Wednesday, October 10, 2012
Pulpit Freedom Sunday saw more than 1,500 nationwide defying IRS rules for nonprofits.
Last week, Pastor Jim Garlow of California's Skyline Church told media outlets—including Comedy Central's Stephen Colbert—that he and preachers around the country would violate IRS rules this Sunday—for the fifth year in a row. They call it Pulpit Freedom Sunday, and more than 1,500 churches -- including Fayetteville's Wayne Grudhem of Berean Baptist Church. Pastors endorsed candidates from the pulpit, defying the government to strip them of their tax-exempt status. Garlow argues that the First Amendment allows them to speak freely. They can if they also don’t claim nonprofit status. But would churches win a showdown with the feds?
Friday, May 4, 2012
Comments that have sparked national attention draw in local protestors.
Last week, local pastor, Sean Harris of Berean Baptist Church spoke from the pulpit on the North Carolina's proposed Amendment 1 from the support angle, interjecting his own stance, offending many. He started an uprising that caught the attention of national media sources when he commented to the congregation that if their child exhibits gay behaviors that as a parent they should "punch boys with limp wrists" and urged parents of girls who are "acting too butch" to make them "walk like a girl and talk like a girl, and smell like a girl." After negative media attention he later retracted the remarks publicly and on the church's website apologizing to anyone he "unintentionally offended." An interfaith effort comprised of both Christians and…
Thursday, May 3, 2012
Sean Harris has received national media attention over his comment from the pulpit, if you were a church member what would you do?
Local pastor, Sean Harris of Berean Baptist Church spoke from the pulpit this past Sunday on the North Carolina's proposed Amendment 1 from the support angle, which is not a surprise. The surprise came when he commented to the congregation that if their child exhibits gay behaviors that as a parent they should "punch boys with limp wrists". The vote on proposed Amendment 1 is less than one week away to determine if the state will make marriage between a man and a woman the only legally recognized domestic union in the state. Wednesday Harris retracted his remarks and apologized on the church's website, but it is still the talk of the town.
Nan E Puckett
2:03 pm on Wednesday, October 10, 2012
Black churches have been violating this rule for decades, yet no one insists they pay taxes, so it begs the question of why the rule even exists since it's clearly not being enforced. If it's ever put into practice, black churches would be subject to it as well as majority white churches--a disaster for democrats who've depended on the lock-step voting bloc of the black community for decades. … more ›