June 26, 2011:

Ponderings of a Pilgrim PASTOR

“A Mormon In The White House?”

For most of my life I have been interested in the history of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints or, as they are popularly known, the Mormons. When I was a child, on a trip to upstate New York my parents and I visited places sacred to Mormon history.

The early part of the 19th century was a period of intense religious fervor along the Erie Canal from Albany to Buffalo. When I studied at Colgate Rochester Divinity School, I discovered that more denominations as well as religious sects and cults sprang up there than in any other part of the world with the possible exception of India. Beginning in 1820, Joseph Smith - a pious young man searching for religious truth (according to Mormons) or a religious con-man (according to skeptics) - announced that he had had visitations from a variety of heavenly beings who told him to inaugurate the "true" Christian Church. He was directed to find golden tablets buried in a nearby hill and given golden spectacles to translate them. Though Mormons would disagree, no one but Smith ever saw these things.

When Smith translated these tablets to a scribe while Smith sat behind a screen, the result was the Book of Mormon which purports to tell how ancient Israelites under a prophet name Levi came to this country around 600 B.C. and eventually established a major civilization. Again, according to the Book of Mormon, after his resurrection Jesus appeared to some 2500 of these people and appointed 12 additional apostles to carry out his work. Eventually, through their own corruption, this civilization was destroyed by the Native Americans. Now, according to Mormons, it is time to re-establish this holy people here in this holy land (America). Eventually, the Mormons established their life in Utah and spread around the world.

As far as reasonable scholars are concerned, the Book of Mormon is a work of fiction created by Joseph Smith. Like other con-men he eventually was caught up in the web of his own lies. There is not one shred of archaeological evidence for his fantastic claims. Mormons themselves are decent people of traditional and often ultra-conservative faith and politics.

Now two Mormons are vying for the Republican presidential nomination. Polls show that 20 to 27% of Americans of all political persuasions tell pollsters they would not vote for a Mormon for President. While I personally find Mormonism untrue on historical grounds and unhelpful on religious and theological grounds, I see no reason why a Mormon cannot run for public office, even the Presidency. Judge the candidate on the basis of political principles, not religious faith. That is the American Way or should be.

Love,
Pastor Dave