Well, it’s certainly a different campaign bumper sticker….
I’m Catholic. When I lived in Wyoming (for almost 20 years), I knew
my fair share of Mormons because the western part of that state, in
particular, has a hefty Mormon population. But my passion for family
history is where my real exposure to Mormons comes in. Genealogy
isn’t often thought about, except by those of us who are addicted to
it. But I would guess that there are hundreds of thousands of us in
this country, and I think I can safely say that we all use the
facilities of the LDS library regularly. I even volunteer one
Saturday morning a month at the local LDS Family History Center.
While I’m there, the halls of that church building are filled with
kids and their parents coming in and out for one activity or another.
We researchers get used to the basketballs bounding off rims and
backboards. Cult or no, my impression is that Mormons are family
focused, conservative, and outgoing. I have not once had anyone try
to make me a Mormon. Not once has any Mormon tried to get me to
“seal” my family to the temple. I would say Romney could at least
count on the ranks of genealogists to use their heads about his faith
because their experiences have shown there really is nothing odd or
scary about Mormons.
This whole thing about Romney and his Mormon faith sounds so much
like the fear of “papism” that surrounded the Kennedy election.