Recently, Michael McGough, a senior editorial writer for The
Los Angeles Times, wrote an article regarding a current disagreement between Mitt
Romney and Elie Wiesel. The article,
obviously written for a Los Angeles based newspaper, is one that many from
across our nation could probably benefit from reading. In the article, McGough
explains that Wiesel is apparently pressuring Romney to taking responsibility
for the Mormon Church and its “proxy baptisms” of holocaust victims. In his column, McGough expresses that in his
opinion, though Wiesel has the right to be upset, he is also being unreasonable
in expecting change regarding an issues Romney has no control over.
I more than agree with McGough in regards to this issue.
Though on the surface, this appears to be a minor tiff between two prominent
men, with little concern to the American people, in actuality it is a topic of
high concern. The topic: politicians and their religious/personal lives. As Americans, we like to pride ourselves on
being a country of religious freedom, and a nation that separates church and
state, but do we? As McGough points out, it is as ridiculous to request that Romney
make changes in the Mormon church as it would have been to ask Kennedy to make changes
in the Catholic church. It’s quite comical that so many Americans are concerned
that Romney will allow the Mormon church to influence him if he were to reach presidency,
and therefore expects him to separate his political self from his religious self,
but on the same line, requests that he make changes to the Mormon church that
they don’t approve of. These men are politicians, trying to participate in our
government, not pastors and/or priests trying to convert an entire country. I
personally find religion as a whole to be an unnecessary waste of time, but
even with my beliefs being as they are, I would never judge a political candidate of any kind based upon their religious faith. Whether a politician attends a
temple, takes a sacrament, wears a cross around their neck or a kappa on their
head, should make zero difference to any American voter.
