Romney: I "Serve No One Religion"

GOP Hopeful Also Decries Those Who Would Remove From Public Life "Any Acknowledgment Of God"

(CBS/AP)  Republican Mitt Romney, confronting voters' skepticism about his Mormon faith, declared Thursday that as president he would "serve no one religion, no one group, no one cause," and said calls for him to explain and justify his religious beliefs go against the profound wishes of the nation's founders.

At the same time, he decried those who would remove from public life "any acknowledgment of God," and he said that "during the holiday season, nativity scenes and menorahs should be welcome in our public places."

In a speech less than a month before the first nomination contests, Romney said he shares "moral convictions" with Americans of all faiths, though surveys suggest up to half of likely voters have qualms about electing the first Mormon president. (Read the text of the speech)

"I believe in my Mormon faith and I endeavor to live by it," Romney said. "My faith is the faith of my fathers. I will be true to them and to my beliefs."

Nonetheless, he strove to clarify his personal line between church and state, recalling a similar speech delivered by John F. Kennedy in 1960 as Kennedy sought to become the first Catholic elected president.

"It's important to remember that Romney's aims today are different than those of John F. Kennedy when he delivered his landmark speech on the same topic in 1960," said CBSNews.com senior political analyst Vaughn Ververs. "Kennedy was seeking to reassure voters during a general election that he would separate his Catholic faith from the presidency. Romney needs to reassure evangelical Christians that he shares their values."

"Let me assure you that no authorities of my church, or of any other church for that matter, will ever exert influence on presidential decisions," Romney said at the George Bush Presidential Library and Museum, 90 miles from Kennedy's speaking site in Houston. "Their authority is theirs, within the province of church affairs, and it ends where the affairs of the nation begin."

He added: "If I am fortunate to become your president, I will serve no one religion, no one group, no one cause and no one interest. A president must serve only the common cause of the people of the United States."

Romney's speech lasted about 20 minutes and was interrupted a dozen times by applause from the invited audience. He said the word "Mormon" only once, otherwise referring to "my religion," "my faith" and "my church." Romney opted to make the speech in defiance of his own staff, CBS News correspondent Bill Whitaker reports.

He hoped the speech would allay concerns of Christian conservatives, some of whom have propelled former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee to join him atop the polls in Iowa. Its caucuses kick off presidential voting next month.

Romney stated he is often asked on the trail whether he believes in Jesus Christ.

"I believe that Jesus Christ is the son of God and the savior of mankind," he said. While conceding Mormons have different beliefs about the earthly presence of Jesus Christ, "each religion has its own unique doctrines and history. ... Religious tolerance would be a shallow principle indeed if it were reserved only for faiths with which we agree."

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Read The Text Of Romney's Speech
Romney’s Speech: Heavy On History, Light On Mormonism
Read More About JFK's Speech In 1960

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Illustrating Romney's challenge, one of his own invited guests said he believes Mormons are not Christians.

"I don't think his Mormonism is a deal breaker for most Americans, but only Mitt Romney can close the deal," Richard Land, president of the Southern Baptist Convention's Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, told ABC's "Good Morning America." Asked directly if he thought Mormons were Christians, Land said, "No, I do not."

Huckabee, who was a Southern Baptist preacher before entering politics, said that Romney's religion has no bearing on whether he would make a good president.

[cpaide]

"I had spent upwards of 16 hours a day for over a week studying everything I could find that had been put out by the Church on the subject of the Book of Abraham"
Posted by nggr

I spent 5 minutes reading your ravings, and that''s long enough to conclude that you are a fraud, a no-nothing and an embarrassment to knowledgeable people who wish to debunk the myths put forth by the mormons.

You are a fraud. 100+ hours will allow you to skim--not study--only a small portion of what has been written about the book of abraham. You have never read the book carefully, nor have you seen for yourself copies of the original materials that were used by joe smith in writing the book.

I know, because I spent 4 months studying the book itself and related materials with the mormon scholar Hugh Nibley at brigham young university in provo, utah.

My conclusion: the "pictures" or facsimiles fit the text beautifully. It is a wonderful, insightful presentation of the creation. There is nothing "wrong" with the book of abraham.

If you want to attack joe smith and the mormons, a half-@ssed reading of the book of abraham is the last thing you want to use. Unless, of course, you enjoy exposing yourself as a raving evangelical zealot.

[jon2012-2009]

to skyk) -
Stick your separation of church and state and your planet of the apes dogma up your stupid azz. Tap your toes and click your heels and transport yourself to the land of OZ where you and the rest of the fairies belong.
Posted by mudrose at 09:02 AM : Dec 07, 2007

Believers have such a compulsion to stick their beliefs in your face. Yet in 2000 years of history they have not proved the most fundamental thing: that God exists. Could it be case of seeking validation for a belief system that''s stuck in a time warp while science and technology have grown by leaps and bounds?

What would it be like to realize a lifetime of walking in the Scripture is for nothing, no heaven or hell awaits you, while sacrificing your human potential?

If your beliefs can receive the imprimatur of government, gain power and respect in the eyes of the world, that would be a a second best that would help this monstrous need to prove you''re right.

[michellem99-2009]

Think in that period not todays.Wooden barrels hold drink. They ran out of drink. Oh yeah the bloody puritans that hated anything different from them. I wonder a lot of times why my kin left the UK that many years ago. They would have killed me for phy handicaps. That was the witch hunts. The killed the Indians. I know alos Maine was part of MA. They carried a bible in one hand and gun in the other. There are Indians that hate whites to this day up there.

[fibonacci_]

Well said, I totally agree with you.

[realpatriot1]

fibonacci,

The point is that atheists are free to believe what they wish in both China & America but the Chinese government restricts other beliefs. Atheism is not a religion but it is a belief system.

America is a pluralistic but primarily Christian nation in which the government is prevented by law from restricting belief or actively favoring one belief system over another. All people are allowed to follow their own conscience and make their own choices without interference from the government.

[bbass999]

http://jecartoons.blogspot.com/2007/12/morons-and-mormons.html

[bbass999]

We don''t need another m0ron in the whitehouse: Checkout this cartoon: http://jecartoons.blogspot.com/2007/12/morons-and-mormons.html

[fibonacci_]

Yea, I saw that statistic in the CIA world factbook and it surprised me. I think they call it officially atheist by default because they are communists...which I think is a bit weird. If you look up the USA on that same site, atheism is not mentioned...they call it "none".

[realpatriot1]

fibonacci,

The Buddhists in Nepal and the adherents of Fulan Gang and Christianity in China aren''t LOL.

MichelleM99,

New Englanders also know that Rhode Island was formed by Roger Williams becuase of persecution by the Puritans in Massachusetts. I''ve walked through the Mayflower( in 2 minutes); how did they get even a 6 pack in there?

[fibonacci_]

Here is an example of singinricks beliefs:

"-EXACTLY! But you called it a hippo!

It''''s a fire breathing dragon! They have existed! How else do you explain ancient kingdoms in Europe talking about fire breathing dragons?!?!? Either they had vivid imaginations or they actually eye-witnessed these creatures on their own!

There is a small bug, the bombadeer beetle, that can actually cause an EXPLOSION to defend itself! Also, what about the electric eel?? This creature can generate electric shock to it''''s attackers as a method of defense.

So if these creatures can do these things, is it really far-fetched that at one point in history there was such a thing a a fire breathing dragon??? How do you know that these dinosaur fossils like the T-rex that we find are not those of a dragon???

The answer is you don''''t!

The word "tannin" is used in the Bible over 25 times. "Tannin" is Hebrew for "dragon".

Look it up."