Fringe Mormonism

Fred Voros is to mainstream Mormonism what Andrew Sullivan or Mark Helprin is to Conservatism, only less popular. Namely, a fringe player who thrives on liberal dissent from a strongly conservative base.

Over the weekend Voros published a plea for Mormons to vote Democratic.

Some have taken this to mean that the Mormon vote is in jeopardy of losing it's Republican majority. It just ain't so. (quick note: the page for the linked blog with the Voros article is the Student Democratic Party of BYU - Idaho, not the BYU in Provo, UT)

I'll address the substance of his remarks later today. But let's study the source.

Like any great movement, Mormonism has its internal dissenters. These dissenters have their own agenda, publications and players... which is all fine and good. I welcome it.

But let's not confuse liberal agenda fringe players with the vast majority of American Mormons who are decidedly conservative. There are four main publications in this vein: The Salt Lake Tribute, Sunstone Magazine, Dialogue Magazine and Signature Books. Voros has hit them all:

Take for instance this excerpt attributed to Voros from a symposium in 1992 entitled: "The Sanctity of Dissent.

"I believe that baptism washes away our sins, not our rights. I believe it is consistent with my faith as a Christian and a Mormon to write and speak my views, to disagree even with my leaders, and to state my dissent and my reasons therefor and, if I am ignored, to raise my voice, to express my distress or indignation, and even to resort to sarcasm and satire. I believe in this because I love Mormonism and want to see it flourish. I have made this statement because I wish to show that I have worked to resist spiritual abuse and to assist its victims not as an outsider, but as a believing Mormon."

source

Who does this sound like? Right out of an Oprah show, am I wrong? I hear Quo, I hear Helprin...

I believe the quote is from an article Published in Sunstone the previous year by Voros entitled: "Freedom of Speech in the Household of Faith," Sunstone 15 (Oct. 1991). Another great Oprah moment.

Later, 1993 (at the height of the Mormon dissent movement) Zoros hits these Another Kind of Abuse.? [Book review] Dialogue 26 (1) Spring 1993: 185-191.

In short, Voros is a liberal Democrat Mormon, which is absolutely an anomaly.

For your reference:
Are Mormons Conservative?