Pulpit Freedom Sunday October 7, 2012

For the third year in a row the Alliance Defending Freedom (formerly the Alliance Defense Fund) is sponsoring Pulpit Freedom Sunday.

You see, the ADF, "wants at least some of those participating pastors to endorse or oppose a candidate for public office in violation of the Internal Revenue Code prohibition against political intervention by organizations described in section 501(c)(3).

This provision of the code says applicable organizations cannot “participate in, or intervene in (including the publishing or distributing of statements), any political campaign on behalf of (or in opposition to) any candidate for public office.” It was established in 1954 by an amendment introduced by then-Sen. Lyndon Johnson as a reaction to non-profits that attacked him during a tight race for his Senate seat. Today, it serves as an important factor in preventing the politicization of tax-exempt houses of worship."

Each year the number of participating churches grows. The ADF hopes to have over 1000 churches break the law this year, forcing the IRS to either fine a church or revoke its tax exempt status. If this happens the ADF will mount a legal challenge, and the ADF is betting that they'll win on First Amendment grounds. If they do, no longer will a 501(c)(3) status prevent nonprofits from endorsing particular candidates.

Last year, no churches in Rhode Island admitted to participating. A list put out by the ADF listed five participating churches in Massachusetts and one in Connecticut. The closest participating church to us here in Rhode Island was Grace Baptist Church in Attleboro.

The issue of participation is interesting, because when these pastors break the law, the ADF wants them to send videos of themselves doing so to the IRS. This is an act of civil disobedience, after all. However, a small church is largely unmonitored by the IRS, and could easily use this time to violate the law and not inform the IRS of their doing so, because the IRS will be busy reviewing dozens or hundreds of videos from participating churches.

If the ADF wins their case, it may well cut against them. This ruling will not just affect right wing conservative churches, it will also affect liberal churches, and every other 501(c)(3) charity. It will have a warping effect on our democracy, similar to what happened after the Citizens United decision.

The video below is priceless. It uses historical examples of religious leaders speaking out against slavery and in favor of civil rights, and draws a parallel to issues of marriage equality and reproductive rights. What's missing here is that churches are of course free to speak out on these issues, they just can't tell you who to vote for IF they want to retain their tax exempt status. If they want to start paying taxes, they can say anything they want. But the issue is not being honestly framed in this video or by the ADF.

The ADF is framing this issue as the beginning of the next "Great Awakening." These are times when reason and secularity retreat and religion and superstition gain power. Truly, it's the last thing we need.