all in all, a good reminder.

the pastor of the last baptist church i attended worked politics into every sermon, it seemed. and while i don't think he ever came out and said, "if you're a Christian, you'll vote for bush and not for kerry," the implication was certainly there.

and whose church hasn't received the Christian coalition's little handout outlining each candidate's stance on every issue - every issue, that is, that the cc wants to look at and make the central issues of import?

pastor bevere's last sentence read, "we forget the church's more profound political task of reminding the nations of the world that it is God who reigns and they are on borrowed time."

(a) God doesn't yet reign in this world - if He does, He's certainly made a mess of things. the bible is clear who the prince of this world is (even though i don't believe in him...).

(b) i always wince when i see someone expressing what they believe to be God's judgment on others, ie, "...they are on borrowed time." almost jonah-ish, ain't it? maybe i'm wrong, but i don't believe any of the end-time judgments require all the citizens of any nation to be judged as one (even though i have doubts about these judgments...).

it is interesting - i would say encouraging, but i haven't quite made up my mind yet - how central religion is to this year's presidential race. i guess they are imagining the group that put bush into office twice - a group that really doesn't exist anymore.

i just believe it's high time we stop calling people Christian or non-Christian based on who (whom?) they vote for in an election.

Thank you Pastor Bevere for this very important post. I am amazed at the number of pastors who live in fear of having their tax-exempt status revoked and thus remain silent on of the most important of life's issues. On the other hand, I think it's important that God's people are reminded by their pastors that the ultimate solution to mankind's problems is not political but spiritual. And we can all have influence on our nation through prayer and right living. Two passages of scripture come to mind. "Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a disgrace to any people." (Proverbs 14:34, and "If I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or if I command the locust to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among My people, and My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray, and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive thir sin, and will heal their land." (2 Chronicles 7:13-14)

Nice post. Just today I addressed your point 9 about distributing non-partisan voter scorecards as a result of my old church in NH preparing its congregation for tomorrow's primary. Feel free to have a look!

melody, melody, melody...

i just *knew* someone would quote the 2nd chronicles passage. how did i not know it would be *you*? :)

while the principle may be somewhat applicable to the church, or the US, or Native Americans, or any Muslim country, the passage is pure and simple a promise to ISRAEL, no one else. hence the references to "My people" and healing "their land."

let's watch our hermeneutics a little more closely, ok?... :)

Is the issue really about tax exempt status? The issue seems to be whether or not a pastor can stand behind the pulpit and say this guy is God's guy and this guy isn't. When Fox news or CNN is shaping our world view more than God's Word.

We need to be a voice to our government, but it is hard to be a prophetic voice when we have drawn party lines. We watch as the conservative voice is now dismissed because it is aligned with the "Religious Right" and there is also the Religious Left.

We need to transcend politics and party lines. We hold all leaders accountable, but it can't be done shouting across party lines.

What is it if we gain the whole world and lose our own soul?

A quick Google search reveals news stories about Abyssinian Baptist Church in Harlem holding a rally for Hillary Clinton and the United Church of Christ in Hartford holding a rally for Barak Obama. These churches officially endorsed the candidates.

So, may we please retire the myth that Christian Conservatives are endangering our sacred separation of church and state? Politically Liberal pastors are at least as bold about their politics as Conservatives, probably more.

Certainly, if Barak Obama wins the Democratic nomination, he will be the darling of the Emergent and Sojourners et. al. Class warfare rhetoric (known as covetousness in Biblical terms) will play well with them. Depending on who the Republican nominee is, we could see the first clear cut, high profile battle between the so called religious left (Campolo, wallis, etc.) and the religious right, (what is left of it anyway). It turns out that liberal theology and liberal politics go hand in hand and vice versa.

I think that the good Pastor Bevere should look beyond the "legal vs illegal" posturing and look at the overall effect of what it does to the church.
If Pastor Bevere, along with all Pastor's who like to swing the O'l Political gavel while holding court in Church to a CAPTIVE AUDIENCE which undoubtedly contains quite a few of those who are young in the lord, and therefore SUSCEPTIBLE TO UNSCRUPULOUS spiritual manipulation should remember this simple, and yet profound statement...which, oddly enough, is found in the bible...Proverb's 14:12, "There is a way that seems right to a man, but that way leads to death." Which may also mean the death of someone else they had no intention of dying.
And if that doesn't sink in, perhaps, "Man's ways are not G-d's ways" will focus the previous statement more.
The next time you, a pastor, feels the need to embark on a political crusade for whatever reason, give a good deal of thought to the one law we're still living under...THE LAW OF UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES!

"The road to hell is paved with good intentions."

Thanks for the insights, Allan. I would add two things: first, the non-partisan voters guides are seldom so, second it is my understanding that a pastor or church can advocate for issues, such as a mental health levy.

No church or pastor should endorse any candidate in any election anytime. The job of the church is to preach the gospel, not endorse political candidates or support political causes, whether the candidate has views you agree with or not. The only thing the church should do is to pray - as endorsed in scripture - for those in government.

Pastors most certainly should be involved in the election of candidates. Romans 13:1-7 reveals that God raises up government. Rulers rule only by His authority. In America 'we the people' are the government. Every Christian must be involved in government because we are the government. It is our duty to be involved. The primary reason our nation is in the bad shape it is in is because Christians have dropped out of public policy. And the simplest and yet most profound way to elevate moral candidates is to teach the Constitution. And elect the most constitutional candidates. Let's stop hiding behind the 501c3 curtain.

Lee,
You state, and I quote you...

"Rulers rule only by His authority. In America 'we the people' are the government. Every Christian must be involved in government because we are the government."

So...I'm thinking...who is this "we" you speak of...does that include Muslims, Mormons, Catholics, Buddhists, Shinto's, Pagan's (whatever that is these days), atheists, etc?

Or are you referring to that heretical doctrine called Dominionism whereas the "we" being christians who are the ones in "authority"?

I find it amazing that the more right-wing (and therefore deeply political) ministers and people are, the quicker they are to cry, "Keep politics out of the pulpit!" the moment there is biblically-based criticism of their policies! It takes enormous effort to ignore the fact that Jesus' message and actions were a critical foundation with the systems and structures of his day - and he was certainly no supporter of the status quo!

Blessings.

Because we are ministers of the Gospel of Jesus Christ we cannot keep ourselves out of politics. Political matters are our business. I am speaking here of politics and political matters in a fundamental way, meaning the base of power and authority to take action in the world. The problem with "Christians" in politics is not that we are or are not involved enough, but rather that we stop short of asserting our true political power in bringing all power and dominion (including our own) under Christ's authority. We are weak only because we acquiesce to a system that is designed to not allow truth to reign.

For ministers this means being intentional about EVERY ASPECT of our political stance, not simply picking and choosing our pet issue(s). Notice how quickly this thread has turned to "right vs. left". What drives that? It's the system we assume we have to be working with in. The process is setup in such a manner to force false choice. And false choice is no choice at all. Where is my candidate? Where is the one who affirms all life? Where is the one who the one who transcends "party" lines for what is "good and right"?

I'm tired of picking the "lessor of two evils." My candidates credentials are too high. Meantime, I'll pray for the evil elected that we might do more good than harm. I'll save the pulpit for the One who is worthy of endorsement.

Here in England there are no restrictions on what I can say in the pulpit.
I would have thought that freedom of speech was more important than tax breaks, and that if pastors really felt called to make a stand they should do so and take the IRS consequences.
You all left England for low taxes or religious freedom - perhaps you can't make up your mind which you really prefer?
ps I'll be endorsing Barack Obama from the pulpit, even though we don't get to vote. Let me tell you that if we did, then George Bush would not have won.