Today’s Reading List – August 15, 2007
He's Blows Them Away At Ames, BUT…
Bigger than that is the issue of Mr Romney's Mormon faith, which many bible belt evangelicals still view as a cult outside the Christian family.
Presidential candidate Mitt Romney won a key vote in his race to the White House. But questions about his former stance on abortion, and even his religion, continue to dog him. [emphasis added]
Nevertheless, Gov. Romney emerged the recent and overwhelming winner in America's first Republican presidential test, the non-binding Iowa straw poll. That should give him a giant political head of steam.
Romney's challenge is that one out of three Americans gives Mormonism unfavorable marks, that's worse than any other religion.
Pundits everywhere – Give me a break! He won, He won big, he met or beat expectations, precisely what role did his faith play in harming that win? I think maybe, just maybe, the actual electorate is trying to tell you something.
Lowell: What? Are you suggesting that pundits are not in touch with the views of the electorate? 
Piling On…
We weren't the only one that did not like the Cohen column we commented on yesterday. Over at EFM, Charles Mitchell had some interesting things to say.
Dueling Pastors
My Lutheran Pastor friend Mark Daniels draws on the example of Billy Graham and discusses the role of a pastor in politics.
Mark concludes that pastors should be relatively silent about politics because it compromises their real calling to the preach the gospel. I agree. This is especially important in America, where pastors are representatives of their particular denomination/church. Pastors are, by definition, sectarian and have a duty to uphold their particular sect. As we have said repeatedly, America is a religious nation, but also a non-sectarian one.
In contrast, Al Mohler upholds an understanding of heresy. He says:
Christianity is a doctrinal religion. As Professor Brown observed: "For many religions, the cardinal test is right conduct or right observance; for Christianity it is right faith. Christianity is full of specific doctrines."
I have to get a bit theological about this – "Reformed, Protestant Christianity" is doctrinal; greater Christianity, even exclusive of sects on the edge like Mormonism, is not so defined. (This definition, as Romney himself pointed out, excludes even Roman Catholics – a very large chunk of the worshippers of Jesus in the country and the world. It would even exclude many of the larger independent evangelical mega-churches. ) But more importantly, doctrine is decidely sectarian. When people say American is a "christian" nation most of them certainly do not mean it in the sense that Mohler here defines Christianity.
Here Mohler is defending a sectarian understanding, one that he attempts, in his stances on voting for Romney, to impose on the nation. This violates both the American spirit of public non-sectarian faith and the kinds of principles that Mark Daniels discusses which defend his religious mission as much as America. Mohler would be well advised to heed Daniels advice and keep his opinions on these matters out of the political discussion.
Finally…
Ann Romney profiled. At least they saved The Question for last.
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