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January 22, 2012 | 1:34 am

Mormons and Money: Does God want Mitt to be rich?

Posted by Mark Paredes

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Seek not after riches nor the vain things of this world; for behold, you cannot carry them with you. – Alma 39:14 (Book of Mormon)

But before ye seek for riches, seek ye for the kingdom of God. – Jacob 2:18 (Book of Mormon)

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In a week when Mitt Romney has been asked to release his tax returns, and on a day when many “conservative” voters in South Carolina have shown their contempt for Mormons, family values and traditional morality, I thought it would be appropriate to address questions related to Mormons and prosperity theology. Does God always shower money on the righteous? Do Mormons pay tithing to their church with the expectation of becoming rich? Is there a connection between personal righteousness and prosperity?

Given the media’s current focus on Mitt Romney’s wealth, he makes a good case study. Has he been blessed with abundant wealth and a beautiful family because of his dedication to his faith? I think that many Mormons would answer yes, though there is nothing in our theology that establishes this link for everyone. After all, a good case can be made that a wealthy CEO/governor’s agnostic son who worked hard to get a dual graduate degree from Harvard would also become wealthy in his own right. In addition, Mormons are hardly the only people who are try to raise good kids. None of this is meant to minimize any of Mitt’s many accomplishments, but it’s important to note that LDS theology does not teach that a person’s righteousness can be determined by his wealth (or lack thereof).

The Book of Mormon specifically warns against setting one’s heart on riches, and several examples are given of how collective wealth leads to pride, which in turn leads to the downfall of tribes and civilizations. The only allowance that the book makes for seeking riches is for the purpose of doing good, but this is only after one has sought the kingdom of God (Jacob 2:19). If a Mormon obsessively seeks riches and ultimately finds them, he does so without the sanction of his faith.

The payment of tithing (10% of one’s income) to the LDS Church is usually considered to be a spiritual law, not a material one, and members who observe it are promised spiritual protection and blessings throughout their lives. They are also granted the privilege of entering LDS temples to perform our most sacred ordinances.

Are there financial blessings attached to the payment of tithing? Well, yes and no. Mormons certainly do not pay tithing because they expect to become rich. LDS leaders are fond of telling members that if they pay tithing faithfully, God will reward them according to their need, not their greed. In other words, God will meet their material needs, as determined by Him, but is not obligated to satisfy their wants. Has Mitt received blessings because of his faithful payment of tithes? You bet. Is his fabulous wealth one of those blessings? Hard to say.

This focus on Mitt’s wealth obscures the three main reasons why he is widely admired by Mormons, regardless of their political beliefs:

1) More than any other LDS politician on the national stage, he represents the Mormon model for how to live one’s life. He served a mission, married a faithful woman, got a great education, worked hard to support his family, served in church positions when asked, and remained faithful to the church. By way of contrast, many of Senator Harry Reid’s actions go well beyond the bounds of Mormon orthodoxy (e.g., support for gambling interests and abortion provider Planned Parenthood), and former presidential candidate Jon Huntsman remarked a few months ago that his identity as a Mormon was “tough to define.”

2) To the extent that a son of George Romney can be, Mitt is largely a self-made man. He is far wealthier than his father was (Huntsman is not), and has worked very hard to get where he is today.

3) As members of a once-persecuted group that is still opposed by people like some “conservative” rubes in South Carolina, Mormons are very proud that one of their own has a very real chance of being elected to the highest office in the land.
   
Whether Mitt’s faithfulness and diligence have caused God to bless him with material possessions is anybody’s guess. We all know God-fearing people who are smart and work hard, yet don’t achieve financial success. While Mormons are just as likely as other groups to admire the wealthy and powerful, especially if they are religious, they are less likely than most to attribute the good fortune of the wealthy to divine favor.                 
 

Mark Paredes is a member of the Jewish Relations Committee of the LDS Church's Southern California Public Affairs Council. You can contact Mark at deverareligione@yahoo.com and follow him on Twitter @jewsandmormons.

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The old testament of the Bible was written thousands of years prior to the birth of Christ, and the new testament of the bible was written a few hundred years after the birth of Christ..Jews follow the old testament of the Bible and Gentiles follow the new testament….other so called “religions” have sprung up since that time all of them taking what they want out of the only real book of religion, the old and new testament of the Bible. These are not testaments of the one true God or of Jesus…just writings of people who do not believe in the real Bible of the Jews and Gentiles…..

Comment by bstone on 1/22/12 at 3:21 am

The last verse of the Gospel of John in the New Testament reads….And there are many other things which Jesus did, the which if they should be written everyone, I suppose the world itself could not contain the books that should be written.
It is surprising to me the men would try to limit Gods word.  This has happened throughout the history of man though…
By the way John outlived all the other Apostles and it is believed by many that he wrote his Gospel after he wrote the Book of Revelation.

Comment by Joe Dobbins on 1/22/12 at 7:40 am

For the following reasons I am surprised that Romney is widely admired by Mormons because of his well-documented changing of positions on moral issues (his church has taken positions on) in order to win votes, placing him in the category of the much too common politicians whose highest mandate [priority] is the ballet box, i.e., one who will do too much to win, and once elected as president, his placing too high a priority on ensuring he is reelected will hinder him from being the conservative president we need. Romney emanates this shallowness. However, I think he is the one who has the best chance of defeating the Obama – for what it (getting him in office) is worth.

Comment by John Zimmerman on 1/22/12 at 10:11 am

Adultery is a crime in South Carolina and many other states. Furthermore, even within a libertarian paradigm, adultery can be considered a crime when deception is present. In states where adultery is not specified as a crime, a criminal charge of fraud could concievably be brought against Newt Gingrich for his adultery. In Israel, rape by deception is a crime and that also could be applied to a man who deceptivel commits adultery.

Comment by Doug Forbes on 1/22/12 at 3:39 pm

Why would God care?  When Mitt Romney’s tax returns are released on Tuesday it seems that only LDS church members will care or know whether he has tithed and was allowed appropriate Church access on that basis. God already knows the answer…

Comment by Pini Herman on 1/22/12 at 4:30 pm

Good article. The Lord has made pretty clear that the reward for righteousness is peace in this life and eternal life in the world to come. No mention about riches there. Rather, if one has riches, one should think of them as part of the test. This life is a probationary state and everything that comes to us in it, be it riches or poverty, is part of that test.

Comment by Curtis on 1/23/12 at 10:33 am

So, let me see if I have this right. By donating inflated stock worth million$ to the Mormon Church each year, Willard Mitt Romney was able to pay his 10% tithing without paying a 15% capital gain tax on the assets. The Mormons would then immediately sell the stock without taxation since they’re tax exempt. Net result: no tax revenue to the government, Romney deducts the donation at full value, and he pockets the difference, effectively reducing his taxes and getting a 5% kickback on his tithing. Sweet. Wall Street Willard in the White House? No thanks.

Comment by sfcanative on 1/23/12 at 11:46 am

@sfcanative That’s not fair, so you would want him to convert his stocks to cash so he pays 15% capital gains and then donate to the LDS?  Better to add the 15% he saved by donating stock and give that additionally to reach his tithe.  That would be congruent with a fair tithe.  I’m sure interested Mormons will know what to make of his tax returns tomorrow.

Comment by Pini Herman on 1/23/12 at 3:11 pm

God loves all of his children, it is not that God wants Mitt to be rich so much as that God allows Mitt to be rich. Mitt prepared himself, got two doctorate degrees in business and law. A high level of education has always been the best way to making a good living. When we pay the price and keep the commandments, riches often come. What’s so unusual about that?

Comment by Kimball Findlay on 1/24/12 at 12:48 pm

We are closing schools, laying people off. Families are being foreclosed on and being put out in the streets. And all the “church” and the States can talk about is who is Gay. We need to start looking at what is best for the country. We are not in high school any more.  Hello!!!  Or is it just all about the money?!?  The Mormon Church spent $22 million to fight the California marriage battle even though the Mormon population in the state is approximately 2%.  This country has kids to feed.  $22 million could have feed a lot of poor families. It is time for us to grow up and “move on”.

Comment by cb on 1/24/12 at 6:05 pm

@Pini Perman: Yes, that’s exactly what he should have done, paid some reasonable level of taxes on his obscene riches before playing tax games with his tithing. This is a man who got rich because of US tax laws and free enterprise. He owes the lion share of his wealth to America for allowing him the opportunity to prosper in the country. Anywhere else in the world he’d be shining his own shoes. “Render unto Caesar what is Caesars.”

Comment by sfcanative on 1/25/12 at 2:29 pm

You only quote Jacob 2:18. Here’s Jacob 2:19 -
“And after ye have obtained a hope in Christ ye shall obtain riches, if ye seek them; and ye will seek them for the intent to do good—to clothe the naked, and to feed the hungry, and to liberate the captive, and administer relief to the sick and the afflicted.” - Jacob 2:19

Comment by Jason on 1/25/12 at 11:29 pm

This is overwrought. Is there a correlation between activity in the Mormon religion and financial well being? Of course. There should be. A church which demands hard work, education, discipline, personal responsibility and honesty will inevitably produce successful individuals. Whether wealth is directly bestowed by God is completely irrelevant because Mormonism demands faithfulness of it’s members in poverty our wealth.

Comment by Todd on 1/26/12 at 7:51 pm

John Zimmerman, while Romney position on the legality of abortion has changed, the Church has never called for illegalization of abortion (that I know of). Individually the Church views abortion in non-crime cases a serious sin, but does not enforce that view on others or laws. As for the gay rights, I think Romney has always been for equal treatment for all people (which explain his view during the senate election against Ted Kennedy) - no body was proposing same-sex marriages at the time, so his position couldn’t have changed on that particular point.

Comment by disciplescientist on 2/03/12 at 9:36 am

Like all capitalist, Romney made his fortune by exploiting his fellow man/woman. If this isn’t immoral to mormons then their concept of morality is evil.

Comment by Alex on 2/03/12 at 1:11 pm

Alex, we Mormons don’t like judging people on perceived actions. We try to be friends with all and leave the judging to God. We believe that to be Christian behavior.

Comment by disciplescientist on 2/03/12 at 1:14 pm

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