Splutters

Posted by Censor Librorum on Oct 2, 2008 | Categories: Dissent, Politics

Defying a federal ban on clergy endorsing political candidates from the pulpit, an evangelical Christian minister told his congregation last Sunday that voting for Barack Obama would be evidence of “severe moral schizophrenia.”

The Rev. Ron Johnson told worshippers in Crown Point, Indiana that the Democratic candidate’s position on abortion and gay partnerships are in “direct opposition to God’s truth as He has revealed it in the scriptures.” thewolfinsheepsclothing.jpg

Another protester, the Rev. Fran Pultro, also shrugged off federal laws restricting his role in partisan politics by telling 45 people  at the Calvary Chapel in Philadelphia that John McCain “is the only candidate I believe a Christian can vote for.”  

“Pulpit Freedom Sunday,” was a day of protest organized by the Alliance Defense Fund, a consortium of Christian lawyers that fight for ultra conservative religious and social causes.

The ADF is hoping a crackdown by the IRS on participating preachers will spark a court fight  over the tax law prohibiting political  endorsements from the pulpit.  They are pushing to “restore” pastors’ rights “to speak Biblical truth from the pulpit.”

The protest drew a paltry amount of even rabid social conservatives–only 33 Protestant ministers nationwide participated, and most of those from small or tiny evangelical congregations.

The ADF is known for publishing tracts like The Homosexual Agenda: Exposing the Principal Threat to Religious Freedom Today.

Mr. Pultro and the other ministers focused on the candidates’ positions on gay marriage and abortion, although the candidates and much of the nation and focused on the financial crisis and economic worries.

The Rev. Barry Lynn of Americans United said the of the Sunday protest: “They act like this is a massive act of civil disobedience, but this is not like sitting at a lunch counter. This is trying to change the law to give certain conservative churches even more political clout.”

Bookmark and Share
 

One Response to “Splutters”

  1. Thom Says:

    I’m more than disgusted by the whole business. I think that Iran is accepting immigrants if a nation ruled by religious leaders is what they’re after, however.

Leave a Reply