Home -> Law Blog Directory -> Religion & Law Blogs -> Religion Clause

Religion & Law

: Religion Clause

Obama's Mother Was Baptized Posthumously By Mormons

By Howard M. Friedman

America Blog and the Provo (UT) Daily Herald reported this week that during the 2008 Presidential campaign, someone in the Mormon Church in Provo, Utah posthumously baptized Stanley Ann Dunham, Barack Obama's mother. Time and Seasons explains that the Church has tried to limit baptisms by proxy except where requested by direct descendants. Dunham's name was apparently submitted to the church's FamilySearch.org genealogical site multiple times by at least three different people in three states. The proxy rites were performed in June of 2008, presumably without the knowledge of anyone in the Obama family. Politico quotes LDS spokeswoman Kim Farrah who said in an e-mail statement: "The offering of baptism to our deceased ancestors is a sacred practice to us and it is counter to Church policy for a Church member to submit names for baptism for persons to whom they are not related. The Church is looking into the circumstances of how this happened and does not yet have all the facts. However, this is a serious matter and we are treating it as such."

According to Mormon beliefs, after vicarious baptism, the deceased can choose whether or not to accept the ordinances. (About.com.) In the past, Mormon attempts to posthumously baptize Holocaust victims has generated tensions between the LDS Church and the Jewish community. (AP, 11/11/2008).

Full post as published by Religion Clause on May 07, 2009 (boomark / email).