COLUMBUS, Ohio, April 25 (UPI) -- Some Ohio clergy members reportedly have complained to tax officials about two Ohio churches they say support a Republican candidate for governor.
The group of 56 clergy members claims in their complaint to the Internal Revenue Service the Columbus area churches violated their tax-exempt status by supporting J. Kenneth Blackwell, the state's secretary of state who is favored by the state's religious right, reports The Washington Post.
The Rev. Eric Williams said the purpose of the complaint is to make the churches stop acting like electioneering organizations.
The latest complaint was filed after the group felt the IRS may not have acted on their earlier one filed in January, the report said. An IRS official said the agency will enforce rules equally on all organizations regardless of their political affiliation.
A pastor at one of the churches targeted by the group said: "There's still freedom of speech in this country and it should apply to Christians, as well. People need to get out of their pews, out from behind stained-glass windows, and shine a light for what is good and right."
