The Reverend Robert Jeffress, the Dallas pastor who introduced Republican Presidential candidate Texas Governor Rick Perry at the Values Voter Summit, spoke scornfully about the Mormon faith of Mitt Romney, making the case that “Mormonism is a cult.”
Two days later, he chided Islam, Hinduism and Buddhism as “false religions.” Unreported by many in the media were last year’s comments by the Reverend about the Roman Catholic Church in which he suggested that “much of what you see in the Catholic Church today doesn’t come from God’s word. It comes from that cult-like pagan religion. Isn’t that the genius of Satan?”
We join in the condemnation of Reverend Jeffress’ hateful and mean-spirited comments against other faith traditions. As a minister of the Gospel of Jesus Christ the Reverend’s bigotry isn’t only offensive to Mormons, Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists and Catholics but is really a condemnable action against the very faith he professes to minister. His outrageous demonization of other religions does little to explain the vast theological differences among religions but only demonstrates his arrogance and ignorance.
The good Reverend Jeffress needs to learn the Christian virtue of humility and apologize and repudiate his bigoted comments about other faith traditions. Meanwhile, if Governor Perry is to ever be taken seriously as candidate for the Presidency of the United States he would be wise to join in publically condemning Jeffress’ narrow-minded comments and religious bigotry.
