Minister Critical of Romney and 'Mormon Cult' Suggests Third-Party Options
Bill Keller of LivePrayer.com Says Christian Voters Should Avoid Mitt Romney Due to His Faith
Christian minister Bill Keller of LivePrayer.com, who has frequently spoken out on the so-called dangers of voting for presumptive GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney in this year's general election due to his Mormon faith, suggests that the only real option for Christian voters are third-party candidates.
Keller recently compared the choice of voting for Mitt Romney or for President Barack Obama as "flipping a coin where Satan is on both sides."
"How can anyone who claims to be a follower of Christ vote for our current president who in every word and deed has proven to be a true enemy of God on every major spiritual issue of the day," asked Keller, who has been just as critical of Romney and his Mormon faith.
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"The Republican choice will be a member of the satanic Mormon cult who will never have to say a word for his cult to take advantage of their ultimate goal since they were founded 200 years ago, and that is to gain mainstream acceptance, giving them all the ammunition they need to aggressively seek converts to their cult's beliefs," Keller said.
The Internet evangelist explained in a phone interview with The Christian Post Tuesday that he was not telling people who to vote for, but was encouraging Christians to consider spiritual issues besides politics. He said voters should consider all options, including third parties, during the general election.
"Some say it is throwing your vote away, but no – by considering all candidates, you can fulfill your duty of voting, but not have to choose between Romney and Obama," the minister expressed.
Third-party candidates rarely do well in presidential elections, and no such nominee in the 2008 presidential election received more than five percent of the vote, according to the Federal Election Commission.
For the 2012 presidential elections, it appears Gary E. Johnson, the former governor of New Mexico, will be the Libertarian Party's nominee. Johnson has revealed that he expects to win more Democratic votes than Republican ones come November because of his firm stance on issues like same-sex marriage, which he says President Obama has failed to protect.
When asked by CP of his opinion on a possible third-party candidate, Keller suggested the Constitution Party.
"I think the Constitution Party candidate is on the ballot in all 50 states... [I] don't know anything about the person they are running...but it has usually been a very Christian candidate in years past," he said.
The official website of the Constitution Party identifies former member of the U.S. House of Representatives Virgil Goode as its 2012 nominee for the presidential race. Goode has served in Congress both as a Democrat and a Republican.
Keller also criticized prominent pastors, such as Joel Osteen of Lakewood Church, who recently appeared on CNN's "The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer" and said, "Mormonism is a little different, but I still see them as brothers in Christ."
The Texas minister insisted that he fully trusts that Romney is indeed a true and faithful Christian.
"When I hear Mitt Romney say that he believes that Jesus is the Son of God – that he's the Christ, raised from the dead, that he's his Savior – that's good enough for me," said Osteen.
Keller, however, said that those were false testaments.
"There is not one theologian in the country with half a brain that will even begin to say that a Mormon is a Christian, because if you study Mormon theology – it is 100 percent inconsistent with biblical Christianity. A Mormon is no more a Christian than a Muslim is," he said.
"I have a lot of connections out West with ministries that help Mormons leave that cult and they've been working for over a year preparing for a Romney presidency – because this is what they need to make their cult mainstream. And we have such a weak and watered down church system – we have idiots like Joel Osteen running around making dangerous comments that Mormons are Christians. You have got to be a theological midget to say that. We have such weak, gutless preachers like Osteen, Rick Warren, who compromise the truth and are basically biblically illiterate." the minister alleged.
He added, "Most Christians don't even know what Mormons believe – and from the impression I'm getting, Mitt Romney will never have to say a word about it. This cult is going to be in full-on attack mode.
"I said back in November – if the choice in this election comes down to Obama and Romney, this means that God's blessing and God's hand is off this nation. God has finally had enough – and who can blame Him? Look at the way we treat God – it's amazing to me it hasn't happened earlier."
The minister has long warned against what he sees as a rise of Mormonism, and in 2007 made similar comments regarding Romney and those who were considering voting for him in the 2008 presidential election.
In an interview with Fox News host Bill O'Reilly on "The O'Reilly Factor" back in 2007, Keller insisted that voting for Romney would send souls to hell. O'Reilly, a conservative Roman Catholic, accused Keller of making comments that were "irresponsible, un-Christian, uncharitable, and flat out wrong."
According to a 2011 poll from the Public Religion Institute, 53 percent of voters said they would be somewhat or very comfortable with a Mormon serving as president, however, 42 percent said that a Mormon president would make them somewhat or very uncomfortable.
A study by the Pew Forum on Mormons in America revealed in January that followers of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS) still largely feel discriminated against by American society.
Despite these views, well over half, or 63 percent of those who responded to the Pew Forum survey, said they believe that acceptance of Mormonism is on the rise. In addition, 74 percent of Mormons shared that they support the Republican Party.
