Pharisees and Utah Politics

Enid Mickelsen

Something big happened yesterday, and most Utahns will be totally unaware of it. As everyone knows, Utah is the epitome of red state American politics. When the Republicans gathered yesterday in Sandy at the South Towne Expo Hall for the 2011 Organizing Convention, it would normally be viewed as only another humdrum boring affair where state party officers are elected for the next two years.

This year, however, in the aftermath of the state legislature's passage of HB 116, the "guest worker" bill laden with constitutional problems on its face, but endorsed by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and other Utah Compact signatories, there were bound to be some fireworks and there were.

Before I get into all that, let me state my admiration for Enid (Greene Waldholz) Mickelsen's leadership in filling in for State Party Chairman Thomas Wright as she conducted the convention. Her skill and obvious experience were much appreciated in what could have easily become a contentious and out-of-control display of sharp elbows and heckling from the peanut gallery. Instead, her humor and maturity were on full display. She masterfully wielded the gavel with reasoned wisdom and balanced control.

Wright was appointed in January by the state central committee as the "establishment" successor to party chief Dave Hansen, who stepped down to pick up the campaign reins (yet again!) of Senator Orrin Hatch's seventh bid for re-election. In my humble opinion after watching the tepid response for the aged senator yesterday, both of them may want to re-think the advisability of going forward. The delegates politely clapped lightly, but little more enthusiasm than that was in evidence. The latest polling data suggests the reason why -- 59% of the electorate are reporting they would definitely or probably pick someone other than Hatch.

Going into yesterday's organizing convention, the hand-picked party leadership with Hansen's departure consisted of Thomas Wright as Chair, Christy Achziger as Vice Chair and Dana Dickson as Secretary. However, the delegates flexed their collective muscle as they retained Wright on the first ballot, ousted Achziger on the second ballot in favor of Lowell Nelson, and gave the nod as Secretary to Drew Chamberlain. Nelson and Chamberlain will provide a perceived "balance" at the top of the state party. Politics is divisive by nature, even on the best of days, but yesterday's convention was only the latest example in what could become even more self-destructive behavior in the future.

Thomas Wright

Wright's failed attempt to save Achziger on the second ballot with his ill-advised and impassioned attack against Nelson, prompted a swift and angry response from the floor. Tempers ignited, Mickelsen interceded, and Achziger concluded her remarks, but the damage to her was irreversible. In a highly charged political meeting you can sense a backfire coming a mile away. A motion failed later in an attempt to rescind Wright's election because of his personal attack on Nelson. This morning, Wright may be wondering just exactly what he's gotten himself into as the newly-elected Chair with 1/2 of his leadership team now in hostile hands. (State Party Treasurer, Mike McCauley ran unopposed.) He and Nelson will have some making up to do, and the sooner the better.

Because they were up for election, the establishment candidates, relatively unknown before yesterday to the rank and file delegates in attendance, decided to ask Enid run the meeting, thus equalizing their exposure with the other candidates. It was a nice gesture, but clearly the delegates were in the mood for throwing off the collective wisdom of the central committee and wanted people who were more aligned with their tea party leanings.

Throughout the day amendments to the state party constitution and bylaws were debated and votes were taken, including two votes on largely symbolic resolutions about the controversial passage of HB 116. The second and most contentious was considered first as the agenda was modified. On a narrow margin of 94 votes (833 to 739), the resolution urging the legislature to repeal and replace the bill succeeded. It was the most divisive issue of the day.

The other resolution passed easily on a voice vote reaffirming the party's desire for "inclusion and that there is a place for all, including immigrants, within our Party." A friendly amendment was accepted after the vote inserting the word "legal" as the adjective describing immigrants, qualifying which immigrants were included in the welcome wagon and completely undermining the meaning consistent with the Church's position. It's what happens with committee work, especially a large and rancorous committee like a state political convention.

Thus far I have said nothing to hint at the title of this post. However, I was struck yesterday for the first time with the paradox of it all. There is nothing more destructive than someone who thinks they are doing the will of God when in fact they are doing the polar opposite. Then this morning I attended my Sunday School lesson, ironically the lesson entitled "Love One Another," based upon the Luke 22 account of the Savior's introduction of the sacramental ordinance. I couldn't help wondering what my Utah County colleagues who were so outraged and indignant yesterday were saying today during their Church meetings. Perhaps it was something like, "I love everyone, just like the Savior admonishes, but I get to pick and choose who they are."

Joseph Smith

Joseph Smith said it this way: ". . .nothing is a greater injury to the children of men than to be under the influence of a false spirit when they think they have the spirit of God." (TPJS, 205). We must never forget who the author of dissension,  bitterness and anger is. Satan loves a good argument and he loves it even more if it descends into shouting and finger pointing.

Pharisees and their cohorts in the meridian of time believed adamantly they were doing God's work when they hatched a conspiracy to put to death the Son of God for merely affirming He was the Son of God. Ironically, the most strident voices for dismantling HB 116 are coming from Utah County. If the demographics compiled by BYU professor Quin Monson at last year's nominating convention are true, identifying 90% of the delegates as members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, then this much is clear -- there is now a distinct disconnect between Church leaders and their supposed adherents.

The Church has repeatedly called for civility, for equity and fairness, for embracing the people of all cultures who are coming into Utah -- and yes, most are in search of sanctuary and opportunity. The fear of delegates that Utah may become a "magnet sanctuary state" for immigrants is completely a contradiction, or should be, in the minds of all members of the Church today. The tenets of our faith must trump all the other considerations, including the attempts by men to thwart the purposes of God in extending the covenants of the gospel to all His children. When we come to see them all as our brothers and sisters, that awareness will squelch any residual fear in my considered judgment. It is obvious that is the hope of the leaders of the Church for us.

But I ask, why have half of us (if the number is truly representative) rejected the gentle urging of the living prophets, who are asking something quite different than what we seem willing to give? Instead of accepting their counsel, half the crowd yesterday was vitriolic and angry at the thought, flexing their political power (as they suppose) to take matters into their own hands and attempt for force their will on others. Truth is, they're only paper tigers, since the resolution is non-binding, but they seemed to want their fifteen minutes of fame nonetheless.

The stone cut out of the mountain without hands as witnessed by Daniel will continue to roll forth until it fills the whole earth. The stone won’t roll back uphill, nor will it gather moss. Make no mistake, we are on a collision course with our ultimate destiny. Let us not take comfort in our alliance with "Babylon," for that reliance on the arm of flesh will as surely fail us now as it did ancient Israel. Our only strength and comfort can be in God and His power, inspired prophets who lead, and not in the philosophies of men we have come to love so much in these last days. The nuances and parsing of meanings in symbolic political resolutions seem alluring to some, but can be subtle and destructive if not accurately discerned for what they are. Anything breeding the kind of anger we witnessed yesterday simply cannot originate with God.

If as the mainstream media suggested, this vote yesterday portends what will become "the heart and soul" of the Utah Republican Party, then it appears a little more humbling and more time must occur in order for the stated goals of the Church regarding immigration to be realized. With or without us the caravan bound for Zion rolls forward, and in time those who are unwilling to catch the vision of a worldwide objective embracing all cultures, creeds, and ethnic backgrounds and are protecting their narrow interests while they tilt windmills of their own making, will lose their grasp of things that matter least.

Imagining a great victory in taking back their state political party from the establishment, as they suppose, they may like the Pharisees of old discover they have lost their own souls in the bargain.

President's Approval Rate Down Again

After a brief lift from the aftermath of the Osama bin Laden assassination, Obama's approval rating is back in the tank.  What I would love to know is who ARE those 23% of the people who strongly believe Obama is doing an acceptable job as POTUS?

It would appear from these numbers that America is still discontent with leadership at the top. If change is what Obama promised, then he can only be judged as a roaring success. Change in America is exactly what he has delivered. The only problem is that it wasn't the kind of change Americans were pining for.

We're now embroiled in three costly foreign wars. He's still in denial, however, refusing to call Libya a "war." Debt has escalated on his watch. Deficit spending is out of control. There is absolutely no willingness to consider looking at the entitlement programs to reduce spending. Instead of boosting worldwide confidence in America, Obama has induced fear and uncertainty in the hearts and minds not only here at home, but among our greatest allies, Israel being the prime example.

It's obvious to me that we cannot endure another four years of similar domestic and foreign policies. The leader of the Democratic Party the other day proudly boasted, "We own this economy." She actually believes the country is on the path to recovery, and so does Obama. If this is what their definition of economic recovery looks like,  there will be a majority of voters in November 2012 who will vociferously disagree and demand a change from what we've seen.

That's indicated by the huge spike up in this polling data among those who strongly disapprove of the job the President is doing. I loved Donald Trump's answer to the question, "What has President Obama done right?" He said, "He got elected."

Immigration Utah-style

(l to r) Bishop H. David Burton, Pamela Anderson, Utah Governor Gary Herbert

I have been heartened in recent weeks and months by the Church's gentle guidance in the contentious immigration debate raging across America today. I have observed the steady and persistent progress, beginning with the "unwritten" Hispanic Initiative several years ago, then earlier this year with the Utah Compact, and finally yesterday with an updated statement on this issue as the work of the recent legislature here in Utah was signed into law by Governor Gary Herbert.

Several years ago while serving on the high council in our stake, I was given the missionary portfolio. It was in the era of President Gordon B. Hinckley, and I loved the assignment to coordinate the work of the ward missions, the ward mission leaders, and the full-time missionaries. Our stake, rural in nature and filled with Hispanics from many countries of origin in Central and South America, gave rise to many conversations about their individual situations and how we could best serve them.

Even earlier, some twenty years ago, I had served as a counselor in the stake mission. Back then we believed there was a pressing need to organize a Spanish branch, and advocated for it. We even had strong impressions about the man who should be called as the first branch president. However, our recommendations were summarily dismissed routinely by the stake presidency, and a branch was formed in the neighboring stake over the hill in Park City.

I learned years later the reason why -- the stake president who called me to serve on the high council had served as a counselor in the stake presidency when I was in the stake mission presidency. In a moment of remarkable candor in a high council meeting he confessed he was "bigoted" against the Hispanics at the time and had opposed any efforts or suggestions to organize them within our stake. Following his release as stake president, a Spanish branch was finally organized and the very man we had thought would be the logical choice as branch president was called fifteen years later!

There is a valuable lesson here (in fact, there are many). When the time is right the work of the Lord proceeds, but it can only proceed when we set aside the limitations we impose upon it sometimes. Time tends to soften hearts, change minds, and then when the Spirit directs, institutional changes can finally be implemented.

The latest numbers suggest about 2,200 refugees a year are coming into Utah from Iraq. While writing about Zion many years ago, I observed:

"Ephraim's descendants will figure prominently in the leadership of the House of Israel in the development of Zion, but it would be a gross error to assume that Zion is the private domain of Ephraim. The scriptures speak plainly of all the tribes coming to their inheritances in their various lands. We are witnessing the emergence of all these long-lost cousins in Israel in our day, as adversity, lawlessness, and political upheavals continue to drive them to our borders of freedom. They come because of wars, famines, diseases, natural disasters, and the love of freedom, but whatever the reasons they are coming to claim their promised blessings at the hands of Ephraim. Let us never be so surfeited by the things of this world that we cannot embrace them, when they come with little more than the clothes on their backs."

The stake presidency invited me to attend a training meeting with our Area President and the full-time mission president. The branch president and the branch mission leader were also invited. With regard to a person's legal status as a resident of America, the Church has a long-standing position of neutrality, and where the federal government has been ambiguous over enforcement of borders, it has remained for years above the fray. At the time of this meeting there were voices within the Church questioning if the Brethren were not being observant of the 12th Article of Faith, which states:

We believe in being subject to kings, presidents, rulers, and magistrates, in obeying, honoring, and sustaining the law.

The Area President took the issue head on in our meeting. "I just don't worry about it," he said. "I've been in meetings with President Hinckley where he has told us our duty is to welcome all the immigrants without regard to their legal status and to teach them the gospel. That's why they are here, even if they don't know it yet." His counsel to us provided a clear mandate and we implemented the provisions of an "unwritten" document he gave us that night called the "Hispanic Initiative." We were asked to pilot the initiative in our stake, which we did based upon his direction.

I have been an eyewitness of the principles contained in the furtive attempts to implement the Hispanic Initiative, and was thrilled to see the embodiment of what we were doing years ago in this accompanying article on the Church's website yesterday:

The First Presidency has for many years taught that undocumented status should not by itself prevent an otherwise worthy Church member from entering the temple or being ordained to the priesthood.

There are still those who assert we cannot and should not be providing safe haven through our service to the Hispanic population if they are illegal immigrants. However, I am not one who takes that position. I am well aware of the arguments in favor of stringent enforcement of immigration laws. I've heard all the voices about the illegals utilizing health care, schools, and so forth.

But I believe the Church has opted for the observance of the higher law, and that is a good thing as the principles inherent in the establishment of Zion in the last days unfold before our eyes. The position as now published publicly by the Church is consistent with everything I have studied in the scriptures and espoused in the precedents for building a Zion community that will one day span the earth as with a flood.

I am aware of how heated and contentious the immigration debate can be. I know there are members of the Church who will continue to push back against the Church's position in this statement. An undocumented immigrant who comes to this country to work without the government's permission, a person who is otherwise law-abiding and hard-working, cannot and must never be branded as a criminal any more than someone who is guilty of a similar infraction akin in the law to a speeding ticket.

Our mandate as Christians serves a higher law than man's law. All God's children are deserving of His richest blessings without regard to their legal resident status. And now the Church has made it official.

Living prophets lead the way.

Mitt Romney's Religion

Salt Lake Temple

I read a letter to the editor this morning about Mitt Romney's religion. The author suggested Romney should used his political platform to advance his religion. This is what the letter writer advocated:

". . . he should actively make his Mormonism an issue and show how its tenets and values support his candidacy, and not downplay his faith or its contradictions with what other Christians believe."

I'm certain the writer is a faithful member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons), but he is sadly misinformed about the role religion must never play in the political arena.

I write a blog about my views on politics and religion, attesting these topics are not taboo topics. There is nothing wrong with merging those two topics in the public discourse of America, particularly today in the desperate straits where we find ourselves. We can and we must advocate, testify and boldly declare true religious doctrine, and not be afraid to mix it up, take the incoming bullets of criticism and be prepared for a vigorous and enlivening exchange of ideas in the public square.

I believe that. But when you announce as a candidate for elective office in this country, you leave your religion on the doorstep when you step over that threshold. If anyone is paying attention to what the leaders of the Church are doing and saying publicly, when it comes to politics and their influence over the political hearts and minds of members of the Church they would know there is a well-established and consistent affirmation of a strict policy of neutrality in place contradicting the very idea the letter writer has suggested.

As a stake president, Mitt Romney should preach doctrine to his heart's content, which he did when he served in that capacity. But he would be well-advised to keep his mouth shut about his Mormon beliefs as a political candidate, and point his questioners to the governing document we have erected in America -- the Constitution -- for their answers about his suitability as a candidate for the presidency of the United States of America.

His suitability as the potential Commander in Chief may indeed call into question his religious beliefs in the minds of the voters (no one can force the human mind, now can we?), but the founders did everything they could do, going as far as the written word would take them, to assure what their intent was in these matters.

If only Americans would read the Constitution, believe it and act accordingly:

Article VI, paragraph 3, states:

"The Senators and Representatives before mentioned, and the Members of the several State Legislatures, and all executive and judicial Officers, both of the United States and of the several States, shall be bound by Oath or Affirmation, to support this Constitution; but no religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office or public trust under the United States."

The problem with Mitt's candidacy has nothing to do with Mitt's religion, or whether or not he should advocate its tenets and defend his membership. Rather, the problem is we have strayed from our Constitution's founding principles.

America is the only country on earth that was founded on a creed, codified and written in a few pages of collective wisdom by the best minds among the luminaries living here at the time. It has been emulated repeatedly in attempts by other self-governing people to duplicate its results.

The guidance and foresight of our founding fathers have endured far longer than any of them envisioned.

At the time they were worried their union would not last ten years.

They invested their lives, fortunes and sacred honor for what? For a principle that free men, endowed with the moral compass of a divine Providence would triumph over all their enemies, foreign or domestic through self-governance.

I still believe it. Do you?

Then act on that belief and choose your candidates for public office based on all the factors before you, but don't limit the debate to which religion he or she espouses. The majority (68%) of Americans now say it doesn't matter if a Mormon is a presidential candidate.

To make a choice about who you will or won't vote for based solely on religion is un-American.

You Can Do It!!

Best motivational speech I've seen all day. . .