Feminist Looking Glass

I wonder what influence Sen. Harry Reid’s Mormon religion has had on him during the attempts to have new health care legislation?  This article in today’s Salt Lake Tribune shows the competing views that could be influencing him.

Reid is a very active member of the church, to which he converted during college.  He is one of 14 current Mormon members of Congress and is the highest-ranking elected Mormon in the church’s history.  When Reid was elected to Congress in 1986, he was “summoned” by church leaders to their Salt Lake City headquarters and told “here’s your assignment: Be the best member of the church you can be.”

There is no evidence that church officials have tried to influence Reid, but there is plenty criticism from church members.  The criticism is particularly strong concerning Reid’s statement to gay rights groups in a private meeting that “the LDS Church’s efforts to back the anti-gay marriage Proposition 8 in California was a waste of resources and hurt the faith’s missionary efforts.”  One conservative activist has said that “I just don’t get how his politics translate to somebody who has LDS beliefs.  He’s an embarrassment to me as a Mormon.”

Reid claims that he’s not offended by the criticism.  He says that church leaders have never complained about his political statements.  In addition, he says that his position on gay marriage is in sync with the church’s, pointing out that he voted in Nevada for the state constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage.  He also says that he has “expressed his concern for years to leaders about the church stepping into the debate and that the millions the church invested in the Prop 8 campaign was bad strategy.”

As the article says, Reid is not the first elected official to be criticized by members of the same religion.  Even this year, after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi met with the Vatican, an anti-abortion Catholic group hand delivered a letter calling for her to be ousted from the church for her pro-abortion rights stand. And during the 2004 presidential campaign, a few Catholic bishops said that they would refuse Sen. John Kerry communion for his position on abortion.  Even within the Mormon church, Mitt Romney was questioned about how much of an influence the church would be on his decisions.

The LDS Church has had a long-standing statement that “elected officials who are LDS make their own decisions ‘and may not necessarily be in agreement with one another or even with a publicly stated church position.’”  And, although LDS members are mostly conservative, there are members in both parties.  (A July survey showed 65 percent of Mormons aligned themselves with the Republican Party or leaned that way, while 22 percent sided with the Democratic Party.)

Reid downplays the criticism about whether he is staying true to Mormon beliefs: “I don’t think my faith is a hindrance to what I do and I’m sorry if people feel that I in some way embarrass them, but I have to frankly say that even on this issue there are a lot of people that say ‘we agree with you.’”

So, on the surface at least, there is no direct reason to believe that Reid is unduly influenced by his religion of by critics who claim that he is not true to Mormon beliefs.  But there has certainly been a lot of criticism about the slowness of the Senate actions on health care.  Since the issue of abortion has been part of the competing health care bills, one wonders how the Mormon Church’s stance on abortion could have influenced Reid.  This is what the Church’s “Gospel Topics” says about abortion:

Human life is a sacred gift from God. Elective abortion for personal or social convenience is contrary to the will and the commandments of God. Church members who submit to, perform, encourage, pay for, or arrange for such abortions may lose their membership in the Church.

In today’s society, abortion has become a common practice, defended by deceptive arguments. Latter-day prophets have denounced abortion, referring to the Lord’s declaration, “Thou shalt not . . . kill, nor do anything like unto it” (D&C 59:6). Their counsel on the matter is clear: Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints must not submit to, perform, encourage, pay for, or arrange for an abortion. Church members who encourage an abortion in any way may be subject to Church discipline.

Church leaders have said that some exceptional circumstances may justify an abortion, such as when pregnancy is the result of incest or rape, when the life or health of the mother is judged by competent medical authority to be in serious jeopardy, or when the fetus is known by competent medical authority to have severe defects that will not allow the baby to survive beyond birth. But even these circumstances do not automatically justify an abortion. Those who face such circumstances should consider abortion only after consulting with their local Church leaders and receiving a confirmation through earnest prayer.

When a child is conceived out of wedlock, the best option is for the mother and father of the child to marry and work toward establishing an eternal family relationship. If a successful marriage is unlikely, they should place the child for adoption, preferably through LDS Family Services (see “Adoption”).

Obviously, all Congressional members may, at some times, face disagreement with their churches.  But I wonder if Reid’s heart is really into getting health care legislation done quickly.

Filed under: Politics, Religion Tagged: | Harry Reid, LDS, Mormon