Sure It’s Murder, But What About the Environment? Friday, Dec 19 2008

By now, we’ve all heard the news that evangelical Christian mega-pastor Rick Warren will speak and pray at Barack Obama’s inauguration.  At first, I was outraged.  How could a man who calls himself “pro-life” bless a man who was content to let undesired babies die if they should be so lucky as to survive the abortion attempt on their lives?  Warren’s response to this very criticism is that (predictably) while he disagrees with Obama on abortion, he agrees with him on many other issues and social causes.  I suppose it goes without saying that I cannot even begin to contemplate any current issue the moral importance of which could overbalance the atrocity of Obama’s disdain for human dignity – hence my originally-drafted, snarky title to this post.

But for now, I’ve decided to reserve judgment and hold my outrage in abeyance . . . for now.  Back in August, when Warren hosted Senators McCain and Obama at the Saddleback forum, it was billed as a congenial, non-confrontational discussion on faith and other related issues that wouldn’t go into such divisive topics as abortion.  I about blew a gasket when I heard that.  As my wife can attest, I almost ruined that day of our Cocoa Beach vacation, just seething with anger and disgust at Warren.  I was furious that because Warren wouldn’t confront him on that so basic of an issue, many millions of Christians who find guidance in Warren would likewise dismiss abortion as an issue that needn’t be central to their faith, thus diluting the strength of one of the strongest pro-life coalitions in the country.

Yet, Warren shocked me, and perhaps shocked many others, when he did in fact bring up abortion.  Although I suppose his posturing of the question – e.g., “I know this is a very complex issue . . . ” – left a lot to be desired in terms of articulating a firm stance, I was pleased that he at least had the guts to broach the issue.  I wondered if he actually broke protocol or broke the agreed upon terms of the forum by asking the question.  I mean, the news stations must have gotten the information from somewhere that there would be no talk of abortion.  In other words, Warren surprised me, and perhaps he surprised Obama, too.

So, for now, I’m going to give Warren the benefit of the doubt.  I guess I’m hoping he’ll surprise us all by doing something crazy – something like laying hands on Obama and asking God to use him to protect the defenseless, including the defenseless unborn.  Wow, what a powerful statement that would be to the watching country.  Will Warren actually do something like that?  Probably not.  But I can at least hope so; I suppose I can wait until he actually commits the crime before I hold him guilty in the court of my estimation.  Let’s wait and see.

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What Will the Mormons Do Now? Tuesday, Dec 16 2008

Instrumental in the success of California’s Proposition 8 (thus overturning gay marriage in California) was the Mormon Church.  The Mormon Church launched an aggressive and well-organized campaign to effect Prop. 8’s passage, urging Mormons across the country to contribute money.  As a result, the Mormon Church was able to infuse more than $20 million into the Yes-on-8 campaign.  And, as Barack Obama’s election confirms, an enormous war chest is often the lifeblood of a successful campaign (although, the large black turnout for Obama also played a major, albeit unexpected, role in the success of Prop. 8, as black voters voted overwhelmingly in favor of restricting marriage to the traditional definition).

Not surprisingly, the Mormon Church is now facing a backlash for its successful efforts.

Protesters have massed outside Mormon temples nationwide. For every donation to a fund to overturn Proposition 8, a postcard is sent to the president of the Mormon Church. Supporters of gay marriage have proposed a boycott of Utah businesses, and someone burned a Book of Mormon outside a temple near Denver.

So, here’s the question du jour: What will the Mormons do now?  As a result of a history of persecution and a general consensus among Christian denominations that Mormonism does not qualify as a “Christian” religion, the Mormon Church seems to define itself primarily in terms of persecution today.  For years, it has steadfastly maintained an aggressive PR campaign to brand itself as a wholesome, family-oriented, traditional Christian religion.  Outside of mainstream Protestant denominations, the Mormon Church has also marketed itself to the non-religious through extensive social outreach programs, such as an admirable relief effort following Hurricane Katrina.

Thus, the Mormon Church has made, and continues to make, a concerted effort to make itself palatable and attractive to non-Mormons.  What the Mormon Church has generally not done, in my opinion, is to take strong positions on social issues (outside of the rules promulgated for its own members), which inevitably causes friction with those who hold opposing positions on such issues.   For instance, although I’ve seen it from evangelical Christians, I’ve never seen an abstinence-only campaign waged by the Mormon Church.

But the Proposition 8 effort marks a departure from this pattern of behavior, and, frankly, I was rather surprised to see it.  The Mormon Church took on the contentious issue of gay marriage and pushed for the abolition thereof.  The result?  A burning rage and vitriol at the Mormons the likes of which I thought were reserved for evangelical Christians and oil companies.  This backlash has caused some Mormons to question whether it was one huge mistake to get involved in Proposition 8 in the first place.  I suppose the thinking goes:  Here, we had been making such progress in making our religion acceptable to non-Mormons, so why on earth would we want to squander the goodwill we’ve built up by pissing off millions?

I return to the question that is the subject of this post: What will the Mormons do now?  Will they continue to take strong stands on issues they believe are important?  Or will the threat of renewed persecution, which they have fought so hard to be free of, prove too high a price to pay?

Now, this blog is concerned solely with abortion, and therefore my point is not to get into the gay marriage issue at all.  My only reason for discussing it is that, because Mormons are generally and canonically pro-life, I suspect that whatever the strength and future of their anti-gay marriage stance, so also will be the strength and future of their pro-life stance.  That is my concern.

So, perhaps it’s time to change the question.  Mormons: what will you do now?  What is more important to you, standing up for the innocent and defenseless victims of abortion, or making yourselves acceptable to the ones who support the killing?  Here’s hoping against hope the answer is the former.

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Thanks for Your Patience Monday, Dec 15 2008

Dear readers, thank you for your patience in spite of my long period of inactivity.  Although I have been beyond busy with my job, recent comments have reminded me how important it is to continue to speak out against the evils of abortion.  As a result, I will do my best to get back on the wagon and craft posts as frequently as I am able.

Nick

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