You know the old saying:”In politics, anything can happen. And it usually does!”

In perhaps the most stunning development in the history of religion and politics, Mitt Romney announced yesterday that he has converted to the Southern Baptist faith. The announcement came in a front page editorial in World Magazine, written by Romney himself.

Romney is pictured above, standing on his pier by Lake Winnipesaukee, New Hampshire, just prior to his baptismal dive there.

Romney spokesman Sloof Lirpa, has achieved some notoriety himself as the former Lithuanian diplomat who became a U.S. citizen after 5 years as chief of staff to that country’s president, Ekoj Asti. Lirpa did not respond to press inquiries, other than to say Romney would be preaching a sermon this Sunday at the First Baptist Church in Unctuous, Arkansas, where former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee once served as pastor. “It will be a revised version of the Governor’s ‘Faith in America’ speech,” Asti said, referring to Romney’s December 2007 address at the Bush Presidential Library in College Station, Texas.

In a departure from Romney’s December speech, which used the term “Mormon” only once, Lirpa promised that Romney’s revised speech would use the word “Baptist” repeatedly, “at least a dozen times.”

“The Governor is definitely a man who learns from his experiences,” Lirpa said.

Romney will be detailing this detour in his faith journey in a sequel to his book, “Turnaround,” tentatively titled “An Even Bigger Turnaround.”

Asked to comment on Romney’s switch, former presidential candidate Mike Huckabee said in a press conference that he welcomed Romney into the Baptist fold, but also noted that as a former pastor in that faith, he still wanted an explanation for Romney’s long-held belief, while still a Mormon, that Jesus and Satan are brothers.

Pressed for details on what he is looking for in Romney’s upcoming speech, Huckabee also said he hoped Romney would “apologize for all those terrible things he said about me in Iowa.”

Then, as the press conference appeared to be breaking up, Huckabee called reporters back and said, “You know, now would be a good time for Mitt Romney to apologize for a number of things.”

“I think he owes a lot of us an apology,” said Huckabee. “For having so much money, for example.”

“And for those doggone good-lucking and accomplished sons, and not one of them morbidly obese,” he added, and “for that annoyingly beautiful wife and his full head of hair, and for generally making me feel so small and inadequate.”

Huckabee concluded by noting that he plays the bass guitar, and Romney does not.

Later, Huckabee spokesman Joel Belz said Huckabee had “misspoken,” but that “whatever else might be said about Mike Huckabee, he never belonged to a church full of liars.”

The full details of the story are on the official Romney web site.
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Posted in Religious Bigotry, Uncategorized, Understanding Religion | 1 Comment » |  Print this post |  Email This Post

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