It may not have been politically wise for presidential candidate Mitt Romney to suggest a $10,000 bet against opponent Rick Perry in Saturday's Republican debate. But it didn't really violate Mormon principles.
Sure, the Utah-based faith opposes gambling, as Washington Post "On Faith" editor Elizabeth Tenety writes. And no, Utah has no state lottery and LDS leaders have spoken out about the evils of gambling, especially in casinos.
There is no stance, however, on a friendly wager or verbal challenge between friends or even adversaries.
Husbands and wives do it all the time.
Utah mayors in heavily Mormon cities, such as Provo, routinely place friendly wagers — often for charity — on BYU-Utah football games.
Clearly, those mayors — many of them Latter-day Saints — are still in the church's good graces.
Peggy Fletcher Stack
