His decision was political and pragmatic, he acknowledged: he faced a tough primary battle and trailed in the polls. But his revulsion at President Trump also appeared to reflect his Mormon faith. It is a faith that puts a premium on decorum and comity, one that was born in America but is increasingly international and multicultural, and one whose young people often wear rings engraved “CTR” as a reminder of the hymn, which begins, “Choose the right when a choice is placed before you.” from the NYTimes.
When pioneers to Utah came
They did not seek for wealth and fame.
They sought a refuge for the soul,
Where they could live both pure and whole.
But politics soon made a rift,
Which caused a few to sorely drift.
Midst the Mormon men and ladies
Crept a whiff of shady Hades.
Until today the LDS
All sorts of policies profess
When to the polls they godly go
To keep things honest here below.
But when a leader comes along
Who won’t see what is right or wrong,
The folks begin to coalesce
And hope the spirit will impress
Some Saint to rise up quick and smite
Great Washington’s own Moabite.
Jeff Flake may be that David meek
Whose pebble strikes Trump on the beak.
Or maybe like that Herod lout
He’ll start to rot from inside out.
However Trump will go away,
All creeds about it ought to pray&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&
The author of the NYT article quoted at the top of this piece, Laurie Goodstein, replied to me about this poem in an email, thus:
Hi Tom,
That's one of your best, I think. They've opened comments on the story. You should post this, if you haven't already!
Your fan,
Laurie
Laurie Goodstein
National Religion Correspondent
The New York Times
(She has called me 'Tom' for the past 2 years . . . )
No comments:
Post a Comment