Great Leaders Abhor War and Bloodshed

"Based on the teachings on war in The Book of Mormon, there is only one US presidential candidate that I can support." Those aren't my words. They are the words of my 18-year-old son.  And you know what?  He's right.

I married well, because my kids have many talents, high intelligence, and attractive good looks, but they didn't get much of any of that from me. But I'm especially impressed when it comes to their smarts.

Take my 18-year-old son for example. He told me just a few minutes ago that he's paid careful attention to several of the Republican presidential debates.  During the same period, he told me, he's been reading "the War Chapters" in the Book of Mormon, and he noticed that all great military leaders in the Book of Mormon hated war, that they tried to avoid it, and that they used it only as a last resort.

We talked about one of the greatest of those leaders--a man named Captain Moroni. It's almost ironic, by today's standards, that Moroni was the leader of all of his nation's military, because he hated war. Here's how Moroni is described.

 11 And Moroni was a ^astrong and a mighty man; he was a man of a perfect ^bunderstanding; yea, a man that did not delight in bloodshed; a man whose soul did joy in the liberty and the freedom of his country, and his brethren from bondage and slavery;

 12 Yea, a man whose heart did swell with thanksgiving to his God, for the many privileges and blessings which he bestowed upon his people; a man who did labor exceedingly for the ^awelfare and safety of his people.

 13 Yea...and he had ^asworn with an oath to defend his people, his rights, and his country, and his religion, even to the loss of his blood.

Based on that description, my son said, there's only one candidate to vote for as President of the United States, and that man is Ron Paul.

It's not something that could be promulgated from the pulpit, but it's nonetheless an inescapable conclusion. The other candidates in the race for the White House don't abhor war--they relish it as a means of proving American world supremacy.

I love it when my kids are smart.