IRS vs. All Saints Church

Rev. Ed Bacon, All Saints Church, agrees that churches should not endorse or oppose politicians, but they should not be neutral about political issues and moral courses of action.

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. said, "The church must be reminded that it is not the master or the servant of the state, but rather the conscience of the state." It would be mighty hard to be the conscience of the country if clergy could not speak about the country's rights and wrongs.

The IRS is examining whether sermons at the church violated laws that pertain to non-profit religious organizations. This action follows in the shadow of a prior year's uproar about a Pastor and congregation that voted out members who didn't support President Bush. The Pastor later resigned.

Read what the current fuss is all about:

• All Saints’ Rev. Bacon Takes On the IRS (TruthDig)
• "If Jesus debated Senator Kerry and President Bush", Rev. Regas'2004 sermon
• "Neighborly love is never neutral", Sept. 2006 sermon by Rev. Bacon

Related links in this blog:

• Is America becoming a theocracy?
• Faith vs. a political agenda

Update (10/14/2006):
The "Faith in Public Life" blog picked up part of this posting and several others in a more in-depth posting. Faith in Public Life postings usually also include videos.