Prepare yourself for a taste of the theocratic in the near future. Nearly every election cycle, prominent church figures walk a fine line between an Internal Revenue Service mandate and the right to free speech when they begin to get political in their pulpits. Despite the government's opposition to religious figures endorsing candidates, the preachers are fighting back en masse.
On Sept. 28, over 3 dozen church leaders from at least 20 states plan to endorse, criticize or agree with the policies of one or more of the candidates running for the presidency. Their sermons are an arranged effort by the Alliance Defense Fund, a socially conservative group looking to reverse a 1954 Supreme Court ban on tax-exempt places of worship sponsoring or endorsing candidates in office. The ADF's ultimate goal demands a showdown with the IRS and the government over first amendment rights of the church.
While the first amendment is a noble cause to fight for, ADF officials and church leaders need to be sensible. The separation of church and state is crucial to protecting inconsistent and misguided policy and the prevention of voter exploitation at both the election level and at the legislative level. Church leaders must respect the tax exemption the government already provides them, and not abuse their symbiotic relationship with the state.
Also, those church officials must not forget what they risk with their proposed endorsements on Sept. 28. If they do in fact go through with their endorsements, their parishes run the risk of losing government tax exemption.
To preserve relations between church and state and to avoid a blurred line between politics and religion, the religious leaders should abandon their Sept. 28 endorsements. The ADF should also disband their quest to overturn the 1954 Supreme Court ban on churches endorsing candidates, as it only serves to infuriate the IRS further.
Churches already command enough respect with their tax-exempt status. Pushing the envelope and forcing religion into politics is a foolish way to compromise their fragile relationship.
