I was minding my own business, listening to Elvis Costello on my headphones, (which I am wont to do) when he sang the following line in his unique voice: "Maybe Jesus wants you for a sunbeam."

Recently, CBS News did a story on the frontliners for the 2012 presidential candidates. Each person mentioned was given a list of campaign strengths and weaknesses. Two of the names mentioned have Utah connections and are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints: Jon Huntsman Jr. and Mitt Romney. Amid claims that other candidates weaknesses included lack of fundraising power, name recognition and moral issues, CBS News cited belonging to the LDS faith as a weakness for both Huntsman and Romney. And CBS News is not alone in its views. Other members of the media have pointed out that Huntsman and Romney’s religion could be a major drawback in their candidacies.

Let me make it clear at the start that I am not (and never have been) a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. So I am writing as an outsider. That being said, I have had several encounters with Saints over the past two decades, and I would venture to say that every one of them has been positive. So, yes, I write as an outsider, but as a friend.

What is wrong with talking about Mormonism when talking about Mitt Romney and his run for the Presidency? On CNN last Sunday, David Axelrod, President Obama’s strategist, promised that his campaign did not consider Romney’s faith “fair game.” The implication, there, is that Mormonism is a weak point to be exploited—a card that one would only expect the Obama team to play from the bottom of the deck. And given that suspicions about Mormonism are widely thought to have cost Romney votes in the South, there may be good reasons for thinking so. Romney has also said, rightly, that some matters of faith are properly private. It might be that, in the interest of civility and electoral prudence, neither Obama nor Romney can initiate a conversation about what it means to be Mormon in this country. But perhaps the rest of us should, because the story is complicated, fascinating, and utterly American.

Mitt Romney told an Iowa audience on Thursday that he has no plans to deliver another speech about his Mormon faith after a Dallas pastor raised the issue earlier this month. “I think the great majority of American people want to select the person who’s the most capable of getting our country going again, with strong values and a strong economy and a strong military,” the Republican presidential candidate said at a campaign event in Council Bluffs, Iowa, Thursday afternoon. “Among the things that are unique and exceptional about our country is the fact that, in America, we recognize and appreciate differences in faith.”

It was their first big assignment together. And it was a doozy.

When Justin Mozina was growing up in Crestview, he was not serious enough about preparing to go on a Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints mission.

Stephen Mansfield is the best-selling author of “The Faith of George W. Bush” and “The Faith of Barack Obama,” books which plumbed the theological underpinnings of the last two presidents. Now he has written “The Mormonizing of America,” a book scheduled for release next week that looks at the theology and influence of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints – the religion of the Republican presumptive nominee for president. We asked Mansfield some questions about his book, the LDS religion and its most famous political adherent, Mitt Romney.

For "I'm a Mormon" messages with surprising twists or surprising lessonsto learn or that share the stories of 5 famous musicians, check out our other stories.

Six-year-old Claire Ryann Crosby has been on The Ellen Show more than most big-name actors, not to mention she starred in live-action retellings of The Little Mermaid and Anastasia. But despite her YouTube and Hollywood fame, Claire's most stunning videos continue to be those that testify of her faith, including this gorgeous new video, "Consider the Lilies."