The Northampton Seminar
February 22, 2012
Do Jews Have a Mormon Problem?
By Elliot Jager
The religious values of presidents seldom satisfactorily explain their attitudes toward the Jews. Franklin Roosevelt’s Episcopalian faith could not have foretold his hard-hearted policies during the Holocaust. Harry Truman and Jimmy Carter, both Baptists, went in opposite directions, with Truman quick to grant Israel diplomatic recognition and Carter conspicuous in his anti-Israelism. Who knows to what extent Barack Obama’s affiliation with the United Church of Christ provides any insight into his administration’s erratic, often disquieting policies toward Jerusalem?
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