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13 August 2012
Romney, Mormonism and Money
August 13, 2012
New York Times
As for Gopnik’s description of Mormonism as “a denomination within the bigger creed of commerce,” this is apt in a way, but also strikingly incomplete. To readers unfamiliar with L.D.S. culture, it suggests a strong overlap between Mormonism’s theology of money and the kind of “pray and grow rich” prosperity preaching that’s exemplified Joel Osteen and his tackier confreres. Some such overlap exists, but the differences are also striking. Mormonism is worldlier than orthodox Christianity in ways that can become problematic, but it’s also considerably more communitarian (and considerably less consumerist) than a great deal of contemporary American religion. It celebrates its businessman, but it makes extremely stringent demands of them at the same time; it allows that riches may be associated with virtue, but insists that the rich prove their virtue through consistent works of charity as well. Speaking as someone who spent some of my childhood in religious worlds influenced by prosperity preaching, the feeling you get visiting a Mormon ward is extremely different from the feeling you get from visiting a prosperity-oriented megachurch, and the attitudes toward money visible in L.D.S. exhortations and literature are different than the rhetoric you’ll hear from, say, Kenneth and Gloria Copeland. The link between piety and prosperity is present, but the emphasis on thrift, charity and solidarity is just as intense. Too much prosperity preaching is a theology of the grasshopper, promising magical increase and asking little in return. But the Mormon symbol is the beehive for a reason.
http://douthat.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/08/13/romney-mormonism-and-money/
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Mormon church earns $7 billion a year from tithing, analysis indicates
August 13, 2012
NBC News
Relying heavily on church records in countries that require far more disclosure than the United States, Cragun and Reuters estimate that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints brings in some $7 billion annually in tithes and other donations.
It owns about $35 billion worth of temples and meeting houses around the world, and controls farms, ranches, shopping malls and other commercial ventures worth many billions more.
The church claims 14 million members around the world, more than half outside the United States. All are supposed to tithe, or give 10 percent, of their income, which Mormons frequently interpret as pre-tax earnings. But only about 40 percent of Mormons counted by the church actually attend weekly services in the United States and Canada, and in many countries, including Mexico and Brazil, only a quarter of nominal members are active, according to Cumorah, an independent research group headed by a devoted, active Mormon.
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Mormons vs. Catholics
August 13, 2012
Slate
Mitt Romney’s choice of Paul Ryan as his vice-presidential candidate makes 2012 the first time in American history that a major party has run a ticket without a Protestant on it: Romney is a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and Ryan is a Roman Catholic. Have Mormons and Catholics always gotten along as well as the Republican running mates appear to?
No. The root of the conflict is doctrinal. The premise of the Book of Mormon is that the Bible is a corrupt and incomplete account of God’s revelation–an implicit criticism of Catholic doctrine. The Book of Mormon also makes reference to an evil “church which is most abominable above all other churches,” described more colorfully as “the mother of harlots.” Though the Book of Mormon does not identify this evil institution as the Catholic Church, many Mormons have believed the two to be one and the same since the publication of the Book of Mormon in 1830.
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RPT-INSIGHT-Mormon church made wealthy by donations
August 13, 2012
Chicago Tribune (Illinois)
Relying heavily on church records in countries that require far more disclosure than the United States, Cragun and Reuters estimate that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints brings in some $7 billion annually in tithes and other donations.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/sns-rt-usa-politicsmormons-repeatl2e8jdc55-20120813,0,4281722.story
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With #Ryan pick, #Romney solidifies the #UnholyAlliance – Mormons, Catholics, evangelicals
August 13, 2012
Portland Phoenix (Maine)
Back in 2010, I wrote about how Mormons, Catholics, and evangelical Protestants had united – despite each teaching that the others are not true Christians – to work toward a common political goal: banning same-sex marriage.
With the pick of Catholic Paul Ryan, Mormon Mitt Romney has declared that there is a larger goal: taking over the political power structure of the country. If they are to win, they will need the backing of evangelicals. And if they do, it will certainly herald an era where holiness is right next to politicization. (If that era has not yet arrived already.)
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Religion won’t play role in 2012 election
August 12, 2012
The Spectrum (Utah)
Remember all the media chatter during the primaries about how the “Mormon factor” could undermine Mitt Romney’s candidacy?
Forget about it.
American voters, it turns out, are mostly unconcerned about Romney’s religious affiliation or have no idea what it is.
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Mormon Church Gets Billions of Dollars in Gifts and Property
August 13, 2012
Chronicle of Philanthropy
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints collects an estimated $7-billion a year in donations from members and owns tens of billions of dollars worth of both religious and for-profit real estate, according to a Reuters analysis of the church’s finances.
Much of the Mormon church’s revenue comes from a wealthy corps of American adherents such as Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney and hotel magnate J.W. “Bill” Marriott Jr., said Ryan Cragun, a University of Tampa sociologist who worked with Reuters on the review.
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Why Ex-Mormons Keep Quiet About Their Experiences
August 13, 2012
Salon
The Daily Beast recently published an article featuring an interview with Sue Emmett, who is the president of the ExMormon Foundation and the direct descendent of Brigham Young. Sue talked about her experience as a Mormon woman with clarity, insight, and compassion. I am grateful for Sue’s courage in going public with her experience as a Mormon woman.
For years, I have been standing by the sidelines, wanting to tell my Mormon story but too afraid to speak out. I want my family to listen when I tell them who I am as a person. In all the years since my exit, no one in my family has ever asked me what I believe in and what my values are. No one has ever thought to ask why I left. I remember the Mormon mindset very well – even the slightest hint of criticism felt like religious persecution. And so I have been keeping quiet, out of love for my family.
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First on CNN: Atheist group targets presidential candidates’ faith with billboards
August 13, 2012
CNN
A prominent atheist group is using next month’s Democratic National Convention to take aim at the presidential candidates’ religion, putting up billboards targeting Mormonism and Christianity in Charlotte, North Carolina.
“Our political system is rife with religion and it depends too much on religion and not enough on substance,” said David Silverman, president of American Atheists, sponsor of the ads.
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Atheist billboards mock Romney, Obama religion
August 13, 2012
USA Today
But evidently the American Atheists don’t consider Mormons to be Christians, since they prepared a separate billboard attack on their faith. It derides their idea of God as a “space alien” and notes that Mormons offer a proxy baptism to dead relatives — a practice the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints acknowledges has gotten out of hand with some believers inappropriately baptizing Holocaust victims and others not related to their own families.
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American Atheists target politics with new billboards
August 13, 2012
Examiner
The other billboard features Mormonism. The billboard takes aim at the Mormon notion of God as a “space alien,” the practice of proxy baptism, and the enormous amounts of money the Mormon church spent attempting to deny marriage equality to gay and lesbian Americans. The billboard also pokes fun at the notorious Mormon “magic underwear.”
http://www.examiner.com/article/american-atheists-target-politics-with-new-billboards
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Atheist group unveils DNC billboards bashing ‘space alien’ Mormonism, ‘useless savior’ Christianity
August 13, 2012
Daily Caller
The billboards, which attack Mormonism and Christianity, will appear in Charlotte, N.C., as part of a campaign the group says “exposes the foolishness of religion in the political landscape.”
An attempt to have the billboards also appear in Tampa, Fla., for the Republican National Convention in August fizzled, American Atheists says, because companies in that city “refused to display the billboard focusing on Mormonism.” Mitt Romney is the first Mormon to secure a major party’s presidential nomination.
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Atheist Group Plans Billboard Attack on Mormonism, Christianity at DNC
August 13, 2012
NewsMax
Efforts to have similar billboards in Tampa, Fla., during the Republican National Convention this month failed, the group said, because companies there “refused to display the billboard focusing on Mormonism,” The Daily Caller reports.
Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, who is expected to secure the GOP presidential nomination, is Mormon.
http://www.newsmax.com/US/dnc-charlotte-atheist-billboards/2012/08/13/id/448428
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Atheist Billboards Go Up for Democratic Convention
August 13, 2012
Newser
Mormonism: “God is a Space Alien, Baptizes Dead People, Big Money, Big Bigotry.” Accompanied by a picture of a guy in, presumably, special Mormon underwear.
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Atheist Billboards Target Obama and Romney at Democratic National Convention
August 13, 2012
Policy Mic
American Atheists rolled out a new billboard campaign to be launched in Charlotte during the week of the Democratic National Convention there, with the billboards targeting the religions of Barack Obama and Mitt Romney. Although Romney’s Mormonism is generally recognized as a branch of Obama’s Protestant Christianity (although not by some evangelicals), American Atheists has unveiled separate billboards, seen here together:
Mormonism–the Scientology of the 1800s–states that god is a physical man about six feet tall who lives near a planet called Kolob; hence the reference to god as a space alien.
The Mormon Church has also taken heat for having baptized dead non-Mormons into Mormonism, including Holocaust victims.
The Church also expects its members to tithe generously, as much as 10% of income, which augurs well for its financing, as evidenced by its extravagant facilities.
Up until 1978, the Mormon Church refused to ordain black ministers. Also, for most of its history, the Church taught that that black people are cursed.
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American Atheists Really Do Hate Your Faith
August 13, 2012
American Center for Law and Justice
If you ever wonder what angry atheists think about you and your faith, then feast your eyes on these billboards they’re planning to put up in Charlotte during the Democratic National Convention. By directly slamming “Mormonism” and “Christianity” in the most inflammatory terms possible, atheists aren’t trying to persuade – they’re trying to shame.
http://aclj.org/american-heritage/american-atheists-hate-your-faith
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Atheist Group Launches Billboard Campaign at Democratic Convention
August 13, 2012
Comedy Central
But really, a billboard campaign that tries to actively convert people without offering any argument, except a crude critique of Christian and Mormon beliefs that aren’t central to theism? Can’t see how this fails. Checkmate, Christians.
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“Book of Mormon” launch enhances Denver Center’s national reputation
August 13, 2012
Denver Post (Colorado)
And the pair readily admit that, although they have deep roots in Colorado, that wasn’t the guiding reason that the unlikeliest Broadway hit in years, “The Book of Mormon,” is launching its first national tour in Denver on Tuesday night.
Famous for the cable comedy “South Park,” the pair co-wrote with Robert Lopez the irreverent musical about two young Mormons sent on their mission to Uganda.
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‘Book of Mormon’ hottest ticket in town
August 13, 2012
Fox 31 Denver (Colorado)
“The Book of Mormon” opened on Broadway in March of 2011. It is an edgy and provocative story of two young missionaries who are sent to Uganda to share their religion. They quickly find out they are in over their heads.
http://kdvr.com/2012/08/13/book-of-mormon-hottest-ticket-in-town/
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New signage points to significant Mormon Cemetery
August 13, 2012
Journal Express (Iowa)
New signs are finally making it easier for travelers to find Tharp Cemetery, an important Mormon landmark near Seymour. Tharp Cemetery is known for being the location and inspiration for the writing the hymn “Oh Come All Ye Saints” by William Wines Phelps. Until recently, this important location was difficult for travelers to locate in remote Wayne County.
The signage came about after Historic Hills Scenic Byway Coordinator Katy Anderson met with Iowa Mormon Trail Association. “I was sharing with the group that Pathfinders RC&D received a federal grant to research and document points of interest along the Iowa Mormon Trail,” reports Anderson. “We started talking about Tharp Cemetery because a potential donor in Utah said it was critical to have Tharp Cemetery marked before they would consider making a financial donation.” By the end of the meeting, Anderson had funds and staff committed to buy and install the signs. The signs were installed in July.
http://journalexpress.net/cnhi/x1555260702/New-signage-points-to-significant-Mormon-Cemetery
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Helping Hands improve fields
August 13, 2012
The Sparta Independent (New Jersey)
Volunteers from the Sparta Ward of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, following the direction of Sparta Township Mayor Jerry Murphy, spent their Saturday morning, July 21 spreading mulch at the Whitelake Road Sports Fields
The 2012 Mormon Helping Hands Day of Service project began with an opening ceremony at the sports field attended by Mayor Murphy and the Mormon Helping Hands volunteers. Dustin Townsend, acting bishop of the local Latter-day Saint congregation, welcomed the mayor and thanked him for his support. “Sparta Township Park Supervisor Jerry Younkers the Town Clerk Mary Coe were also instrumental in helping us make this project a successful contribution to the Sparta township community,” said Jill Thompson, the church’s project organizer.
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Is the President America’s Pastor in Chief?
August 13, 2012
Christianity Today
With a Mormon challenging President Obama, a Protestant, several Christian leaders have urged voters to consider credentials instead of creed. Franklin Graham spoke for many when he told ABC News: “Listen, we’re not voting for the ‘pastor in chief’ of the Unites States. We’re voting for the President. We’re looking for the person that is the most qualified, a person that shares common values, a person that loves the country, a person who can lead this nation out of the economic mess that we’ve gotten ourselves in, and that’s I thinkthe main thing for most people today.”
Romney, a former Mormon bishop, has been emphatic in response to questions posed about particulars of his religious beliefs: “I’m not running for pastor in chief. I’m running for commander in chief.”
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Pastor: Christians Knowingly Sin with Mormon Mitt Romney — Scripture Teaches Ron Paul for President
August 13, 2012
Christian News Wire
Pastor Steven Andrew teaches God’s plans from the Holy Bible. He wants Americans to be blessed by God, not judged for sin. He says, “God calls the USA to have a Christian government. That is why Christians must call for Christian front runner Ron Paul to be President. Christians knowingly sin by helping Mormon Mitt Romney and Barack Obama who oppose God. Disobeying God means Americans suffer (Deuteronomy 28:15-63).” Full article.
The pastor is president of USA Christian Ministries and author of “Making a Strong Christian Nation”, which explains God’s plan to bless the USA from Scripture and our Founding Fathers.
He believes Christians miss the basics. “The First Commandment is to love God, not to get rid of Obama with a Mormon who blasphemes Jesus. Can a Christian vote for a Mormon? No. Romney thinks Jesus is a created being-the spirit brother of Lucifer. That is evil. Galatians 1:9 teaches Romney is ‘accursed’,” he says.
http://www.christiannewswire.com/news/1354520380.html
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Distinguished professor of 19th century literature, religion to give annual Arrington lecture
August 13, 2012
Herald Journal (Utah)
A noted professor of literature and religion will visit Logan next month to give the 18th annual Leonard J. Arrington Mormon History Lecture.
Terryl Givens, the James A. Bostwick chair of English and professor at the University of Richmond in Richmond, Va., will present “The Prophecy of Enoch as Restoration Blueprint” at 7 p.m. Sept. 20 at the Logan LDS Tabernacle.
The lecture is free and open to all.
http://news.hjnews.com/news/article_c18b072e-e4f6-11e1-bf79-0019bb2963f4.html
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The LDS Gospel according to Sen. Orrin Hatch
August 13, 2012
Standard Examiner (Utah)
The title of this blog may perhaps be a bit flip. It’s a book-sized testimony of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints by one of its more prominent members, Utah’s senior-citizen senator, Sen. Orrin Hatch. Published by a small bookseller, Cedar Fort Publishing, Hatch acknowledges that it’s a “short primer” designed for investigators, new converts, missionaries, young people and persons interested in learning about his faith’s history.
http://blogs.standard.net/the-political-surf/2012/08/13/the-lds-gospel-according-to-sen-orrin-hatch/
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Adelson’s Ethics
August 13, 2012
The Jewish Daily Forward
“The source of Adelson’s huge campaign contributions would appear to create a conflict with Romney’s Mormon convictions,” Edsall wrote. “The official website of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints states: ‘The Church opposes gambling in any form, including government-sponsored lotteries.’”
The reasons for such opposition are clearly laid out in an unofficial Mormon website that Edsall quotes: Gambling “undermines the value of work and motivates one to think that they can get something for nothing.” It is considered by Mormons to be a destructive, addictive behavior that inevitably “leads one away from righteousness and into the hands of Satan.”
http://forward.com/articles/160867/adelsons-ethics/
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How (George) Romney Championed Civil Rights and Challenged His Church
August 13, 2012
The Atlantic
In 1964, the year King won the Nobel Peace Prize, George Romney was the most powerful Mormon in American politics and was gearing up for a presidential run in 1968. The LDS hierarchy took note and worried about his positions on civil rights. Delbert L. Stapley, a high-ranking member of the LDS (who was born the year the Supreme Court ruled that segregation was constitutional and died the year the LDS lifted its ban on African Americans in the priesthood), wrote to Romney deeply troubled. “After listening to your talk on Civil Rights, I am very much concerned. Several others have expressed the same concern to me.” The letter was “personal” and not an “official Church position” but it still came on letterhead that read, “The Council of the Twelve.”
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Utah Democratic Gubernatorial Candidate Rejects Party Platform Support Of Marriage Equality
August 13, 2012
Instinct Magazine
Democratic Utah gubernatorial candidate Peter Cooke has rejected the party’s platform stance in support of marriage equality.
In alignment with what he calls “Utah values,” Cooke has spoken out against same-sex marriage, civil unions, and abortions.
Cooke, a Mormon, says, “To me gay marriage is part of my religious belief and I support that and I respect other religious beliefs and I support and love those who are in the gay community. I think what needs to be done in Utah is for us to all live together, be compassionate. That’s what the Democratic Party is showing.”
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Presidents and their Faith
August 13, 2012
Ground Report
We watch with great interest as a Mormon candidate vies for acceptance and many wonder what exactly Mormonism is, how it differs from mainstream American Christianity, and how it may influence important decisions and policies.
http://www.groundreport.com/Business/Presidents-and-their-Faith_1/2947561
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Houses Of Worship Accept Plastic, Too
August 13, 2012
Huffington Post
For anyone who spends time pondering the cost of keeping the lights on and the staff paid at their houses of worship, the Mormon tithing slip has a sort of utilitarian beauty.
Worshipers pick one up at their local chapel, fill it out and hand over their money to a lay leader (having annotated the amounts paid by check, currency or coins, per the instructions on the slip). No annual bill, no passing of the plate. Keep the canary-colored carbon copy for your records.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/08/13/houses-of-worship-accept-_n_1772218.html
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Catholics for Romney surely now has lift-off, with the announcement as his vice-presidential candidate of a faithful and pugnaciously pro-life Catholic
August 13, 2012
Catholic Herald (United Kingdom)
The choice of Representative Ryan is also, incidentally, a neat way of sidelining the issue of Romney’s Mormonism. Personally, I find Mormonism a creepy religion, and can’t imagine why anyone would believe it. But then, that’s what lots of people think about Catholicism. Cardinal Dolan had already dealt with the issue, when he said during a meeting of the Jewish Anti-Defamation League a couple of months ago that Catholics wouldn’t have a problem voting for a Mormon in the White House; and nobody seems to have questioned that since he said it. The simple fact is that Catholics need someone to vote for who rejects the attack on religious independence implicit in the Obamacare legislation. Romney does; end of problem.
Many evangelicals still have problems with Romney’s Mormonism. But even they, it seems, are beginning to see they have nowhere else to go. As Richard Land, president of the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention, puts it: “One should never underestimate President Obama’s unique ability to rally people behind his opponent. Whatever lingering doubts some evangelicals may have about Romney, or discomfort about his Mormon faith, they pale compared with their fears of a second Obama administration”.
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Dump Romney: ”Paul Ryan can’t save doomed GOP Ticket”
August 13, 2012
MD Newswire
But, the worst is ahead: If Romney leads the GOP ticket, the “DUMP ROMNEY” texts say, voters in the all-important swing states will likely reject him as they learn the content of Mormon dogma. Citing a June Gallup poll that indicates 18% of Americans won’t vote for a Mormon, the book says, “No mere adherent, Romney presided as the LDS equivalent of Boston’s Cardinal Law. In 2008, Obama had his Jeremiah Wright problem; in 2012, Mormon Bishop Romney IS Jeremiah Wright.” Excerpts:
- “Few Tampa delegates have had any disclosure on the racially-toxic [Book of Mormon] texts to which Willard M. Romney is tied – and which he has yet to repudiate; same with the anti-Semitic writings.” These “will seem so hateful … that we’ll all look like bigots and fools if we make him our 2012 nominee.”
- “Can there be any real doubt that the fascinating metaphysics of Mitt’s Mormonism – which belligerently declares all other faiths to be “ABOMINATIONS” – will soon find wide distribution in Bible Belt areas of FL, VA, IA and MO?”
http://www.mmdnewswire.com/dump-romney-paul-ryan-gop-ticket-116098.html
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Ryan is the wrong pick
August 13, 2012
The Hill
Romney is now the new official agent of East Coast Conservatism — “the establishment.” He will do what they say and he will fall in line. He will be a Mormon George W. Bush and that now suggests his primary initiative all along: to become president to legitimize Mormonism in the hearts and minds of the republic, as Jack Kennedy did for Irish Catholics. In our time, no one should care.
http://thehill.com/blogs/pundits-blog/presidential-campaign/243339-ryan-is-the-wrong-pick-
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