Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Evangelical

Why This Conservative Evangelical Counter-Cult Expert Will Vote for Romney

May 13, 2012 by Douglas Groothuis

Continued from Page 1

Fourth, Romney is far preferable to the alternative.There are, to be sure, significant weaknesses in Candidate Romney. He is 1) not a principled conservative, with a very mixed track record, 2) not particularly charismatic or eloquent, and 3) a Mormon.

I have been involved in counter-cult apologetics and evangelism for thirty-five years. Mormonism is a deviation from Christian orthodoxy on titanic theological issues such as the nature of God (or gods, in the case of Mormonism), the identity of Christ, and salvation, to name a few crucial issues. Yes, there has been some movement back to the Bible among some Mormons in the last twenty years, and some Mormons may be Christians in spite of what their church officially teaches. However, Mormonism as Mormonism is heretical. No one should be a Mormon. It is "another gospel" (see Gal. 1:6-11). I learned this in 1977, when, as a young Christian, I read Walter Martin's modern classic, Kingdom of the Cults. Nothing since has convinced me to the contrary.

If Romney is elected president, it would give Mormonism a platform it has never enjoyed before. That is bad, very bad. However, the president is neither Theologian-in-Chief nor Pastor-in-Chief. He is Commander-in-Chief. Moreover, Mormons have every right the Constitution affords our citizens, and conservative Christians can and should be co-belligerents with Mormons (and others) in political causes. Ecumenism religiously is another matter entirely.

But more soberly, the alternative to Romney is, truly, the end of America as it was founded and as we know it. The alternative to Romney is a state modeled after European democratic socialism: massive taxation, cradle-to-grave statist "security," and a more secularized culture. This is not the America envisioned by our founders. This is not the city set on a hill.

In Romney's favor, he has been a very decent man, who has given much of his income to charity. He is an accomplished businessman who (unlike Obama) knows how to solve problems. For example, in 1999, he volunteered to save the 2002 Olympics in Salt Lake City. He did what he intended to do. He understands and respects the vital role of business to create jobs and create new products, unlike Obama, whose idea of job creation is endless "stimulus packages," laden with pork and barren of economic hope.

Obama, while not a Mormon, has no credible Christian testimony. Consider his twenty-year membership in Rev. Jeremiah Wright's racist, ultra-liberal, Nation-of-Islam-supporting church. Ponder his stance on abortion and same-sex marriage. He was one of only a few politicians not to oppose partial-birth abortions, which are cases of infanticide, the murder of an infant. (See David Freddoso's The Case Against Barak Obama for the documentation.) He took this outrageous stand because he was afraid it would chip away at Roe v. Wade, which he supports completely. Obama is far more sympathetic to Islam than he is to Christianity. I did not say that Obama was a Muslim, but that he is deferent to Islam and seems oblivious (or indifferent) to the dangers of Sharia law (see Robert Spencer's Stealth Jihad). This is urgent, since Sharia law is already being implemented on American soil.

Under another four years of Obama, we would experience more "historic" changes, such as:

1) The federal takeover of health care, leading to rationing, inefficiency, and a loss of personal freedom. You will be paying for abortions. Some would rather go to jail than submit to this. I imagine that Catholic priests would lead the way.

2) A growing and perhaps insurmountable debt, mortgaging our future and making us like the disaster that is Greece.

3) Further evisceration of our military and cut-backs in military benefits.

4) The continued deconstruction of the Constitution, thus removing us from the Rule of Law and putting us under the Rule of Man: One man, the man who would be King: Barack Obama.

For these reasons and many more, I, Douglas Richard Groothuis, will vote for, support, and pray that Mitt Romney becomes the next President of these United States. I hope you will join me. So much is at stake.

Page: 2 of 2

12/2/2022 9:05:59 PM

Evangelical

Barack Obama

Conservatism

Campaign

Election

Mitt Romney

politics

Christianity

Mormonism

Evangelicalism

more at patheos

The Order We Did Not Make: The World We Received

Dennis Knapp

What Does Yᵊšûʿâ Mean For The Iran War & Trump Accounts?

Martin Thomas Johnson

Does AI Write Better Than Students?

James McGrath

Church Attendance Prevents Suicide and Has Other Benefits

Shawn Paul Wood

About

Patheos Logo Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Subscription Support Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In

Follow Patheos