Last night’s GOP primary debate may have focused half-heartedly on the economy. But the real fight for the heart and soul of the party was less about jobs and more about religion, and it took place outside the television networks at the grass-roots level of party theology. To outsiders (raise your hands) the similarities between evangelical Christians and Mormons look to be overwhelming: Church-centered, family-focused, right-leaning and, well, homophobic. But in fact conservative Christians have been wary of Mormons for decades, thanks to some high-energy efforts to portray the Church of the Latter Day Saints as a sort of Salt Lake Scientology. A lot of the effort can be traced to the early 1980s and a movie and book called The God Makers, both produced by ex-LDS member turned evangelist Ed Decker and Dave Hunt, a Christian minister who has called the Catholic Church the whore of Babylon.
The two portrayed Mormonism as a cult in which “the worthy Mormon can become a god himself in the life hereafter, ruling over his own planet, with a number of goddess wives.” Because clearly, if there is anything worse than sex it’s sex in outer space.
One of the criticisms that Decker makes of Mormonism is that it’s really a lavender cult. “Mormonism was and is a hot bed of homosexuality,” Decker writes in one of his books.
Occasionally, the sneaking suspicion among evangelicals that Decker and Hunt are right makes its way out into the open, as it did with Jeffress. However, at least once, these prejudices played to the benefit of the LGBT community: An anti-gay ballot measure looked well on its way to succeeding in Idaho in 1994 until opponents ran an ad pointing out that the folks making commercials for it also produced The God Makers. The measure lost by 3,000 votes, a narrow margin attributed to distrustful Mormons who feared the Christian right might attempt to outlaw them next. Mormon voters may have hated gays as much as the Christian right, but they certainly didn’t want to end up equally hated.
It only goes to prove that the best thing about the religious right is its ability to defeat its own causes—and perhaps, in the case of Mitt Romney, its own nominees.
Image via Gage Skidmore
tom
We have such a pussy media in this country. Why won’t someone ask Mitt if he plans on being a god ruling his own planet in the afterlife? Ask him about the fact that unil not long ago Mormons pulicly considered people of color less than human, (and privatley still do). If they would report on some of the insane things these people believe, magic underwear, the many Gods they belive in, the idea Jesus and Satan are spirt brothers, the trinity (father, son, holy ghost) are actually 3 seperate gods, christians would have a total fit. The media won’t touch this stuff, ITS HILARIOUS!! Christians would worry alot less about us lol. Of course Mit will cause a 3rd party canidate to run, spit the republican vote and give Obama his second term.
Robert in NYC
All religious denominations are cults, why single out the Mormons? They all have leaders, they all follow the tenets of their denominations and most of them teach that homosexuality is wrong and most of them believe it. If tomorrow, they reversed their anti-gay rhetoric, they’d probably all fall in line. It’s brainwashing and that’s what cults are about, all three of the abrahamic cults especially.
christopher di spirito
Of the GOP pack, Mitt Romney is the strongest.
He’s at least sane and coherent. Something I can’t say about Dr. Marcus Bachmann’s beard, wife Michele, or, TX Gov. Rick “I’m a prophet” Perry, or, Frothy-mix Santorum.
About character, I found it very telling that TX Gov. Rick “I’m a prophet” Perry refuses to denounce Rev. Robert Jeffress’ comment that Mitt Romney’s Mormonism is a “cult.”
My guilty pleasure is still Dr. Marcus Bachmann’s beard, wife Michele. What a fucking wacko. I mean, she actually said Herman Cain’s “9-9-9 tax plan, inverted is “666,” the sign of the Devil. She always delivers the crazy.
Libertarian Larry
@tom: I must say, your ideology is a little too transparent. I’m not a Christian, but I agree that the media should be more intrusive on a candidate’s personal church-goings. Y’know, like how Brocko Bomba sat in Jeremiah Wright’s church for 20 years and never heard any of the racist rhetoric being thrown around—why didn’t anyone challenge him on this? He has stated he has a “personal relationship with Jesus Christ,” and yet the media have never called him out on the truthfulness of this statement. Is he a Jesus freak? Should he be trusted? CAN someone who claims to be religious be trusted? If the answer is no, it should be no to ALL candidates, and not just the ones whose party affiliation you don’t approve of. Because let’s face it: ALL churches and religions are cults.
Edgar
Actually, there are major theological differences between mainline protestant and Catholic Christians and Mormons. So, it’s been this way for ages.
The fact that Right-wing Christians and Mormons are feuding with each other is kind of funny since they were only too happy to work with each other to defeat civil rights for GLBT Americans. I wonder how those Mormons who fought for Prop 8 now feel when they’re persecuted for being different?
Karma? Yep.
That said, it looks like a Romney/Cain or Cain/Romney ticket for the 2012 election. The irony that a Mormon and a black man would be the ticket for the GOP is just hilariously twisted.
the crustybastard
@Edgar: I wonder how those Mormons who fought for Prop 8 now feel when they’re persecuted for being different?
I don’t know, but it sure makes me feel good.
Robert in NYC
Either way, the independent voters are going to be turned off to whomever is running on the GOP ticket. All are mediocre, no substance.
xander
Although the Mormons and Catholics have teamed up to fight against LGB and reproductive rights, the Papists seem to be worried about a Romney presidency — at least per a few articles I’ve scanned. We ‘knew’ that the fundy crowd was anti LDS, seeing them as non-True Believers, but it appears the RCs are in agreement.
Co-sign with above comments that it’s totally fair game for the media to ask questions of candidates on their faith.
Jim Hlavac
“Christians” have been fighting for 2000 years over whom is the better Christian, and who has the “one true faith” — as soon as they took power in Rome in 315, they went all schism, and have been breaking into smaller and smaller subgroups. Why, in the 600s they had to have a big conference to figure out what was actually in the “real Bible” — many books and letters and acts got cut — the “Apocrypha” they’re called; the Coptics of Egypt kept most if, so were apostates, of course. And then there was the Big Schism which pitted Eastern Orthodox versus Catholics in the 1100s. Then came the Hussites & Wycliff in the 1300s, shortly after the Cathars and Lusatians were slaughtered for their brand of Christianity in the 1200s, and of course, the multiple popes at a time during the 1300-1400s, and by the early 1500s along came the Reformation, and the Lutherans and Henry VIII’s divorces for the sanctity of his new religion the Anglicans. And onward to today, when there’s some 1400 denominations all with the “true” word. And the Jews, reform, conservative and orthodox, themselves split between Satmayer and Lubivitcher, and the Muslims, with sufti, sunni, and shi’ite all battling it out — oh my, what a plethora of “true” religions — and all intent on wiping the rest out so that the “true” messiah might come for the remainder. Odd cults, truly, indeed. Right up there with those thinking the Mayans predict the world will end in 2012 for that matter.
Little Kiwi
I’d like to know if Romney believes that those who engage in race-mixing should be beheaded. After all, it’s in his religious texts.
ewe
So this particular Mormon is less offensive than the wacky evangelical. So what. Who cares? They both suck.
Ed Decker
Well done article. I am quoted accurately and fairly.. More so than any of the “media giants” crowd for sure. Romney lives with his hidden agenda and is a danger to us all.
His marching orders come right from the old boys in Salt Lake He he has sworn an oath of obedience to them that is far above any oath of office.
Chapter 12 of my book that you quote in the article is titled. The Mormon Plan for America and the rise of Mitt Romney. I would be happy to send the full chapter to anyone who asks at my email [email protected]
again… well done!
Kylew
How can anyone fail to find it hysterically funny when believers in one fantasy god group start denegrating followers of a different group for being sectish or not following the “true” way? To any sane person, their beliefs are ALL preposterous, and whether they follow Jesus or Joseph Smith, their assertions are all equally moronic.
It’s like John Wayne Gacy deriding Jeffrey Dahmer’s sanity.