The George Soros-supported leftist group ProPublica is demanding the IRS investigate churches for violating the Constitution based on a law passed by Congress in 1954. This is a decades-old battle. Americans United for Separation of Church and State (AU) called “on the Internal Revenue Service to look into allegations that Bellevue Baptist Church in Cordova, Tenn.,” violated “restrictions for posting a link to a pro-family organization on its website.”
I wonder what ProPublica, Americans United, and the ACLU have to say about Jill Biden who spent a Sunday morning campaigning in Black churches in Houston, Texas, for the 2022 mid-term election cycle. I’m sure she did not endorse the Democrat Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo who was in a tight race with Republican challenger Alexandra del Moral Mealer. Hidalgo eventually won.
Black churches have been hotbed assemblies of political endorsements for Democrat candidates for decades, and they have every right to be. Ebeneezer Baptist Church, the church of Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., is a legendary example. That’s why Rev. Raphael Warnock, who is running for reelection in a runoff for the Senate in Georgia against Herschel Walker, made his pitch to the nearly all-black congregation the Sunday before election day.
What restrictions are the ACLU and AU talking about? The First Amendment does not prohibit churches from speaking out on any issue. The amendment is so clear that the people at these Leftist advocacy organizations almost never quote it:
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
Notice that the prohibition is directed at Congress, our nation’s national law-making body. It can’t establish a religion and it can’t prohibit the free exercise of religion. Here’s what Rob Boston, then Communications Director with AU, had to say: “A church cannot link or direct people to an organization telling people how to vote…. All nonprofits, including churches, cannot endorse or oppose candidates. The IRS does warn nonprofits about linking to campaign-related websites.” Notice that the First Amendment gives everybody, churches included, the right to speak about religion, write about religion, congregate about religion, and “petition the government for a redress of grievances,” the very thing some churches are trying to do, and Mr. Boston says they can’t do.
To say it bluntly and boldly, Mr. Boston is lying. His goal is to intimidate pastors and churches to remain silent. He knows that if conservative pastors addressed issues from a biblical perspective, it would mean the near end of liberal domination in America. No church has ever lost its tax-exempt status for speaking out on issues or endorsing candidates, and he knows it.
Former IRS Commissioner Mark Everson warned churches not to speak out on political issues. He claimed that churches that violate IRS regulations could lose their tax-exempt status and be forced to pay a ten percent excise tax on all donations. I would like to see the IRS try to defend the position in court based on the First Amendment. It can’t be done, and Mr. Boston knows it. Notice that Mr. Boston quotes some IRS publication, not the First Amendment.
Recently, Boston wrote, “a new poll by Pew Research Center shows that Americans overwhelmingly oppose houses of worship intervening in partisan politics by endorsing or opposing candidates for public office — a whopping 77% oppose this.” What people support or oppose on this topic is irrelevant in terms of what “houses of worship” are permitted to do in terms of the Constitution.
Intimidating churches has been going on for a long time. Barry Lynn, former Executive Director of AU, monitored the content of Sunday sermons. Adolf Hitler also had this done. If these self-appointed snitches don’t like what they hear, that is, if what a pastor says is “too political” and contrary to a liberal political agenda, they will send video and audio tapes to the IRS for investigation.
Barry Lynn is encouraged that the IRS has been awarded $80 billion to investigate such “violations.” If enough churches challenged the supposed prohibitions, the IRS wouldn’t know what to do. At the moment, the fear factor is enough to keep churches in check. I believe the results of the midterm is evidence of this self-repression by pastors.
There are no constitutional prohibitions against churches speaking out on political issues or endorsing candidates. We got into this mess when in 1954 a law was rammed through Congress by then-Senator Lyndon Johnson to restrict churches from speaking freely on topics they have addressed for nearly two millennia. The following is from the IRS:
The ban on political campaign activity by charities and churches was created by Congress more than a half-century ago. The Internal Revenue Service administers the tax laws written by Congress and has enforcement authority over tax-exempt organizations. Here is some background information on the political campaign activity ban and the latest IRS enforcement statistics regarding its administration of this congressional ban.
In 1954, Congress approved an amendment by Sen. Lyndon Johnson to prohibit 501(c)(3) organizations, which includes charities and churches, from engaging in any political campaign activity. To the extent Congress has revisited the ban over the years, it has in fact strengthened the ban. The most recent change came in 1987 when Congress amended the language to clarify that the prohibition also applies to statements opposing candidates.
This so-called ban is a direct violation of the First Amendment. The First Amendment states, “Congress shall make no law….” In 1954, Congress passed a law prohibiting churches from speaking out on political issues and endorsing candidates. The logic is simple. Since Congress passed such a law, then Congress violated the Constitution. This makes the law null and void.
If you are a pastor who believes in the freedoms outlined in the First Amendment and want to challenge these leftist organizations and the IRS, then I have a deal for you. The Alliance Defense Fund, a Christian legal advocacy group, will defend you.
In response to more than 50 years of threats and intimidation by activist groups wielding the Johnson Amendment as a sword against the Church, ADF began the Pulpit Initiative in 2008. The goal of the Pulpit Initiative is simple: have the Johnson Amendment declared unconstitutional — and once and for all remove the ability of the IRS to censor what a pastor says from the pulpit.
ADF is actively seeking to represent churches or pastors who are under investigation by the IRS for violating the Johnson Amendment by preaching biblical Truth in a way that expresses support for — or opposition to — political candidates. ADF represents all of its clients free of charge.
Don’t be bullied. It’s time to take a stand. Your future and the future of your children are at stake.
One last thing. The purpose of Christian involvement in the political field is not to use the power of the State to impose a religious-political system on the nation but to decrease the power of the State at every level. Christians believe in a biblical jurisdictional separation of Church and State. See my books God and Government and Restoring the Foundation of Civilization: God’s Government or Chaos.
The Principles of Christian Politics
The Principles of Christian Politics is designed to correct the misconceptions that keep many well-minded Christians off the political battlefield, pinpoint the current political battlegrounds where Christian soldiers are desperately needed, and equip willing Christian soldiers with the biblical ammunition they need to wage effective spiritual warfare.
Government 101: The Politics of Authority
Government 101 is deep-dive into government and authority. The course material spans centuries and investigates many forms of government. Your understanding of what it means to be ‘under authority’ will be shifted and your view of ruling and rulers will be enriched. You will come to see the inescapable nature of government, and how man tends to impose authority from the top-down while God’s governmental structure is bottom-up.
Author: Gary DeMar
Gary—who served as President of American Vision for thirty-five years—is a graduate of Western Michigan University (1973) and earned his M.Div. at Reformed Theological Seminary in 1979. Author of countless essays, news articles, and more than 27 book titles, he has been featured by nearly every major news media outlet. Gary also has hosted The Gary DeMar Show, History Unwrapped, and the Gary DeMar’s Vantage Point Webshow and is a regular contributor to AmericanVision.org. Gary has lived in the Atlanta area since 1979 with his wife, Carol. They have two married sons and are enjoying being grandparents. Gary and Carol are members of Midway Presbyterian Church (PCA).
