UPDATE 1-In campaign detour, Romney mourns Mormon leader

(Writes through with Romney quotes)

By Claudia Parsons

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah, Feb 2 (Reuters) - White House hopeful Mitt Romney left the campaign trail on Saturday for the funeral of the Mormon church leader but shrugged off criticism of his faith among evangelical Christians.

Three days before "Super Tuesday" voting, the man who would be the first Mormon president if nominated by Republicans and elected in November, said he thought the candidates' philosophy and experience would rate higher with voters than religion.

Tuesday's Republican voting in 21 states, the biggest single day in the contests to choose Republican and Democratic candidates, could be the crucial showdown between Romney and Republican front-runner Arizona Sen. John McCain.

Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton are battling on the Democratic side.

"We've had the discussion about faith now long enough that people have settled one way or another," Romney told reporters on a flight from Salt Lake City to Minneapolis after the funeral of Mormon leader Gordon Hinckley.

"Most people have moved on to my other weaknesses," he said. Asked what those were, he said, "Numerous."

Romney, a former Massachusetts governor and venture capitalist, is fighting to stay in the race against McCain, in what he has billed as a battle for the "heart and soul" of the Republican Party.