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.
Hey, you’re in Ohio...I can recommend a wonderful church for you if you are in the northeast. :) Seriously, I’m about as cynical and wary as they come, and we have an awesome church home.
Thanks, but I’m actually in Northern Kentucky. Too far, I’ll bet :)
Naturally, you threw me with the Ohio flag.
-—When government learns to like controlling these things to help us out and be our savior from these people, government will not know where to stop. They will begin micromanaging all churches eventually, and even begin chipping away at our right to free assembly.-—
This is the most salient point to be made. The government already has too much information on people who give charitably to churches through the 501c3 exemption. Having to fill out tax forms stating to which church and how much money was given is information that the government should not be in a position to obtain.
While I don’t believe that abuses are happening right now because of this, it is possible and perhaps likely that they will occur in the future.
-—I was not referring to legitimate local churches who are good stewards.-—
Who determines legitimacy and good stewardship? Do they have to scrutinize the books of all churches to determine this? Do they have to make laws that make all charitable giving illegal unless reported?
This whole setup as it is now is too much power for government to have. Maybe the Fairtax would address these issues( I haven’t researched the Fairtax proposal well enough to recommend it yet ), but something has to change to take away the possibilities of governmental abuses of power.
He should just claim that victory against the heathen Grassley and it will all be fine... after all Copelands SURELY doesn't have anything to hide right?
Which is of course exactly why these fake churches should be investigated.
You do have a point there! But I have no sympathy for the word faith preachers who think they’re entitled to a life of luxury cuz they’re ‘king’s kids.’
YOu're right. He just threatens you with God's displeasure.
And makes false promises of prosperity if you give. And pads his own nest. No problem with that. /sarc
And you would just say "you didn't have enough faith!" ;-)
Uh... no, actually when you file as 501c3 you must agree to comply by those things. And our church's building probably cost $100K and we DON'T have a zillion dollar budget,our pastor doesn't get royalties from books, drive a rolls, (or five or six) have a jet plane, or a mansion. So yeah, I guess it would be kind of strange if they came looking at our books... unless someone were running their private business income through it.
You are proposing that the government check these guys out simply because they are involved in religion.
How about checking them out because they use government credit cards to buy prostitutes for the evening ~ you know, something we can get our teeth into.
Last thing I want is someone in government to be in the business of determining what is or is not a "phoney religion".
Jesus ~ undoubtedly a manifestation of God ~ said things and taught things and did things.
Point to what he said, taught and did, not what you think he might have said, might have taught and might have done. That's because to conjur up those words, lessons and deeds in your mind you have to put your mortal person in the place of God Himself.
That's little different than the Ba'al prophets who burned children to divine the future (or whatever else they did).
Just letting you know ~ so, if you are "pretty sure Jesus didn't say" something you should, instead, point to what he did say on the matter ~ and you can get help finding out what that was right here on the internet.
OH that's choice!
Titus 1:10 For there are many rebellious men, empty talkers and deceivers, especially those of the circumcision,who must be silenced because they are upsetting whole families, teaching things they should not teach for the sake of sordid gain.
2 Timothy 3:1-9But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come.For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, revilers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy,unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, haters of good, treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power; Avoid such men as these. For among them are those who enter into households and captivate weak women weighed down with sins, led on by various impulses, always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth. Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so these men also oppose the truth, men of depraved mind, rejected in regard to the faith. But they will not make further progress; for their folly will be obvious to all, just as Jannes's and Jambres's folly was also.
We already know about a preacher who brought prostitutes into his Bible College. Would you like to discuss him as well?
When large amounts of money get mixed in with religous piety it usually equals a less than holy result.
Uh... no.... simply because they claim tax exempt status in the name of religion. I suppose I could do that too and run all my hobby profits through the books... make my house into a mansion, etc. and call it a non-profit organization. Cool!
He wouldn’t be the first guy to hire a whore of course. Did he do it with a government credit card?
You'll notice that schools, hospitals, a wide variety of charitable groups, research labortories, and so forth can receive nonprofit status.
The USPS maintains a separate category for churches, synagogues, temples, mosques and so forth because ~ get this, if it isn't a real hoot ~ because THE FIRST AMENDMENT IDENTIFIES THEM A HAVING RIGHTS THAT ARE EXEMPT FROM GOVERNMENT SCRUTINY.
Wow, the First Amendment!!! And USPS knows that, and IRS relegates churches, synagogues, etc. to a more general category that does not differentiate religious groups (with their First Amendment rights) from folks who collect aluminum cans so they can donate the money to Al Gore's organization.
This happened in a piece of legislation passed in the Lyndon Johnson regime, and it's since been insinuated thoroughly into the IRS beliefs system through a series of regulatory actions over there.
USPS still has the previous system that recognized Constitutional rights.
Well, anyway, churches didn't need any special dispensation from the gurus at IRS prior to that piece of mistaken, unconstitutional legislation.
There have been weak attempts in Congress to get legislation through that reverses this mistake.
Eventually Constitutional purity will demand redress and the law will be changed. In the meantime it's for folks like me to point to the law governing IRS' categories and laugh!
Again, the mere fact something is law doesn't make it right, or even legal.
I recall taking Ewing's "evidence" of his right and stuffing it in a large bag, running it through a compacter, and storing it away in a closet "for the duration".
He never gave up. USPS never gave up. I think Ewing finally died and I do hope his "evidence" was disposed of properly.
I could put scriptures in bold too and post them to you. (and a few friends like you did) So what.
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