CCP168: On Pastors Promoting Political Candidates

In this week's conversation between Dr. James Emery White and co-host Alexis Drye, they discuss an announcement made by the IRS back in July that churches and other houses of worship are now allowed to endorse political candidates directly to their congregations. This type of political activity had previously been barred by the IRS because of the tax-exempt status of nonprofits, but that's no longer the case. Today's conversation explores why this ban was initially put into place and what led to the change of heart.

Episode Links

You may be interested in reading more about this decision from the article in The New York Times that prompted today's conversation. “I.R.S. Says Churches Can Endorse Candidates From the Pulpit” was written by David A. Fahrenthold, and you can read it HERE. And Dr. White wrote a blog earlier this year titled “Pastors Endorsing Politicians,” which you can read HERE.

As Dr. White mentioned, while he wouldn't personally make the choice to endorse a political candidate from the pulpit, that does not mean that he feels the Church should shy away from speaking out on cultural and political topics. You may be interested in checking out the following series that were given by Dr. White at Mecklenburg Community Church: “What the Bible Really Says About…” explored the topics of A.I., immigration, abortion, politics and angels, and “Where Angels Fear to Tread: Meck Talks Politics” looked at how we, as Christians, are called to engage the political realm.

For those of you who are new to Church & Culture, we'd love to invite you to subscribe (for free of course) to the twice-weekly Church & Culture blog and check out the Daily Headline News - a collection of headlines from around the globe each weekday. We'd also love to hear from you if there is a topic that you'd like to see discussed on the Church & Culture Podcast in an upcoming episode. You can find the form to submit your questions at the bottom of the podcast page HERE.