A Mormon (Mitt Romney) in the White House: Would It Be That Bad?

I met Mitt Romney, the current favorite in the Republican primary, in Salt Lake City, in 2002, while reporting on the preparations for the Olympic Games. I remember a man who was quite sure of himself, not very cordial, efficient, but without anything especially interesting to say.

He had put the Winter Olympic Games, which were to take place a few weeks later around the Utah capital, back on track. As a specialist on companies in difficulty, Romney was highly recommended for the job at a time when a dreadful scandal was corrupting the organization of the games.

At the time in Salt Lake City, nobody wondered about Romney’s religion. That would be expected: He’s a Mormon, like half of the inhabitants of the city.

Today, as he prepares to run against Barack Obama (a member of the United Church of Christ), some Republicans are shaking their heads in disapproval. Mormons aren’t actually considered to be “true” Christians by half of the American population (according to a survey) since it is such a strange religion. The idea that a possible American president could believe that Christ appeared in America after his death (and Resurrection) and that he’ll make his return in Missouri is enough to make anyone snicker. However, is this religion more absurd than any other?

1

With Mormons, How Many Religious Divisions Are There?

There are 14 million Mormons, i.e., members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in the world, including 6 million in the United States, which in fact makes them one of the biggest religious minorities in the country:

Protestant: 51.3 percent

Catholic: 23.9 percent

No religion: 16.1 percent

Mormon: 1.7 percent

Jewish: 1.7 percent

Buddhist: 0.7 percent

Muslim: 0.6 percent

A living prophet in Salt Lake City (currently Thomas S. Monson) leads the church. They are mostly conservative. They live primarily in Utah, where members of the Church settled in the 19th century. They feel rejected by other religions: according to a Pew survey, 68 percent of Mormons believe that their fellow citizens to do not view them as full-fledged members of American society.

In France, there are only 36,000 Mormons.

2

What do Mormons Believe in?

Mormons believe that Christian churches are mistaken. They intend to restore the true message of Christ.

Joseph Smith, founder of the church, was born in 1805. The son of farmers, he lived in the State of New York.

At the age of 15, in a forest where the teenager had gone to pray, God the father and Jesus Christ appeared to him in a well of light. God confided in him that other Churches were completely mistaken in their beliefs.

Three years later, the angel Moroni, also surrounded by a lot of light, visits Joseph Smith in his room. He reveals where to find a hidden book, written on gold plates, which contains the story of an old American Christian civilization.

Joseph Smith sets off in search of the book. Four years later, in 1827, he finally discovers it along with some other sacred objects in a stone chest, on a hillside not far from his native farm.

The book is written in an unknown language, “Reformed Egyptian.” He translated it into English.

Don’t bother looking for the original gold plates: a celestial messenger took them after the translation.

In 1830, the “Book of Mormon” is published. It tells the history of an American civilization founded around 600 B.C. by a tribe that had traveled from Jerusalem by boat. The story ends in the year 420 A.D. (no archaeologist, it should be noted, has ever found a trace of this so-called lost civilization). It should also be noted that three days after his resurrection, Jesus Christ visited one of the two peoples from this civilization, the “Nephites.”

The “Book of Mormon” supplements the Bible (one of the holy books of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints). There’s one in the drawers of every hotel room in Utah (but not on gold plates).

Let’s come back to Joseph Smith. Once his book is published, he begins the life of a prophet: he marries his first wife (he’ll marry 22 others) and founds his church.

Besides the women, his life isn’t fun and games every day. The Mormons are persecuted. They flee towards Ohio (where they build their first temple), then Missouri (where they are massacred) then Illinois (where Joseph Smith is killed at the age of 39 by a mob of angry men).

The church falls apart, but one of Joseph Smith’s disciples, Brigham Young, manages to unite the bulk of the troops in Salt Lake City in 1847, where the church finally settles.

According to Mormons, Jesus Christ should reappear in Jackson County, Missouri.

3

What Distinguishes Mormons from Others?

If Mitt Romney is a good Mormon (and he must be it since he was a prelate in Boston, the equivalent of bishop in the Catholic church), he will have to comply with certain rules specific to the church.

Moral Code

Contrary to popular belief, the Mormon church has rejected polygamy since 1889. It was the standard before, but a federal prohibition complicated things. Mitt Romney’s polygamous grandfather had to flee the United States with his family and he settled in Mexico. He came back in 1912.

The Church requires chastity before marriage, and fidelity during. Sexual relations between two unmarried people is seen as “morally condemnable” by 79 percent of Mormons, according to a Pew survey. Divorce, on the other hand, is not a problem for most.

The Sabbath

Sunday is to be a day of rest as in other Christian religions.

Dietary Restrictions

Mormons avoid tobacco, alcohol, coffee, tea and drugs.

Missionary Work

Mormons must dedicate at least two years of their lives to the Church, to convert new members, often abroad. Mitt Romney fulfilled his duty when he was young at the end of the Sixties in France, mainly in Bordeaux. During this time he was in a serious car accident.

Tithing

A Mormon pays 10 percent of his income to the Church. The president of the United States earns more than 400,000 dollars a year.

4

Is Mormonism a Sect?

In the United States, the concept of “sect” does not exist; there is complete religious freedom. In France, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is not considered a sect. According to the Interministerial Mission of Vigilance and Combat Against Sectarian Aberrations, it is “a religious group which poses no problems in France.”

Mormons are completely integrated into American society. They have a very good business reputation. But life isn’t always easy in Salt Lake City.

I remember a long discussion with a young man in a “club” (this is what they call local private bars). He was complaining about the “oppressive” character of his religion, and had decided to split with it. He had told me that when he was a child in the scouts, he was forbidden to listen to a song by the Pet Shop Boys simply because its title was “It’s a Sin.”

5

Does Mitt Romney Really Believe that Jesus Will Return to Missouri?

In September 2007, The Times of London questioned Mitt Romney, a candidate in primary election of that time: “Just so everything is clear, do you believe that Jesus Christ has already come to the United States and that he’ll return to Missouri?”*

His response: “I will not separate from my faith. I accept the doctrines of my church and will do my best to respect them.”*

The question was already there: could evangelical Republicans, who are convinced that Jesus will reappear on Mount of Olives in Jerusalem, entrust their destiny to a man persuaded that Jesus would make his “second coming” in Missouri?

*Editor’s Note: This quote, while accurately translated, could not be verified.