The LA Times is reporting that an "Antiwar Sermon Brings IRS Warning" to All Saints Episcopal Church in Pasadena. The church is one of Southern California's largest and most liberal churches.
Here's a link where you can find the 10-31-04 guest sermon entitled "If Jesus Debated Senator Kerry and President Bush" by the church's former rector, George F. Rigas. It was preached two days before the national elections last November.
The IRS contends that the sermon constitutes an attempt to intervene in a political campaign or election.
The sermon is indeed "a searing indictment of the Bush administration's policies in Iraq." At no time, however, was an explicit endorsement made for Sen. Kerry. Rigas forcefully delineated the differences that he believed Jesus would have with Bush's policies, but he insisted that all congregants should vote their own "values" and "consciences" and acknowledged that Christians could come down on either side.
In my opinion, this sermon did not constitute a violation of laws prohibiting political electioneering by tax-exempt organizations. Whenever I am asked to review possible instances of electioneering by churches, I ignore almost everything that falls short of explict endorsements of candidates and/or political parties by church leaders acting in an official capacity. Preaching about "values," issues and policies -- whether they be from either the left wing or the right wing of the political spectrum -- are constitutionally protected expressions of free speech.
(NOTE: To find the sermon -- click on the ARCHIVES section [toward the bottom of the left hand column on the church's website], then click on SERMONS, then click on 2004-2005 and scroll down to the October 31, 2004 sermon)
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