted for those who are interested in keeping abreast what is being said around the world about The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and its members. MormonVoices cannot and does not guarantee the validity or truthfulness of any information reported. The responsibility for the interpretation and use of this information lies with the reader. As all information comes from other news sources and has not been independently verified, MormonVoices cannot guarantee or be responsible for the security of links in the clipping service. MormonVoices will attempt as much as possible to exclude news articles containing strongly offensive language or which lead to offensive images, but cannot guarantee that some will not slip through.
text
Journalists
