Should Mitt Remain Cautious About Mentioning His Faith?

In 1959, the year before John F. Kennedy won the presidency, 25% of Americans said they would not vote for a Catholic.  The resistance was real.  The bias was deep.  For whatever reason, voters were skeptical about voting for a candidate of the Catholic faith.  Within a year however, barriers were broken and biases lifted.

In 1960, John F. Kennedy won the election as the nation's first Catholic president.

AP Photo

In the United States today, biases towards the Mormon church are just as real. According a June 2011 Gallup poll, 22% of Americans are reluctant to support a Mormon for president.  

In 1967, biases against blacks, Catholics, Jews, Hispanics and women were also quite high, but these voter biases have all but disappeared.  Yet, Anti-Mormon sentiment has remained at the same level since 1967 when Gallup first conducted this study.

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Anti-Mormon sentiment is real.  It has already crept its way into this primary season and exit polls from various states indicate that Romney's faith is steering voters towards his rivals much more than the media wants to address.

Americans remain skeptical about Mormonism--is it any wonder that Mitt Romney is reluctant to talk about his faith?

Image from sacred destinations.com

Mitt Romney is a life-long and active member of his church.  He served as a full-time missionary in France when he was 19-years-old and has since served in countless lay clergy positions throughout his life--meaning not full-time, without pay and without formal training.

Mitt Romney's faith plays a key role in his life, yet, he and his campaign are very cautious to ever make reference of it.

But with such lasting Anti-Mormon sentiment in America, is it any wonder?

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This was clear yesterday, during a town hall meeting, when an individual asked Mitt Romney, "Do you believe it is a sin for a white man to marry and procreate with a black?"

Romney hastily replied, "No, next question."

AP Photo

After a few minutes, Romney took a rare turn and returned to a discussion of his faith.  He said, "This gentleman wanted to talk about the doctrines of my religion.  I've had an unusual experience and I'll talk about the practices of my faith."

He the went on to talk about the years he spent as a Mormon bishop / pastor.  He said, "I've had the occasion in my church to be the pastor, if you will, of a congregation.  I've served in that kind of role for about 10 years.  And that gave me the occasion to work with people on a very personal basis that were dealing with unemployment, with marital difficulties, with health difficulties of their own and with their kids."

Romney said, "Most Americans, by the way, are carrying a burden of some kind.  We don't see it, we see someone on the street, they smile and say, 'Hello,' but behind them they are carrying a bag of rocks.  It may be their own health difficulties.  It may be concern about a job, it may be inability to pay for the home or the college they were hoping to pay for a child.  But people have burdens in this country, and when you get a chance to know people on a very personal basis, whether you're serving as a pastor or as a counselor or in other kinds of roles, you understand that every person you see is facing some challenges.

He went on to say, "One of the reasons I am running for president of the United States is I want to help people. I want to lighten those burdens." (Click here to read MSNBC article).

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This was a brilliant move by Romney.  Brilliant because it gave a unique insight to this somewhat shielded side of his life.  It took courage to let people see this side of him, especially when it risks stirring controversy about his faith.

The truth of the matter is that Americans need to see this.  Romney's faith, though misunderstood by many, has helped shape him into a charitable, compassionate, reserved, faithful and honest family man--admirable qualities that most Americans will respect.

Photo from Zimbio.com

Last week, Jennifer Rubin of The Washington Post offered Romney some unique advice for his campaign.  She suggested that he needs to, "more frequently relate his life experiences on a personal level to voters revealing qualities that demonstrate great generosity and concern for others." (Click here to read her column).

I fully agree.

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Despite how the media portrays him, Mitt Romney is a man of core principles.  He is a man of conviction and a true leader.  His conviction to his faith is a perfect example of it because let's be honest, if he weren't, he would have abandoned his controversial faith years ago.

Should Mitt Romney remain cautious about ever mentioning his faith?  Absolutely not.

Because talking about his life--including experiences involving his faith--will not be an attempt to "convert" the masses, but it will highlight the value of religious tolerance in America.  In doing so, it will reveal an admirable man rather than just a principled politician.

After all, John F. Kennedy faced a very similar challenge in 1960.  He succeeded. Barriers were broken. Biases lifted.

I think America is once again ready for this kind of change.