Posted on 09/25/2012 4:57:07 PM PDT by kingattax
Actual Letter at LINK
Barry Lynn is no more a Christian than Barack Obama.
Wonder how Jeremiah Wright’s church took that letter. Wonder how it resonated with the Nation of Islam? What about all the leftie churches out there? Sauce for the goose ....
Barry Lynn would have run to the British to tell them what was being talked about in colonial churches.
Every minister that gets this should violate the law. The IRS will be so swamped by this they’ll just throw in the towel.
Every church in America should violate this law.
It would be like a ddos attack on the IRS.
Its not illegal for them to speak out on politics in churches but they will be taxed if they do so.
That in itself makes the tax questionable.
This election I would hope every church who is pro life and and supports Israel better speak out very strongly against Obama.
Refuse to pay the tax or comply with any orders.
It shoulkd start with the Catholic churches. Threaten excommunication for any Catholic who votes or supports Democrats. Even wearing a button or having one of Zero’s bumper stickers on your car should be good reason to give ‘em the thumb.
Again, if all do it, the IRS will be swamped.
Didn't think so.
In 2003, this story popped back up on Newsmax, covering the same topic.
With Carl Limbacher and NewsMax.com Staff
For the story behind the story... Tuesday November 7, 2000; 9:37 AM ET
Jesse Jackson Jr. Says Church Politicking 'Supersedes the Law'
It may be against federal election law to campaign in church. But for Democrats seeking to get out the vote in minority districts, politicking from the pulpit has become indispensable.
In the last days of this year's campaign, Vice President Al Gore, Senate candidate Hillary Clinton and her husband have all made regular appearances at African-American and Hispanic churches.
Even when parishioners objected to Mrs. Clinton campaigning from the altar at a Rochester, N.Y., Catholic church last week, the rules were not enforced. Those who didn't like it were simply ejected by police while the first lady continued her campaign speech.
Congressman Jesse Jackson Jr., whose namesake is both a reverend and one of the Democratic Party's most vocal boosters, was challenged on the issue Monday during a Tennessee radio interview on WLAC-AM by "Nashville This Morning" hosts Steve Gill and Terry Hopkins.
GILL: Let me ask you about this. It's against IRS regulations for politicians to campaign from the pulpit. Why are these politicians campaigning in black churches?
JACKSON: I'm not totally convinced that's true in the African-American community. Certainly there's a separation of church and state. But in our community there's little distinction between our religion and our politics. ... And so in many African-American churches born out of experience in this country, the role of the churches has evolved into a very, very active political institution which has been very effective for a number of causes in the black community.
HOPKINS: And that supersedes the law?
JACKSON: Absolutely. Oh, absolutely.
-PJ
From the NewsMax.com Staff Thursday, June 3, 2004
For the story behind the story... Only Democrats Are Allowed to Campaign in Churches
Anti-religious zealots and hypocrites who don't object when the likes of John Kerry and Al Sharpton and Bill Clinton and Al Gore and Jesse Jackson and Jimmy Carter campaign in churches are feigning outrage that President Bush dares to do the same thing.
An e-mail from Luke Bernstein of the Bush-Cheney campaign's office in Pennsylvania asks churchgoers to organize "Friendly Congregations" to promote the president's re-election.
"I'd like to ask if you would like to serve as a coordinator in your place of worship," the message says. "We plan to undertake activities such as distributing general information/updates or voter registration materials in a place accessible to the congregation."
Kevin Madden, a spokesman for the campaign, said: "People of faith feel strongly about the president, are people we want to be part of our campaign. This message is intended to be from individual to individual. This is organizing with individuals who may be members of a church who we hope to identify as supporters and be part of our efforts."
The Internal Revenue Service supposedly bans tax-exempt organizations such as churches from politicking, but Jackson and other Democrats have violated that regulation for decades with impunity. Kerry has recently campaigned and staged photo opportunities at several churches. The New York Times and wire stories attacking the Bush campaign's strategy today refused to mention those facts.
How dare Republicans do what Democrats are allowed to do. Barry Lynn, head of a group that calls itself Americans United for Separation of Church and State, raged, "I have never in my life seen such a direct campaign to politicize American churches."
The Black Robe Regiment encourages them to pay the tax but speak loudly and often.
It’s sad that black ministers are the only ones who seem to fear God more than the government. I will never again donate to a church with a cowardly pastor who believes the government has more power than the Lord he encourages his flock to worship.
This is a critical election year. Some have said it may be the most important election in our life time. With so much at stake, how great it would be to hear from more pastors and priests, during these times when the government encroaches on more of our freedoms.
Some fear that to preach on the moral issues of the day, like abortion or marriage, might be construed as “preaching on politics.” But they are moral issues addressed in the Bible. But I recognize that elements of our culture may have turned them into political ones.
I think part of the reason many pastors and priests are unwilling to speak out on “politics” (so-called) is because they fear the loss of their tax exempt status.
I believe that the perceived threat is far more insidious than the actual threat. The dog’s bark is much more prominent than the dog’s bite.
I also believe there are some who stoke this fear. For example, Rev. Barry Lynn (a liberal minister) of Americans United for the Separation of Church and State sends out letters like clockwork during election years, warning pastors to not say anything too political or he’ll be sure to tell the IRS on them.
For example, during the last president election, Barry Lynn sent out a letter with the headline: “Election Season 2008.” He stated, “Dear Religious Leader .The First Amendment protects the right of all Americans, religious leaders included, to speak out on religious, moral and political issues.” So far so good.
He goes on more ominously: “However, houses of worship are barred from endorsing or opposing candidates for public office and may not intervene directly or indirectly in partisan campaigns. Any activity designed to influence the outcome of a partisan election can be construed as intervention. If the IRS determines that your house of worship has engaged in unlawful intervention, it can revoke the institution’s tax-exempt status or levy significant fines on the hour of worship or its leaders.”
I asked Mat Staver about this letter. He heads Jerry Falwell’s law school and also Liberty Counsel, his own organization fighting for religious liberty. He responded, “I think Barry Lynn’s letter is bogus. It’s basically full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.”
Really? Staver continued, “Look at Barry Lynn-—how many of these cases has he ever won? Zero. How many churches have ever lost their tax-exempt status since this was put into the IRS code in 1954? Zero. And in fact, if you have that kind of a track record, I don’t think his advice is that strong.”
http://www.christianpost.com/news/pastors-and-the-irs-bogeyman-71459/
Its sad that black ministers are the only ones who seem to fear God more than the government.
$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$
I missed the sarcasm tag. Or was it so obvious that it didn’t need one?
Please tell me this is sarcasm.
You will never get Barry Lynn to threaten the African American churches that support Obama (just like they did Clinton) even when they do it from the pulpit. I know because I turned in several of them and Barry Lynn & his butt boy Rob Boston mocked me. They can kiss my *ss and Iold them so.
They are political antongonists masquerading as religious leaders. They intimidate their opponents to help win elections for liberals.
Just vaguely describe the candidate without naming ....
Rob Boston is senior policy analyst at Americans United for Separation of Church and State. Rob, who has worked at Americans United since 1987, also serves as assistant editor of AU’s “Church & State” magazine. Rob is the author of three books: “Close Encounters with the Religious Right: Journeys into the Twilight Zone of Religion and Politics” (Prometheus Books, 2000); “The Most Dangerous Man in America? Pat Robertson and the Rise of the Christian Coalition” (Prometheus Books, 1996) and “Why the Religious Right Is Wrong About Separation of Church and State” (Prometheus Books, 1993; second edition, 2003).
http://au.org/about/people/rob-boston
Maggie Garrett is the Legislative Director for Americans United for Separation of Church and State.
Maggie has been working on church-state separation issues for more than a decade. Although she started her civil liberties work as a litigator, she now works in the public policy arena. She represents Americans United before Congress and the Obama Administration, and she oversees the state legislative program. She leads the National Coalition for Public Education (NCPE), the national coalition that opposes school voucher legislation, and is the chair of the Coalition Against Religious Discrimination (CARD), which is the national coalition that fights to repeal the Bush Faith-Based Initiative.
Maggie was actually the first Madison Fellow in the Legal Department of Americans United in 2000 before she moved down south to work for the ACLU of Alabama and then the ACLU of Georgia. At the ACLU of Georgia, she litigated high-profile cases on issues including the separation of church and state, free speech, reproductive rights, and voting rights.
Non-partisan my *ss.....
Peter Kurdock is the Assistant Legislative Director for Americans United for Separation of Church and State.
Before joining Americans United, Peter was the Legislative Director for a not-for-profit organization focusing on First Amendment issues. Previously, he worked as an Associate Director of Policy for State Affairs for the American Association for Justice (formerly the Association of Trial Lawyers of America). Peter has also served as a Legislative Aide to United States Senator Frank R. Lautenberg and Congressman Bill Pascrell, Jr.
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