Not long ago, the Southern Baptists held a convention in Salt Lake City and declared that members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints were not "Christian". Yet, Mormons and Baptists stand together at the polls.
I served a mission in Oregon, and encountered a lot of anti-Mormon criticism from members of the Evangelical faith. Still, I voted for President Bush; an Evangelical. In fact, of all the States in the Union, President Bush enjoys his highest approval numbers in Utah!
Members of the LDS faith take a whipping from certain members of the Republican party, yet they stay on board. Why is that?
I believe that it is because of the magnanimity posessed by the Latter-day Saints, that they haven't abandoned the Republican party.
And, of course, LDS members understand that they have brought some of the persecution upon themselves.
It doesn't surprise Mormons that some Pastors don't like the fact that the Holy Ghost backs up the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon; which in turn affects the paycheck of the Pastor.
Latter-day Saints are not shocked that when Texas got a fourth Temple, Southern Baptists were not thrilled by the news.
The clergy of the competing sects feel threatened by the impressive growth of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The LDS people understand this fact, and have had a couple of centuries to get used to the name calling, propaganda, and lies that are perpetuated by the enemies of Mormonism.
I have heard many times that if you want to know why things are the way they are, to just "follow the money". So, why are Mormons accused of not being Christian? When they:
1) believe in Jesus Christ
2) read the Holy Bible
3) perform acts of Christian service
4) pray in the name of Jesus Christ
5) have the name of Jesus Christ in the name of the Church
6) display pictures of Christ in their Temples
7) sing many "Christian" hymns in their congregations
8) vote like other Christians
Why? Let's just examine who is accusing the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints of not being a Christian religion; The PAID CLERGY of other "Christian" congregations. Just follow the money and you will find out why the charge is being laid against the LDS people.
The paid clergy will claim that LDS people are not Christian because they do not follow the Nicene Creed. But that is hardly a reason to say someone is not Christian. Jesus Christ himself had never heard of the Nicene Creed. Why not just say that LDS are not "Niceners". I am sure that LDS people would be just fine with that.
But if you think about it, the paid clergy of other denominations have reason to be petty in their definitions of who is and who isn't a "Christian"...because it affects their bottom line. They would probably call Mormons cannibals if they thought they could be taken seriously. Who knows, maybe that's next!
Talk to one of your LDS colleagues and you will find out that your friend is as Christian as you are!
So, I hope to have demonstrated why the LDS people haven't left the Republican party. But that still doesn't answer the central question: Why do LDS members vote Republican in the first place?
While there may be several reasons for LDS folks to vote Republican, I would like to point out just one reason: The Book of Mormon.
No, the Book of Mormon does not talk about abortion. And the Book doesn't get into stem cell research. But, it does mention the burden of heavy taxes. And more importantly, it speaks volumes about the secret terror organizations that we face today.
The Book of Mormon refers to these organizations as "secret combinations". Over and over, the BOM demonstrates that entire civilizations have been brought down because of these secret terror groups.
Those who read the Book of Mormon understand that: "...whoso buildeth it up (secret combinations) seeketh to overthrow the freedom of all lands, nations, and countries; and it bringeth to pass the destruction of all people, for it is built up by the devil..."(ETHER 8: 25)
Rudy Giuliani (not a member of the LDS faith) had something similar to say:
They hate us, not because of anything bad we've done. This has nothing to do with any aggression on the part of the United States of America. It has nothing to do with anything America is taking from anyone. It has nothing to do with Israel and Palestine. They hate us for the freedoms that we have and the freedoms that we want to share with the world, because the freedoms that we have and the freedoms that we want to share with the world are in conflict with their perverted interpretation of their religion, their maniacal, violent, and perverted interpretation of their religion in which they train their young people to be suicide bombers, and they train them to hate you and despise you, and they train them to hate your religion, and to not allow you to have religion of your own, or anyone else. They hate us for the reasons that are the best about us, because we have freedom of religion, because we have freedom for women, because women are allowed to participate in society, because we have elections, because we have a free economy. Well, we're not giving that up, and you're not going to come and take it from us.
President Hinckley (President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) had this to say:
Those of us who are American citizens stand solidly with the president of our nation. The terrible forces of evil must be confronted and held accountable for their actions. This is not a matter of Christian against Muslim. I am pleased that food is being dropped to the hungry people of a targeted nation. We value our Muslim neighbors across the world and hope that those who live by the tenets of their faith will not suffer. I ask particularly that our own people do not become a party in any way to the persecution of the innocent. Rather, let us be friendly and helpful, protective and supportive. It is the terrorist organizations that must be ferreted out and brought down.
We of this Church know something of such groups. The Book of Mormon speaks of the Gadianton robbers, a vicious, oath-bound, and secret organization bent on evil and destruction. In their day they did all in their power, by whatever means available, to bring down the Church, to woo the people with sophistry, and to take control of the society. We see the same thing in the present situation.
We are people of peace. We are followers of the Christ who was and is the Prince of Peace. But there are times when we must stand up for right and decency, for freedom and civilization, just as Moroni rallied his people in his day to the defense of their wives, their children, and the cause of liberty. (link: The times in which we live, by President Hinckley)By the way, not all members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints vote Republican. The Church itself expresses political neutrality. But those who read the Book of Mormon cannot escape the responsibility to vote for those leaders who will put down secret terror organizations. If members of the Democratic party will embrace the war on terror, I am sure that they will enjoy more votes from the LDS people...as long as it doesn't bother them that their votes don't come from "Niceners".
