Image source: (CNN)

BY JENNIFER MECKLES

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Two presidential hopefuls.

One very successful Broadway musical.

And now... an ad campaign taking over the city of New York.

It’s the new public face of Mormonism.

Newsweek calls it “The Mormon Moment” -- splashing this image on an early June coverpage. (Picuture: Newsweek)

And this is the scene in Times Square this week -- with billboards and taxi tops directing people’s attention to “mormon.org” -- a refurbished new website offering videos, testimonials and a chance to interact with current practicing members of the Church. (Video: CNN, Mormon.org)

Church officials tell CBS -- the goal is to “re-frame some of the possible stereotypes” about Mormonism.

“I think a lot of people - more than half the people in this country know little or nothing about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. And so when you ask the top-of-mind ideas -- they’ll say things like, well, polygamists, secretive, or sometimes sexist. These campaigns are an effort to dispel myths.”

A necessary move, if Mormon’s hope to enter the presidential arena. Both GOP candidates Mitt Romney and Jon Huntsman are members of the Church. But a recent Gallup poll finds:

“... nearly 20% of Republicans and independents saying they would not support a Mormon for president. That is slightly lower than the 27% of Democrats saying the same."

So are the Big Apple ads somehow tied into the campaign? Or is it just coincidence the Church would choose now to rehab it’s image? The Christian Post reports:

“The [Latter Day Saints] church has responded by simply stating its neutrality in the political race... The timing, according to the church, is separate from the presidential race and has more to do with the social atmosphere than a political one.”

Based on the Church’s own statistics -- they’re growing at the rate of 333,000 new members every year.

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Transcript by Newsy.