IRS Question

[SuperScout]

With all the lather and blather about 'separation of church and state,' especially as it applies to 'right' side of arguments, one has to wonder why there is not the attendant hue and cry about the obviously political preching going on in Obama's church. First it was whe Wrong Wright, spewing his anti-American hate, then it was this wayward Catholic priest who has his hands in Obama's pockets, and next it was the new Wrong Wright, named Otis. I always thought a church building was the place to preach the Gospel of Jesus the Christ, not a place to do political pandering.

[1CAVCCO15MED]

If they campaign for a candidate or contribute to a candidate finances they have outstepped the bounds of what a church is. So I say yes, Wright and Falwell's churches should pay taxes.

[Keith_Hixson]

Originally Posted by SuperScout

With all the lather and blather about 'separation of church and state,' especially as it applies to 'right' side of arguments, one has to wonder why there is not the attendant hue and cry about the obviously political preching going on in Obama's church. First it was whe Wrong Wright, spewing his anti-American hate, then it was this wayward Catholic priest who has his hands in Obama's pockets, and next it was the new Wrong Wright, named Otis. I always thought a church building was the place to preach the Gospel of Jesus the Christ, not a place to do political pandering.

Brice,
You are correct. However PC states that if its liberal dogma you are promoting then its preaching and culturally enhancing and its okay with the context of the church.

Keith

[77 Freedom]

Unfortunately the modern church as we know it is NOT the church of the apostles and Christ. Everything that we consider to be "church" is an invention of Man in the last Millenium. Steeples, pews, Preachers, raised pulpits, stained glass, The pageantry of the service, the candles, etc. etc.
Thats why its called religion. Its something you do over & over again the same way. The original church met wherever they could gather. The worshipped & praised & uplifted each other. They ate together. Sang together. Prayed together. Carried on dialogue with each other. This was and is the way Church is supposed to be. No one man is dominant in a worship service. When politics are injected into worshipping God then I think the wrong person is being served. ( or self-served )

[chte]

And all God's Children said... "Amen"

[Advisor]

Originally Posted by 77 Freedom

Unfortunately the modern church as we know it is NOT the church of the apostles and Christ. Everything that we consider to be "church" is an invention of Man in the last Millenium. Steeples, pews, Preachers, raised pulpits, stained glass, The pageantry of the service, the candles, etc. etc.
Thats why its called religion. Its something you do over & over again the same way. The original church met wherever they could gather. The worshipped & praised & uplifted each other. They ate together. Sang together. Prayed together. Carried on dialogue with each other. This was and is the way Church is supposed to be. No one man is dominant in a worship service. When politics are injected into worshipping God then I think the wrong person is being served. ( or self-served )

Ditto! How 'emergent.'

[Keith_Hixson]

Originally Posted by 77 Freedom

Unfortunately the modern church as we know it is NOT the church of the apostles and Christ. Everything that we consider to be "church" is an invention of Man in the last Millenium. Steeples, pews, Preachers, raised pulpits, stained glass, The pageantry of the service, the candles, etc. etc.
Thats why its called religion. Its something you do over & over again the same way. The original church met wherever they could gather. The worshipped & praised & uplifted each other. They ate together. Sang together. Prayed together. Carried on dialogue with each other. This was and is the way Church is supposed to be. No one man is dominant in a worship service. When politics are injected into worshipping God then I think the wrong person is being served. ( or self-served )

Many, many Pastors and churches are doing their best to be the church and promote Jesus Christ and not agendas, but if we read the gospels we know that even within months after the resurrection that personalities and human opinion began to infiltrate the church. Yet, the church has survived in the hearts and lives of people for nearly 2000 years.
Both Conservative and Liberals Theologically have used the church to promote political agendas. Dr. James Kennedy and Dr. Jerry Fawell both used their pulpits to promote their political agenda and they were conservatives. Rev. Wright in Chicago and many liberal theologians have been using their pulpits to push their political agendas. Either the liberal or conservatives doing it is wrong. However, that has been going on for years and years. Who do you think pushed prohibition through, there were many anti-alcohol sermons preached and pastors asking their members to push for prohibition. So that being said, this is nothing new. The hypocricy begins when the liberals say its okay for Rev Wright to it but when Jerry Falwell did it, it was wrong.

Keith

[SuperScout]

Originally Posted by 77 Freedom

Unfortunately the modern church as we know it is NOT the church of the apostles and Christ. Everything that we consider to be "church" is an invention of Man in the last Millenium. Steeples, pews, Preachers, raised pulpits, stained glass, The pageantry of the service, the candles, etc. etc.

The 'church' at least in my opinion, is not the building, the sanctuary, the temple of any other edifice. The real church is the body of believers. In my bodyof believers, we worship together, and just so happens to be in a building other than someone's home. We do hold each other up, and we do hold one another accountable. And being United Methodists, we eat often!

Thats why its called religion. Its something you do over & over again the same way. The original church met wherever they could gather. The worshipped & praised & uplifted each other. They ate together. Sang together. Prayed together. Carried on dialogue with each other. This was and is the way Church is supposed to be.

In the early days of Christendom, there was one man who was usually dominant, because he was either a called apostle, or who who had actually seen the Risen Lord, or was a first generation convert. Having one person dominant is not necessarily a bad thing; sometimes a leader is necessary so that chaos doesn't prevail. And often times, they had to meet wherever they could to avoid the arrest and capture by the Roman authorities. Many of these same conditions still exist in communist-controlled countries and where other forms of tyranny exist.
No one man is dominant in a worship service. When politics are injected into worshipping God then I think the wrong person is being served. ( or self-served )

When politics is interjected in a worship service, federal laws are also broken.

[Advisor]

Originally Posted by Keith_Hixson

Many, many Pastors and churches are doing their best to be the church and promote Jesus Christ and not agendas, but if we read the gospels we know that even within months after the resurrection that personalities and human opinion began to infiltrate the church. Yet, the church has survived in the hearts and lives of people for nearly 2000 years.
Both Conservative and Liberals Theologically have used the church to promote political agendas. Dr. James Kennedy and Dr. Jerry Fawell both used their pulpits to promote their political agenda and they were conservatives. Rev. Wright in Chicago and many liberal theologians have been using their pulpits to push their political agendas. Either the liberal or conservatives doing it is wrong. However, that has been going on for years and years. Who do you think pushed prohibition through, there were many anti-alcohol sermons preached and pastors asking their members to push for prohibition. So that being said, this is nothing new. The hypocricy begins when the liberals say its okay for Rev Wright to it but when Jerry Falwell did it, it was wrong.

Keith

And vice versa.

[Keith_Hixson]

Correct:
Hypocricy goes both ways. Its okay for me but wrong for you. Its like a parent who smokes preaching against the evils of smoking. Goes over like a lead balloon.

Keith