WASHINGTON, Oct. 3 (UPI) -- Seven churches across the United States are the targets of complaints filed with U.S. tax officials after their pastors delivered political sermons.
The complaints were filed after pastors either endorsed candidates or spoke on political issues from the pulpit -- defying an Internal Revenue Service ban on campaigning by non-profit groups and jeopardizing their non-profit status, the Los Angeles Times reported.
"These pastors have decided to thumb their noses at the Internal Revenue Service and at the whole concept that the church is a place where partisanship should be left at the door," said the Rev Barry W. Lynn, executive director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State.
The conservative legal group Alliance Defense Fund said it welcomed the complaints filed with the IRS, saying it hopes the challenge ultimately will lead to the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn the rule, the Times said.
"The goal was to make this pulpit initiative something the IRS could not ignore," Defense Fund attorney Erik Stanley told the newspaper. "The end result is a victory either way. If the IRS comes after them, the churches have their day in court. If the IRS doesn't come after them, it's basically a green light to go forward. But ultimately these churches are hoping for their day in court."
