Is Mixing Faith & Politics a Sin?
As someone who has worked in politics, I know this: The number one predictor of how a person will vote is church attendance. The more times per week a person attends church, the greater the likelihood is that person will vote Republican.
So it stands to reason that conservatives would want to identify folks who regularly attend church -- and make sure they are at least registered to vote. Right? Obviously.
A maxim in politics is that you've got to "hunt where the ducks are" (or if you're Dick Cheney, you can also hunt where the quails are). In other words, we live in a world of limited resources. It's wise to spend your time and energy in the places where you are likely to see the greatest reward for your efforts. When asked why he robbed banks, the infamous bank robber Willie Sutton quipped: "Because that's where the money is." Well, this is sort of the same kind of thing. When Republicans encourage people of faith to be involved in politics, we know we will get 8 out of 10 votes.
This is nothing more than marketing 101. I mean, if Republicans knew that people who worked at the Post Office -- or had blonde hair -- or wore Nike's -- were predisposed to vote Republican, you can bet we'd try to find a way to find identify them (and turn them out at the polls on Election Day.) You'd probably see political operatives hanging out at the local Foot Locker store registering voters. We'd buy web ads at Nike.com, etc.
As far as I know, there is no correlation between wearing Nike shoes and voting Republican (talk about micro-targeting). But there is certainly a link between church attendance and propensity to vote Republican). So why is it such a surprise that the NC GOP is asking members to send in their church directory? I mean, it sounds like a smart move to me...
But not only is at a smart political move -- it's your right as an American! I can't find anything in the constitution that would prohibit a private citizen from mailing in their church membership list to any political party they choose. That's freedom.
This is one of those cases where the smart political move and "doing the right thing" converge. I truly believe that people of faith not only have the right to be involved in politics -- we have a responsibility to be involved!
Of course, the liberals and secular humanists also know what we know: That church attendance is the number one predictor of how someone will vote. And the liberals fear that deep down, whether they know it or not, the folks sitting in the pews are, gulp, Republicans ... if they vote.
So liberals benefit by finding ways to "discourage" any behavior that might motivate these "values voters" to show up at the polls on Election Day.
And if these liberals can't use the law to stop people of faith from getting organized, they will try to scare churches into sitting on the cultural sidelines. (Even if lawsuits don't work, the fear of lawsuits is often enough to scare off many a timid religious leader.)
Note: If you are a pastor who has been intimidated, or if you've had your church's tax status threatened, click here for help...
The truth is there are a ton of things churches and pastors may legally do, including organization voter registration drives and distributing voters guides.
Pastors may also (on their own time) exercise freedom of speech and participation in Democracy (including having a private blog that does advocate the election or defeat of partisan candidates).
I realize there is a lot of fear and confusion out there, regarding this issue. As such, for more information about your freedom to express your faith and politics, check out these links:
The Becket Fund - Protects the free expression of all religious traditions.
American Center for Law and Justice - Great info regarding the protection of religious freedoms.
The Liberty Counsel - Helps religious groups in legal battles.
Wallbuilders - Experts on America's religious heritage.
Disclaimer: I am not a lawyer or an IRS expert. If you have questions, the above resources will give you the answers you've been looking for...
So it stands to reason that conservatives would want to identify folks who regularly attend church -- and make sure they are at least registered to vote. Right? Obviously.
A maxim in politics is that you've got to "hunt where the ducks are" (or if you're Dick Cheney, you can also hunt where the quails are). In other words, we live in a world of limited resources. It's wise to spend your time and energy in the places where you are likely to see the greatest reward for your efforts. When asked why he robbed banks, the infamous bank robber Willie Sutton quipped: "Because that's where the money is." Well, this is sort of the same kind of thing. When Republicans encourage people of faith to be involved in politics, we know we will get 8 out of 10 votes.
This is nothing more than marketing 101. I mean, if Republicans knew that people who worked at the Post Office -- or had blonde hair -- or wore Nike's -- were predisposed to vote Republican, you can bet we'd try to find a way to find identify them (and turn them out at the polls on Election Day.) You'd probably see political operatives hanging out at the local Foot Locker store registering voters. We'd buy web ads at Nike.com, etc.
As far as I know, there is no correlation between wearing Nike shoes and voting Republican (talk about micro-targeting). But there is certainly a link between church attendance and propensity to vote Republican). So why is it such a surprise that the NC GOP is asking members to send in their church directory? I mean, it sounds like a smart move to me...
But not only is at a smart political move -- it's your right as an American! I can't find anything in the constitution that would prohibit a private citizen from mailing in their church membership list to any political party they choose. That's freedom.
This is one of those cases where the smart political move and "doing the right thing" converge. I truly believe that people of faith not only have the right to be involved in politics -- we have a responsibility to be involved!
Of course, the liberals and secular humanists also know what we know: That church attendance is the number one predictor of how someone will vote. And the liberals fear that deep down, whether they know it or not, the folks sitting in the pews are, gulp, Republicans ... if they vote.
So liberals benefit by finding ways to "discourage" any behavior that might motivate these "values voters" to show up at the polls on Election Day.
And if these liberals can't use the law to stop people of faith from getting organized, they will try to scare churches into sitting on the cultural sidelines. (Even if lawsuits don't work, the fear of lawsuits is often enough to scare off many a timid religious leader.)
Note: If you are a pastor who has been intimidated, or if you've had your church's tax status threatened, click here for help...
The truth is there are a ton of things churches and pastors may legally do, including organization voter registration drives and distributing voters guides.
Pastors may also (on their own time) exercise freedom of speech and participation in Democracy (including having a private blog that does advocate the election or defeat of partisan candidates).
I realize there is a lot of fear and confusion out there, regarding this issue. As such, for more information about your freedom to express your faith and politics, check out these links:
The Becket Fund - Protects the free expression of all religious traditions.
American Center for Law and Justice - Great info regarding the protection of religious freedoms.
The Liberty Counsel - Helps religious groups in legal battles.
Wallbuilders - Experts on America's religious heritage.
Disclaimer: I am not a lawyer or an IRS expert. If you have questions, the above resources will give you the answers you've been looking for...
posted by Matt Lewis at 11:55 AM
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