Mormons and the Mainstream

Here's a very insightful article from The American Conservative magazine discussing how the religious right is finding the grassroots organization and fundraising capabilities of members of the Church of Jesus Christ more attractive. It cites Mormon support of California's Proposition 8 that defines marriage between a man and a woman.

After Prop 8, evangelical opinion leaders exhorted their audiences to stop worrying and learn to love the Latter Day Saints. John Mark Reynolds, a professor at evangelical Biola University wrote, “In the battle for the family…… traditional Christians have no better friends than the Mormon faithful.” A petition to thank the LDS church for its participation in the Prop 8 campaign circulated on conservative websites, and James Dobson signed it. Presbyterian writer John Schroeder said, “We Evangelicals must thank our Mormon cousins. …… They, along with our Catholic brethren, were better organized than us and that provided a base from which we could all work together to get this job done.”

Is this a continuing trend or a flash in the pan? Time will tell--but a lot can happen in the space of just a few years.