While most other bloggers are singing the praises of Mitt Romney’s speech about religion the other day, I’m going to be politically incorrect and tell you his religion is one of the reasons I will not support him as a candidate for president.

I will try to condense my concerns about his faith.

I have read some of the history of the Mormon church and during that reading I have found out about a massacre ordered by Brigham Young himself to kill innocent people who were passing through Utah on their way west.

After several years of trying to hide the crime it became apparent someone was going to have to pay for it as there were at least a couple of children who survived.

Brigham Young had a man he called his adopted son lead the massacre. When the son objected to the order that was delivered to him at his farm he was told that he must obey the “prophet’s” orders or he would not be able to enter the “celestial kingdom” where he could continue to be married and have children and eventually become a god.

They believe God is like them and they are like God—that God is flesh and bones and as He was they are and as He is they can be.

God is a Spirit Who can of course take on a body if He wishes as He did when the Son part of the Trinity took on a body.

Thinking he could become like God is what got Satan cast out of heaven.

You can read the last statement and confession of John D. Lee, Brigham Young’s “adopted” son, here.

This man was about to be executed for the Moutain Meadows Massacre and had nothing to gain or lose by his confession.

Here’s a part of his letter:

I was just getting fixed to live there, when I was ordered to go out into the interior and aid in forming new settlements, and opening up the country. I then had no wish or desire, save that to know and be able to do the will of the Lord’s anointed, Brigham Young, and until within the last few years I have never had a wish for anything else except to do his pleasure, since I became his adopted son. I believed it my duty to obey those in authority. I then believed that Brigham Young spoke by direction of the God of Heaven. I would have suffered death rather than have disobeyed any command of his. I had this feeling until he betrayed and deserted me. At the command of Brigham Young, I took one hundred and twenty-one men, went in a southern direction from Salt Lake City, and laid out and built up Parowan. George A. Smith was the leader and chief man in authority in that settlement. I acted under him as historian and clerk of the Iron County Mission, until January 1851. I went with Brigham Young, and acted as a committee man, and located Provo, St. George, Fillmore, Parowan and other towns, and managed the location of many of the settlements in Southern Utah….

…I said, “Brother Haight, who is your authority for acting in this way?”

He replied, “It is the will of all in authority. The emigrants have no pass from any one to go through the country, and they are liable to be killed as common enemies, for the country is at war now. No man has a right to go through this country without a written pass.”

We lay there and talked much of the night, and during that time Haight gave me very full instructions what to do, and how to proceed in the whole affair. He said he had consulted with Colonel Dame, and every one agreed to let the Indians use up the whole train if they could. Haight then said:

“I expect you to carry out your orders.”

I knew I had to obey or die. I had no wish to disobey, for I then thought that my superiors in the Church were the mouth pieces of Heaven, and that it was an act of godliness for me to obey any and all orders given by them to me, without my asking any questions.

If someone’s church demands they listen to the leader of said church or lose his eternal life I have a problem with that.

Right now the president and current “prophet” of the Mormon church is a man in his seventies or eighties.

What if this man loses his mental faculties and puts out an order to Mitt Romney if he becomes president to kill people somewhere by nuclear attack?

Yes, this sounds far-fetched and it probably would never happen, but I’m not willing to take the chance that my president would have to choose between the welfare of the country or the welfare of his eternity.

Aside from the religious concerns I have about Mitt Romney I have concerns about his actual political philosophy.

He has changed his position on abortion in order to look more conservative, but how conservative can a former governor of Massachusetts, the most liberal state in the country, be?

He signed a huge insurance bill into law in Massachusetts which he used to brag about until he found out conservatives weren’t too keen on the idea.

He seems to be slick and will say or do anything to get the presidency.

This post is long enough so I will leave it at that, but I will say that even if he is the nominee of the party I will, for the first time in my adult life, choose not to vote for the office of President of the United States. I cannot in good conscience do so.

This time of the year it seems as though some of what arrives in your internet mailbox are things which cross peoples minds as they prepare for the holidays and also reflect on their own lives.

I don’t know how widely circulated the piece below has been, so just thought I’d share.

Can I borrow $25?
A man came home f rom work late, tired and irritated, to find his 5-year
old son waiting for him at the door.

SON: ‘Daddy, may I ask you a question?’
DAD: ‘Yeah sure, what it is?’ replied the man.
SON: ‘Daddy, how much do you make an hour?’
DAD: ‘That’s none of your business. Why do you ask such a thing?’ the
man said angrily.
SON: ‘I just want to know. Please tell me, how much do you make an
hour?’
DAD: ‘If you must know, I make $50 an hour.’
SON: ‘Oh,’ the little boy replied, with his head down.
SON: ‘Daddy, may I please borrow $25?’

The father was furious, ‘If the only reason you asked that is so you
can borrow some money to buy a silly toy or some other nonsense, then
you march yourself straight to your room and go to bed. Think about why
you are being so selfish. I don’t work hard everyday for such childish
frivolities.’ The little boy quietly went to his room and shut the door.

The man sat down and started to get even angrier about the little boy’s
questions. How dare he ask such questions only to get some money? After
about an hour or so, the man had calmed d own , and started to think:
Maybe there was something he really needed to buy with that $25.00 and
he really didn’t ask for money very often. The man went to the door of
the little boy’s room and opened the door. ‘Are you asleep, son?’ He
asked. ‘No daddy, I’m awake,’ replied the boy. ‘I’ve been thinking,
maybe I was too hard on you earlier’ said the man. ‘It’s been a long
day and I took out my aggravation on you. Here’s the $25 you
asked for.’

The little boy sat straight up, smiling. ‘Oh, thank you daddy!’
He yelled. Then, reaching under his pillow he pulled out some crumpled
up bills. The man saw that the boy already had money, started to get
angry again. The little boy slowly counted out his money, and then
looked up at his father. ‘Why do you want more money if you already
have some?’ the father grumbled. Because I didn’t have enough, but now
I do,’ the little boy replied. ‘Daddy, I have $50 now. Can I buy an
hour of your time? Please come home early tomorrow. I would like to
have dinner with you.’

The father was crushed. He put his arms around his little son, and he
begged for his forgiveness. It’s just a short reminder to all of you
working so hard in life. We should not let time slip through our
fingers without having spent some time with those who really matter to
us, those close to our hearts. Do remember to share that $50 worth of
your time with someone you love.

As I read the above, I thought back to a performance by Harry Chapin which we attended years ago.

The song in the video below was something which I thought about often after the birth of our children and to this day believe is an example of what can happen if we find ourselves too busy to spend time with those who need it most.

We are lucky, we have two great kids and terrific grandchildren who are now such an important part of the family circle. Like any family, it goes without saying that there have been rough spots along the way but overall, we are a pretty cohesive unit.

In reading that piece which came in my mail and thinking back on “Cats in the Cradle,” it made me every more grateful for the time spent with our children when they were young.

Believe me, it has come back tenfold now that we are the ones for whom time has become more important.

Find the time for children when they are young…the rewards come instantly and continue for a lifetime.