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Saturday, September 27, 2008

Ministers to Defy I.R.S. by Endorsing Candidates

One of the conditions for a church's tax exempt status depends on if the pastor doesn't politicize the pulpit. Apparently, thirty-three ministers across the country think this is unfair and plan to protest on 'Pulpit Freedom Sunday' on a Sunday to be announced this Sunday.

The organizers of Pulpit Freedom Sunday are convinced that the protest will result in a court challenge to the law. Mr. Stanley said the law was so unclear that, “I anticipate getting to federal court, certainly the appeals court.” But Robert W. Tuttle, a professor of law and religion at the George Washington University Law School, found that unlikely.

I say they don't have a prayer. Nor should they. There's a reason churches are tax exempt - they're charitable institutions - not PACS, lobbyists, or special interests, and should not directly inject themselves into such worldly concerns as politics. Although I'm sure many madrassas and mosques would love the tax exempt opportunity to do so....