slideshow

JULIA ROBERTS GOAD

Staff Writer

A former columnist for the Daily News has published a book with insight into the upcoming presidential election.

James Hale is a teaching elder at Oakridge Bible Church in Charleston as well as a theological columnist and blogger.

His book is called, “Why a Christian can and should vote for a Mormon in 2012.”

“The reason for writing this book came after I heard presidential candidates that claimed Christianity, but did not know how to answer ‘Is Mormonism a cult?’” Hale said. “In fact the presidential candidates were rather pitiful as they stumbled over this subject. This subject may have even cost some of them to drop from the race.”

Hale calls himself a Christian apologist.

“An apologist is a person that actively defends his philosophical views,” he explained. “I would be best labeled a Reformed Christian Apologist. We look at the logic of other worldviews and point out the error and inconsistencies we see, causing others to consider their epistemology.”

This is Hale’s first book, but he is already planning to make it relevant, as well as mapping out his next book.

“After the election I plan on changing a few words to make it more relevant for others in the future,” he said. “It will be renamed something like “A Biblical Mandate for a Godly Society”, ….still dealing with the Culture Mandate of Scripture. I also plan on writing a second book that goes along with this subject entitled something like ‘A Biblical Mandate for God’s Kingdom’ that addresses The Evangelical Mandate.”

Although he supports voting for Mitt Romney, Hale says he does not feel Mormonism is a Christian denomination, but in fact a cult.

“This book is not me, as a Christian, giving Mormonism a stamp of approval,” he said. “Christians and Mormons will never worship together. Mormons want to be labeled as Christian, but their doctrine will not allow this. The church has always seen them as a cult.”

In the book, Hale also supports his argument against gay marriage. Here is an excerpt:

“God has setup rules for our society and ordained Biblical Marriage and given orders on how marriage must be followed. Society depends on these orders from God. If society breaks marriage orders, or breaks orders to work for a living, or destroys innocent life that God has created, society will no longer exist. The only reason why we still have a society in this nation comes from the grace of God and people that follow God’s mandates. Basically those that hate God’s orders depend on God followers.

For human society to exist, we must not only have Biblical marriage but civil government.”

Hale says he is not, however, asking for a theological form of government.

“Most of the book builds a case for the church’s goal in society,” he said. “Its goal is not to setup a church run state. Many came from England to escape a church run state. It didn’t work before, it will never work. We the church should be as our forefathers and simply want a society where we can worship as we please.”

Hale’s book is available on Nook, Kindle, and print editions and amazon.com.