Posted on 01/29/2008 9:54:51 AM PST by FewsOrange
It hasn’t generated a lot of headlines, but in the world of religion and politics, it’s a pretty big deal. Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), the ranking Republican on the Senate Finance Committee, recently asked six high-profile, hyper-wealthy Pentecostal televangelists for their financial records, under the suspicion that they’re using their ministries for personal gain. (Imagine that.)
Not surprisingly, most of the televangelists’ ministries have been loath to cooperate with the inquiry. One in particular is pledging a holy war.
Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) has gone after more than a few iconic nonprofits during his tenure atop the Finance Committee, including the Red Cross, Smithsonian and Harvard University.
But now the Finance ranking member and former chairman may have met his match: televangelist Kenneth Copeland of the sprawling Kenneth Copeland Ministries based in Newark, Texas.
In a Jan. 22 closed-circuit broadcast of his 2008 Ministers’ Conference obtained by Roll Call, Copeland pledges a holy war against “Brother Grassley” and the Senate for attempting to get a look at the controversial ministry’s finances. Grassley wrote a Nov. 6 letter to Copeland and five other prominent ministers requesting a variety of financial information.
“You render unto the government what belongs to the government. And you render unto God what belongs to God,” Copeland loudly intones to approving murmurs from the crowd of 1,000 ministers and their guests.
Oh, the irony is rich. These TV preachers believe the separation of church and state is some kind of Satanic, communist plot to be rejected by decent people everywhere. That is, right up until a senator wonders if perhaps they’re abusing their tax-exempt status, at which point the church-state wall is high and impregnable.
Now, I should note that, as a rule, I’m not inclined to have government officials poking around churches’ books — unless the church is receiving tax dollars or is suspected of wrongdoing. In this case, the latter applies.
Grassley contacted six ministries that has engaged in activities that certainly look like fraud. These tax-exempt ministries are required, by law, not to use donations from followers to enrich themselves, and there’s considerable evidence that they’ve done just that.
It’s no wonder, then, that some of these Pentecostal televangelists are reluctant to share information with Grassley. Copeland seems to be quite the drama-queen about it.
After a searing attack on Grassley’s tactics — which Copeland says were designed to sully his image and pressure him via the media — Copeland says he will never provide information on his donors, even if he is ordered to do so by subpoena.
“You can go get a subpoena, and I won’t give it to you!” Copeland storms. “It’s not yours, it’s God’s and you’re not going to get it and that’s something I’ll go to prison over. So, just get over it!” he tells Grassley, jamming his finger into the air. “And if there’s a death penalty that applies, well just go for it!”
I see.
As for the broader political context, because the six ministries involved are all mega-churches, filled with likely Republican voters, there’s quite a bit of consternation about Grassley’s inquiry.
Doug Wead, head of evangelical outreach for ex-President George H.W. Bush, said the move threatens to fracture the tenuous coalition of Pentecostal and Baptist voters that supported President George W. Bush in his campaigns. He said the ministers see the probe as personal because Grassley is a Baptist and the churches are all Pentecostal. Grassley argues the inquiry is about tax-exempt policy and not religious doctrine. He says he did not know the churches’ denominations before the letters were sent.
“He’s dividing the base that George W. Bush had,” Wead contended. “He’s opened this deep fissure. If you look at it as a Republican, it looks disastrous.”
Well, that’s certainly a good reason for a senator to look the other way on suspected fraud and abuse, isn’t it?
As for what kind of “holy war” these ministries might consider, we haven’t seen any details yet, but it should be interesting. Stay tuned.
Your point being...what? That these megachurches should all take institutional vows of poverty? Who sets the limits?
I’m not convinced, yet, that Grassley has any business geting involved in this cooked-up controversy. People who choose to support their church should satisfy themselves that donations are being spent as they would wish. If not, they can stop sending money.
Why the hell does the government want to stick their nose into this kind of thing, with all the crap going on in Washington? I’d suggest we clean up the government’s house, first. Then, we can look outward...
Lock and Load.
Where you work they don't mind you cruising FreeRepublic?
Remarkably open-minded of them...
Ok. I get it, and perhaps these folks should go to court with it, imo a better path to take with their claims against this man and organization.
But, I hate the spectacle of any religious organization in the crosshairs of a congressional investigation. Just the thought raises the hair on my neck simply because it looks like and feels like govt. vs. religion, and friend we already got way to much of that. It also makes Grassley look bad and by extension the GOP. The religious conservatives are a huge part of the Republican coalition necessary to win Pres. elections.
The thing all of us should focus on is the damned tax code and the minions in the army arrayed against ALL OF US, the dreaded IRS. We all know what they are capable of, they themselves, and those in power who use them to destroy people or take them down pursuant to their own agenda.
Liberty is at stake here, IMHO
You mean this?
Luk 6:24-26 MKJV
(24) But woe to you who are rich! For you have received your consolation.
(25) Woe to you who are full! For you shall hunger. Woe to you who laugh now! For you shall mourn and weep.
(26) Woe to you when all men shall speak well of you! For so their fathers did to the false prophets.
Does Copeland and others in his position draw a salary for services performed and if so do they pay tax on that income?
Sorry to be so dense with my questions. Better to ask and learn than remain dumb? LOL
I wish Senator Grassley would get as irate over Congress stealing money from Americans for their entitlement programs, porkbarrel projects and earmaked billion$ so they can keep getting reelected.
Church people give to a ministry because they want to. They give to the thieving government because they have to.
Just pathetic! For the record I am not a Copeland basher. That being said, the rant above sounds absolutely kooky. What ever happened to "Provide things honest in the sight of all men."
Grassley’s interest in what some churches are doing is undoubtedly just a smokescreen to keep us from seeing what he and his Congressional cronies are up to.
Do you think that Copeland and the others can wage a big enough “Holy War” to get Grassley voted out? The man seems to have a problem; not only with churches and ministers but charitable organizations all together.
No, like this, “God loves a cheerful giver.”
I am and He does!
Government never likes competition when it comes to getting people's money...
How many airplanes have you given away? How many churches have you helped build? How many mission organizations do you sponsor and support?
What are you doing for his Glory?
We have a nation of laws, and there are government taxing authorities with the right to investigate all sorts of things of this nature.
Grassley, as usual, is asking us to set aside the laws of this nation and let him, personally, begin holding kangaroo courts.
He's done this sort of thing before.
Exactly, plus Paul says that is the "proper" behaviour ( ...Provide things honest in the sight of all men. Rom 12:7 )
What don't we understand about this Kenneth?
Precisely.
Ever been to IRS? Ever get all balled up on a postal deficiency?
Not everyone you deal with is going to be Christian about it, and that's just the Christians ~ bill collectors for the government are tough as nails.
I've even collected as little as $25 from a store front mosque, and even less than that from a store front church. Only preacher ever whipped one of my rulings was Jerry Falwell, but he was still wrong and he would have lost if our lawyers thought it was worth an appeal.
I actually get to giggling when I read some of this stuff where folks look at the government bill collectors in a positive light ~ how foolish of you people! (ROTFLMAO).
Their mothers must have given them too many enemas as babies or something.
Most churches would rather have the government show up than have God show up...
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