For many years, U.S. Senate Finance Committee member Charles Grassley (R-IA), has been looking into the financial practices of large media-based Christian ministries. Although he has not yet proposed any new laws that would govern how ministries report and manage their finances, in January he asked the ECFA
(Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability) to create a commission that will make recommendations about how ministries can be more fiscally accountable.  The ECFA has indicated that it will look into issues such as whether churches should be required to file detailed information returns (990s), the housing allowance, and tax rules governing “love offerings.”  It has also indicated that it hopes to address these issues through self-regulation rather than legislation.

You can learn more about the issues the commission will address here. Also, ADF’s own Erik Stanley has been asked to serve on an advisory panel for the commission in view of his legal expertise in the area of churches and politics. We will continue to keep you updated on the work on the work of the commission.  In the mean time, the best way for churches to minimize risk of running afoul of current or future regulations is to become a member of a financial accountability organization such as ECFA.

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Over at Dakota Voice, Bob Ellis has an interesting post that details the history of politics from the pulpit in America.  Bob does a good job of detailing many of the stories where pastors in American history spoke forcefully and with great conviction from their pulpits about political matters.  From the very beginning of our country, pastors spoke from their pulpits about matters of American life and politics that intersected with morality and religion.  After reviewing this extensive history, Bob concludes:

Seeing this issue in the light of the U.S. Constitution and history,  it is no wonder the Alliance Defense Fund (ADF) launched it’s “Pulpit Initiative” two years ago to challenge the unconstitutional 1954 tax amendment and restore pastoral freedom to America’s churches.

I couldn’t agree more.  If a page of history is worth a volume of logic, then the many pages of history that are filled with stories of pastoral intervention in political matters should be an open and shut case for the logic of jettisoning the Johnson Amendment.

In his excellent book, Why Churches Should Not Pay Taxes, Dean Kelley illustrates the active involvement of churches in American politics:

Throughout the history of the nation – and long before – churches have been active in helping to shape the public policy of the commonwealth in ways they believed God desired.  They were instrumental in setting the stage for the obtaining of independence at its beginning, when the “black regiment” – as James Otis called them – of the dissenting clergy thundered against the tyranny of King George from their pulpits.  A few decades later, the churches, acting corporately, brought an end to the practices of dueling by getting prohibitions against it written into the constitutions of twenty-one states, and no one conceived that this activity had any bearing on their tax exemption.  Churches were active in the effort to abolish slavery (though by the time of the Civil War there were religious apologists for slavery in the churches of the South).  Churches pressed for laws against gambling, Sabbath-breaking, alcoholic beverages, prostitution, and child labor.  They have worked for laws advancing labor organizing, woman suffrage, civil rights, and family welfare.

In none of these instances… was such public-spirited activity of the churches conceived to jeopardize their tax exemption.

History is replete with examples of churches and pastors speaking freely from their pulpits about the great social and moral issues of our day – including the selection of our national leaders.  That all stopped with the passage of the Johnson Amendment through clearly illegitimate means.  It is time to turn back the page of history to restore the constitutional rights of pastors and churches as active participants in our culture.

Pastors – learn more about this effort and sign up to participate at www.pulpitfreedom.org.

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It seems as though a new article comes out each year arguing that religious organizations should not be tax exempt if they oppose a particular politically popular cause, such as abortion or same-sex “marriage.”  What many don’t realize is the IRS already conditions church tax exemption on the pastor’s willingness to forego telling his flock what the Bible has to say about the fitness of a particular candidate for office.  The Johnson Amendment prohibits pastors from endorsing or opposing a candidate for office from the pulpit, and this provision can be violated with “code words.”  So a pastor who encourages the congregation to only vote for candidates who are pro-life could be viewed by the IRS to have violated the Johnson Amendment and the church’s tax exempt status could be revoked.  This law is clearly unconstitutional as applied to churches.  ADF’s pulpit initiative is an effort to challenge it in court.  Pastors can learn more about this effort and sign up to participate at www.pulpitfreedom.org.  Information on what pastors can and cannot say from the pulpit is also available in a resource called “Guidelines for ‘Political Activities’ of Churches and Pastors” on the speakupmovement.org/church resource page.

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We at ADF often are asked what legal issues should most concern churches.  And we make it a practice to ask the many pastors around the country we represent and interact with what they are most concerned about. Based on those experiences, I have compiled a top ten list of sorts that I will be blogging about for the next couple of weeks.  The top concern will be listed first, and is the subject of today’s post.

Land Use – We are seeing a marked increase in the number of churches contacting us because local officials have made it difficult, if not impossible, to build a new facility or expand their current one.  Church use of land is often treated as poorly as sexually oriented businesses.  ADF has already had to file five of these cases this year.  One of those, Palm Beach Gardens Baptist Church v. City of Port St. Lucie, involves three small churches that have been told by the city they cannot locate in a shopping center where private clubs and day care centers are welcome.  The best way for churches to combat this discrimination is first to educate themselves and zoning officials on the law and not just assume the city is acting in compliance with it.  A good place to start is our resource, “Land Use FAQ” on the resource page of speakupmovement.org/church.  If the government officials insist on treating churches less favorably than secular assemblies, the church should contact us, and consider filing a lawsuit to protect their rights as well as those of other churches in the area.

Check back soon for the #2 issue – Property Taxes.

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Guest Blogger and ADF Allied Attorney Steven Lewis writes: 

Churches conduct their ministry in a unique relationship with the American legal system.  There are only a few things churches can be legally forced to do if they don’t do it voluntarily. However, there are a number of ministry administrative steps church leaders should take that can significantly reduce risks of a church participant being injured and filing a lawsuit seeking a significant judgment against the church or its leaders.   

Often the reality is that traditional pastoral leadership training inadequately prepares pastors to recognize these risks or to take steps to prevent incidences of harm. Pastors need to be able to recognize the primary ways people are injured during church ministry activities and take steps accordingly. Major lawsuits against churches can result in severe consequences that can cripple ministry.

The first path of protection is training. Pastors need to carefully select staff for training on specific legal matters such as children and youth safety, church bylaws and governing documents, personnel policies, the risks of church ministerial operations, and insuring the church. Most churches fail to do this even though courts are awarding a growing number of judgments against churches. Unfortunately, it appears that too few churches are responding to these harsh warnings.

Examples of such judicial warnings include one case of child molestation where a jury awarded $120,000,000 against a church for allowing a person with a history of child abuse to work with minors. Another jury awarded $2,000,000 in actual damages and $4,000,000 in exemplary damages “to make an example of” the church when a female employee was raped by a pastor who church leaders chose not to fire after she claimed he sexually harassed her. The degree of the failure of leaders to understand these issues was further proven when another church hired the pastor whose sexual misconduct resulted in the $6,000,000 judgment. Even with these warnings, many pastors live with the risks when they elect not to extend training to staff on safety and security measures. A few hundred dollars for training to prevent harm is much better than the tens of thousands of dollars they’ll probably pay in judgments and legal fees if something does occur. As in so most circumstances – it pays to be prepared.

ADF wants to help pastors understand these legal realities and implement changes to include training of key members of their staff. Adequately trained leaders will do great things for the cause of Christ and will help their church prevent incidents of harm that are far too common in churches today.  

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Be sure to visit our Resources to access valuable information such as “Seven Things All Churches Should have in Their Bylaws.” Having the right information will help insure that your bylaws offer the maximum protection for your church. If you would like to have your church bylaws reviewed by an ADF Attorney, simply fill out a Request for Legal Help and indicate “bylaw review.”