c. 2004 Religion News Service

Catholic Abortion-Rights Groups Asks IRS to Censure Other Catholic Groups

WASHINGTON (RNS) A Catholic group that supports abortion rights has asked the Internal Revenue Service to revoke the tax-exempt status of two groups that suggest it is impossible for Catholic voters to support Sen. John Kerry.

Catholics for a Free Choice said a voting guide produced by Catholic Answers, a California-based apologetics group, and supported by the Culture of Life Foundation is an improper political endorsement by a tax-exempt entity.

The Catholic Answers Voting Guide lists five “non-negotiable” issues _ abortion, cloning, euthanasia, gay marriage and embryonic stem cell research _ that Catholics must consider when voting. In the past, Catholic Answers has said Kerry, a Catholic, “flunks the test” on upholding church teaching.

Frances Kissling, president of Catholics for a Free Choice, also wants the IRS to prohibit Catholic Answers from running full-page ads in USA Today to publicize its voting guide before the Nov. 2 elections.

Kissling also criticized the Washington-based Culture of Life Foundation for supporting the guides, and for a Sept. 14 e-mail that labeled Kerry “a bad Catholic” and material on its Web site that says Catholics may not vote for “pro-abortion politicians.”

“One cannot credibly argue that the distribution of this material to the readers of an anti-abortion Web site is not detrimental to John Kerry’s candidacy,” Kissling said on Tuesday (Sept. 28).

Neither publication specifically urges voters to support President Bush or oppose Kerry, but both imply that a vote for Kerry would be a rejection of church teaching.

Karl Keating, the president and founder of Catholic Answers, said the voting guides were reviewed by lawyers and are “well within the law.” He promised to “fight Frances Kissling all the way. This is a blatant attempt at intimidation, and we will not be intimidated.”

In May, Kissling filed a similar complaint against the anti-abortion group Operation Rescue West for an ad urging Catholics to “pull out all the stops to keep (Kerry) out of the White House.”

Nonprofit organizations are exempt from income taxes, but in exchange they may not participate in partisan politics toward the election or defeat of particular candidates. Potential violations are handled on a case-by-case basis.

_ Kevin Eckstrom

Guidelines Released to Help Churches Navigate Politics

WASHINGTON (RNS) A nonpartisan group devoted to religion and public life issued guidelines Tuesday (Sept. 28) to help churches and faith-based organizations navigate through the complex web of laws regulating political activity.

The guidelines, devised by the Washington-based Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life, are in response to widespread confusion over what political role religious organizations can play during an election year. They are adapted and distilled from the Internal Revenue Service code in an attempt to simplify the situation.

Among other things, the 20-page “Politics and the Pulpit” addressed:

_ Endorsing or opposing candidates. IRS code clearly prohibits religious organizations from supporting, endorsing or opposing candidates.

_ Participating in political campaigns. Religious organizations are not allowed to directly or indirectly participate in a political campaign for a candidate running for office.

_ Discussing political issues. Organizations may discuss political issues, regardless of whether a candidate is discussing the same issues, as long as their discussion is not linked to support for, or opposition to, candidates.

_ Lobbying. Lobbying is allowed to the extent that it only constitutes an “insubstantial” proportion of an organization’s total activities. The Pew Forum defined “insubstantial” as between 5 percent to 15 percent of an organization’s activities, even though the IRS code does not specify a percentage.

_ Candidates appearing in pulpits during worship services. Churches may invite candidates to address their congregations as long as all candidates are given an equal opportunity to speak and the congregations do not voice approval or disapproval of any candidate.

_ Voter registration and education. Religious organizations may educate voters about issues and candidates’ positions on the issue. They may also conduct voter registration drives as long as they are not biased for or against any candidate or political party.

IRS restrictions on nonprofit organizations date back to 1954, when, in return for exemption from federal income tax, Congress restricted political activities for religious organizations _ along with other exempt institutions such as schools, hospitals and museums.

_ Itir Yakar

World Methodist Council Calls For Acceptance, Witness, to Muslims

(RNS) Officials of the World Methodist Council have adopted a statement that accepts Muslims as people of faith but encourages Christians to invite them to convert to Christianity.

“Even though we recognize and affirm some similarities between Islam and Christianity and between the Quran and the Bible, we believe the distinctions between us are significant,” the statement reads.

“While we understand that Muslims believe that Allah is revealed to the world in the Quran, we affirm that God is revealed in the Bible and God’s ultimate self-revelation is in the person of Jesus Christ.”

The two-page statement was adopted during the recent meeting of the council’s Executive Committee on Sept. 18 in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.

It called for Wesleyan and Methodist Christians to “lovingly accept Muslim brothers and sisters as persons of faith,” and noted the leaders’ respect for aspects of Islam, such as the religion’s emphasis on prayer, fasting, personal holiness and charity.

The statement went on to encourage those same Christians to invite Muslims and others “into life-changing relationships with God through Christ.”

In speaking of their respect for the right to worship, the Methodist leaders stated that governments should not infringe on the religious rights of citizens.

“We affirm that if it is acceptable to build mosques in Christian cultures, it should be acceptable to build Christian churches in Islamic cultures,” the statement reads.

The Rev. Maxie Dunnam, a member of the council’s World Methodist Evangelism Division, told United Methodist News Service that he hopes the statement will aid interfaith dialogue.

“We as Christians must present a distinct witness to Christian faith, knowing there are clear differences between our faiths,” said Dunnam, whose division recommended the document. “We are hoping to help people who want to be in dialogue with Muslims but especially to help people who are in places where there are Muslim and Christian tensions.”

_ Adelle M. Banks

Quote of the Day: Hurricane Victim Tammy Zielinski of Cocoa Beach, Fla.

(RNS) “I got too tired of packing up. Why move if you’re going to be without electricity anyway? I’ll stay. I’m done. If the Lord wants to take my life, he’ll take it.”

_ Tammy Zielinski of Cocoa Beach, Fla., explaining why she chose to stay home when the fourth hurricane this season was heading to her state. Zielinski, whose home suffered minor damage from Hurricane Jeanne, was quoted by USA Today.

MO/JL END