COLLEGE STATION, Texas – Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, confronting what could be the most difficult hurdle in his campaign for president, stood here Thursday to declare both the depth of his faith as a Mormon and his independence from any dictates of the church.

“I do not define my candidacy by my religion,” Romney said in a nationally watched address before a friendly audience at the George H.W. Bush Presidential Library at Texas A&M University.

“I will put no doctrine of any church above the plain duties of the office and the sovereign authority of the law,” said Romney, declaring that the province of the church “ends where the affairs of the nation begin.”

He is simply, he declared in a much-anticipated declaration of independence from a church mistrusted by some evangelical Christians, “an American running for president.”

With this declaration, the Republican candidate confronted a challenge also faced by John F. Kennedy in his own campaign for president in 1960. Kennedy traveled to Houston to face a fundamentalist Christian audience with his assertion that he was not the Catholic Church’s candidate for president, but rather a presidential candidate who happened to be a Catholic.

Romney’s speech recalled that of his fellow Massachusetts politician in many ways, and that seemed to be no accident. His “assertion that no authorities of the church would influence his decisions was very much like Kennedy,” said Bill Martin, a senior fellow at the James A. Baker Institute for Public Policy at Rice University. “He chose to echo Kennedy.”

Unlike Kennedy, however, Romney faced an audience that was supportive from the outset and applauded enthusiastically at several points. Romney was introduced by former President George Bush, who called himself a friend of “this great American family” but made it clear he was not endorsing the former Massachusetts governor.

“It was a good political speech,” Martin said. “He didn’t say what it means to be Mormon, which is all right. I don’t think he should have to … But it may be the issue that is still on the minds of the Christian right.”

This remains the crux of the challenge confronting Romney as the Jan. 3 Iowa caucuses approach. Romney faces a serious challenge in the state from fellow Republican Mike Huckabee, a former governor of Arkansas and a Baptist minister who is campaigning with a direct appeal to evangelicals.

Among Republican voters, the Pew Research Center reports, nearly 40 percent are evangelical Christians and one in four voice reluctance to vote for a Mormon.

“Gov. Romney’s speech was a magnificent reminder of the role religious faith must play in government and public policy,” said James Dobson, head of Focus on the Family. “His delivery was passionate and his message was inspirational. Whether it will answer all the questions and concerns of evangelical Christian voters is yet to be determined, but the governor is to be commended for articulating the importance of our religious heritage as it relates to today.”

Romney made no attempt Thursday to address the tenets of his own religion, which place it at odds with fundamentalist Christian faiths. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints follows not only the Old and New Testaments of the Bible, but also the Book of Mormon, which stems from revelations which the church’s founder reported in the early 1800s. Its current leaders, like founder Joseph Smith, are considered prophets.

But Romney did appeal directly to a national evangelical audience with this testament: “There is one fundamental question about which I often am asked. What do I believe about Jesus Christ?

“I believe that Jesus Christ is the son of God and the savior of mankind. My church’s beliefs about Christ may not all be the same as those of other faiths. Each religion has its own unique doctrines and history. These are not bases for criticism, but rather a test of our tolerance.”

Romney cited America’s tradition of religious freedom in urging voters to put aside any theological differences they might have with himself or other candidates.

“Some believe that such a confession of my faith will sink my candidacy,” Romney said. “If they are right, so be it. But I think they underestimate the American people. Americans do not respect believers of convenience. Americans tire of those who would jettison their beliefs, even to gain the world.”


That appeared to be a self-conscious reference to the biblical question, “What shall it profit a man if he gain the whole world and lose his own soul?”

Like Kennedy, who addressed the impact of “the so-called religion issue” after he had become the Democratic nominee, Romney asserted that the nation faces more pressing issues.

The speech was something of a balancing act. While stressing the bright line between religious doctrine and government policy, Romney also stressed the importance of faith in generating the nation’s values. He promised that his faith would not govern his actions, but also declared that it “indeed will inform my presidency.”

Citing Kennedy, Romney said, “Let me assure you that no authorities of my church, or of any other church for that matter, will ever exert influence on presidential decisions. Their authority is theirs, within the province of church affairs, and it ends where the affairs of the nation begin.”

He added, “We separate church and state affairs in this country, and for good reason. No religion should dictate to the state, nor should the state interfere with the free practice of religion.”

The Rev. Frank Page, president of the Southern Baptist Convention, said he believed the speech provided a strong statement on Romney’s intent to be fair to all people. Page said he also appreciated Romney’s honesty in stating that the Mormon church’s beliefs about Jesus Christ differ from mainline Christianity.

But, Page said he felt Romney didn’t go far enough in explaining his Mormon faith.

Page said he would advise Romney to give another speech in the future that spoke more specifically about his personal faith.

“Because of who he is, and because Mormonism is not a mainline religion traditionally in our country, people still have questions and he still has not dealt with some of the questions people have. So I think at some point, he will need to do that,” Page said.