Liberal HBO pundit refers to Mormon Church as 'cult'


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Updated: 5/21/2012 6:20 pm | Published: 5/21/2012 1:37 pm
SALT LAKE CITY (ABC 4 News) - Controversial HBO talk show host and Barack Obama supporter Bill Maher referred to Mitt Romney's LDS faith as a 'cult' in a Twitter post on Monday.

Maher tweeted:

"Why even listen to #MittRomney on foreign policy? His entire FP experience is 2 yrs trying to brow-beat Frenchmen into joining his cult"

- @billmaher, May 21, 2012


Maher is no stranger to criticism toward The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

In 2008, Maher produced the documentary Religulous, in which he ridiculed many tenets of the LDS faith, mostly using scenes taken from evangelical Christian anti-Mormon films and interviews with two men who left the church.

Presumtive GOP nominee Mitt Romney is a life-long member of the LDS faith and served a full-time two-year proselyting mission to France in the 1960s.

Romney has been faced with the 'cult' moniker in reference to his religion in the past.


The most recent reference to Mormonism as a 'cult' came in October from Texas Pastor Robert Jeffress, who was introducing Rick Perry to a gathering of conservatives in Washington D.C. and spoke to reporters afterward.

Jeffress has since toned down his rhetoric about the LDS faith and has thrown his support behind Romney.

In February, Maher donated $1 million to Priorities USA Action, a super PAC that supports President Obama's reelection.

Maher has been criticized for other controversial remarks on women, causing the Obama campaign to distance themselves from him.


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The views expressed here do not necessarily represent those of ABC4

Rex Whitmer - 5/22/2012 5:54 PM
0 Votes
I can see that there are a LOT of pinheads who think and act like Mahr. Most it appears have no morals and no love for anyone other than themselves. Being pinheads means that they think litle, say much, and respect on one, even themselves. They are quite sated on their own pomposity and respect no one else; most likely even themselves.

wink47 - 5/22/2012 5:43 PM
0 Votes
Bill Maher, Rush Linbaugh, Glen Beck, Lawrence O'Donnell, etc. What do they have in common? They are commentators and are not governed by even the loosest journalistic cannon of ethics. They are shock jocks, entertainers, and agent provocateurs. Being outraged pleases them as much as being in agreement. It is best to ignore them and gently shake your head at those who find them credible.

Bot Bot - 5/22/2012 3:42 AM
0 Votes
Here are the characteristics of a cult: • Small? The Church of Jesus Christ (LDS) has 14 million members in 132 countries. In America, there are more Mormons than there are Presbyterians or Jews. • Excessive devotion? Mormons are devoted to the Savior, but in appropriate measure He would approve of. • Unethical techniques? Ask the pie-throwers to name one. • Control by isolation? Even if Mormons wanted to, this would be impossible with 14 million members in 28,000 congregations throughout the world. • Control by threats? Again, evidence? Mormon missionaries may be exuberant, but do not threaten. • Dependency on the group? The Church of Jesus Christ (LDS) is just the opposite. Mormons want members to be self-reliant and independent so they in turn can help others. • Powerful group pressure? Only if that’s the way the critics prefer to define love. • Strange? Guilty as charged. Mormons plead guilty to all the strange things that were done by Christians in New Testament times that were lost during the great falling away in the aptly named Dark Ages, among them temple worship, baptism by immersion by the father of the family, vicarious baptism for the dead, definition of God, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit as separate but united in purpose, salvation requiring both grace and obedience to commandments, prophets and apostles, unpaid clergy, and continual revelation to guide His Church.

Optimus24 - 5/22/2012 1:33 AM
0 Votes
http://www.religio.de/cudef.html Educational page, not biased towards any view on cults. Claiming some religion a cult is truly just an opinion depending on what you view a cult to be. Based on the definition of a cult Bill Maher and other anti Mormons are a cult too.

iltstt - 5/21/2012 11:34 PM
0 Votes
Who is the Bill guy anyways? Is he suppose to be someone famous? He looks like some homeless guy, I guess we should give him some money to go buy some food.

Estoban - 5/21/2012 5:04 PM
0 Votes
Hey, Bill's his own SuperPac. He's got a right to express his opinion, after all, he paid for it.

dillet - 5/21/2012 4:29 PM
2 Votes
Headlines like this one bring the anti-Mormons out of the woodwork. I'm sick and tired of it. I wish the media would move on to the substantial national issues like the economy and leave the opinions of liberal talking heads out of it.

warwithangels - 5/21/2012 4:26 PM
0 Votes
Vote for this Mere Mortal NOWNOWNOW!! Promise to give yew HUGE Mansion in HeavenlyPlaces OneFineDay!! I V

warwithangels - 5/21/2012 4:23 PM
0 Votes
Americas get tew Choose between TWO Cults this YEAR!! (Usually both candidates belong to the same Protestant Cult, our dominant cult!) Which Cult will WIN?!! Poor Conservatives...most are Protestants who HATE Obama....will decide to VOTE for ConservativeRomney, of the MORMON CULT!! HAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHA....................hehehehehe.....ohmyohmy!!

warwithangels - 5/21/2012 4:16 PM
0 Votes
Everybody KNOWS joesmith is a cultleader of Mormonism. AngelMoroni?!! Everybody KNOWS that it was AngelGabriel who came to recruit VirginMary to have Sex with AncientGodfarther to Birth BabyBoyJesus!! (sorry, joseph)
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