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Third, Romney offered a strong endorsement of the place of religion in American public life. "In recent years, the notion of the separation of church and state has been taken by some well beyond its original meaning. They seek to remove from the public domain any acknowledgment of God. Religion is seen as merely a private affair with no place in public life. It is as if they are intent on establishing a new religion in America—the religion of secularism. They are wrong." Romney went on to allude to the ceremonial expressions of religion in our public life, including the references to God on our currency and in the Pledge of Allegiance.

Evangelicals disagree among themselves about just how important it is to fight for Nativity scenes and Ten Commandments monuments in public places, but they all agree that religion has a place in our public discourse. Our lawmakers cannot be value-free. And when it comes to topics of historically religious significance (marriage, for example), it is ludicrous to expect us to discuss such topics in purely secular terms—to pretend that such issues are not part of our religious vision of reality.

The judicial branch has been particularly crucial in dealing with these religion-laden issues, and evangelicals will welcome Romney's affirmation that "our greatness would not long endure without judges who respect the foundation of faith upon which our Constitution rests."

Fourth, Romney drew a strong link between religion and liberty. "Freedom requires religion just as religion requires freedom. Freedom opens the windows of the soul so that man can discover his most profound beliefs and commune with God. Freedom and religion endure together, or perish alone."

That is part and parcel of evangelical understandings of self-government. Secularism offers a vision of freedom, but it is the freedom of a naked will, not the freedom of a disciplined and productive community. The one is mere libertinism, the other is true liberty.

Fifth, Romney emphasized the American heritage of religious liberty. "Any believer in religious freedom, any person who has knelt in prayer to the Almighty, has a friend and ally in me."

Sixth, he sharply disapproved of the "conversion by conquest" practiced by the "theocratic tyranny" of "radical Islamists." That sort of language is also welcomed by American evangelicals.

So if Romney said so many things that evangelicals will welcome, did he calm their fears and perhaps even win their votes?

Most evangelicals will still be suspicious of Mormonism as a religion, and despite the reassurances of Mitt Romney and others that they trust Jesus Christ for their salvation, the religion's continued rejection of historic Christian truths feeds that suspicion. A recent speech on the Trinity by Elder Jeffrey Holland of the LDS Quorum of the Twelve Apostles reinforced the sense of the deep divide between Mormons and classical Christians.

Because of the iconic quality of the presidency, many Americans will feel discomfort with the mainstreaming of a marginal faith that a Romney presidency would represent. It's one thing to listen to the Mormon Tabernacle Choir or to elect Harry Reid or Orrin Hatch. It is quite something else to elect a Mormon President. Americans accept partisanship and diversity in our legislators. But the presidency is supposed to unite the nation, and for many, Romney's reassurances can't address the apprehension they feel in their guts.

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December (Web-only) 2007, Vol. 51