Mitt Romney wants to “save America’s soul”, according to a post tonight on Facebook.

I have said before – and I firmly believe – that this campaign is about saving the soul of America. And it is driven by the unshakable optimism that lies within our American hearts.

God saves our souls, not politicians. Having the freedom to decide what God’s will is in our lives and being able to live that out is protected by the First Amendment to the Constitution. Mitt Romney was sworn to uphold the Constitution as Governor of Massachusetts, but he didn’t do that because his “personal view” was that he shouldn’t defend the freedom of the Catholic Church to refuse to participate in abortion.

On December 8, 2005 Romney reversed the legal opinion of his own State Department of Public Health, instructing all Catholic hospitals and others to provide the chemical Plan B “morning after pill” to rape victims.  He was quoted as saying, ““I think, in my personal view, it’s the right thing for hospitals to provide  information and access to emergency contraception to anyone who is a  victim of rape.”

The Obama Administration has followed the lead of Massachusetts and the result could be the end of Catholic hospitals in America, according to Cardinal George.

Mitt Romney’s campaign is about “saving America’s soul?” No. It’s about selling America’s soul, to the highest bidder. “This election is about the economy,” we are told ad nauseum on Fox News, et al, but if you take a look at some of the billionaires funding negative attack ads on Rick Santorum, it’s pretty easy to see why they want you to think this election is about “the economy.” They want you to think that so that you will yawn while they crush the unborn, traditional marriage as a civil institution, and very literally the freedom of the Church.

I would argue that “optimism” is not at all what is the “driving force” in our hearts that will result in a saved soul. Making the choice for God as a matter of conviction is the “driving force.” Conviction to do the right thing is not what Mitt is about, though. I went back and read again an article on him at the New York Times that focuses on his role as a Mormon bishop and his personal view on what it is that makes people saints.

As the highest-ranking Mormon leader in Boston, Mr. Romney was responsible for determining whether Mr. Clark was spiritually fit for a mission, a rite of passage for young Mormon men. Mr. Clark had previously lied to him, insisting that he was eligible to go. But instead of condemnation that night, Mr. Clark said, Mr. Romney offered counsel that the younger man has clung to for years.

“He told me that, as human beings, our work isn’t measured by taking the sum of our good deeds and the sum of our bad deeds and seeing how things even out,” recalled Mr. Clark, now 37, sober and working as a filmmaker in Utah. “He said, ‘The only thing you need to think about is: Are you trying to improve, are you trying to do better? And if you are, then you’re a saint.’ ”

Does that mean that we should “meet Mitt where he is” and forgive his assault on the Catholic Church in Massachusetts because he “just didn’t know any better” and was “trying to do better”? No. We cannot put a man into the Oval Office who is either (1) evil, or (2) incompetent on a matter as serious as whether or not the Church should be free to fulfill her mission in America. Forcing the Church to either participate in abortion or close her hospitals is not something that we can just “let slide” particularly considering that it gives credibility to Barack Obama on the HHS mandate.  Make no mistake, if you let Mitt slide on this, then it is obvious that your criticism of the president on the HHS mandate is for some reason other than the HHS mandate.

Being a bishop, I suppose Mitt knows more about Mormonism than I do, but I know a lot of Mormons and the ones I know are conviction conservatives who would never think of taking away the freedom of the Catholic Church to at least try to fulfill her mission, particularly to the sick, without being oppressed by the government. A lot of Catholics and Evangelicals I know are concerned that Mitt Romney is a Mormon and they don’t want a Mormon to be president, especially a bishop. Judging from the Mormons I’ve known, though, when I see Mitt, I don’t think “Mormon” at all. No Mormon I know would even think of forcing Catholic hospitals to participate in abortion.

Mitt Romney appears to be trying to appear to be principled while ending up on the wrong side so often that it has reached the level of horrifying. I would say that no one should decide not to vote for Mitt because he’s a Mormon. I would say you shouldn’t vote for Mitt because, having attacked the Catholic Church’s freedom that is guaranteed by our Constitution that Mitt swore to defend, he isn’t Mormon enough.

Here’s the screen shot from Mitt Romney’s Facebook page.  How sad that so many “liked” this. America’s soul does need saving, but it’s our churches, first and foremost, who help God in His work of saving souls. If we crush the churches and put our faith in politicians who have no conviction, what is there to be optimistic about in America? Not much.

Vote for Rick Santorum who stresses the need for America to be a place of FREEDOM for mediate institutions like churches, civic organizations, universities, hospitals and others to do the work in making a more just society that has limited government.