Why Houston Subpoenaed Pastors’ Sermons

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) speaking at a rally in defense of the Houston pastors.

The hyperventilating among Christofascists over the decision of the City of Houston to subpoena the sermons of a small number of pastors seemingly knows no limits and one is hearing claims that it represents a war on Christians and rants about homo-fascists.  The real fascists, of course, are the Christofascists.  And then there's the real issue: whether or not these pastors were violating the laws that restrict the political activity of tax-exempt churches.  As noted countless times on this blog, the Christofascists believe they are above complying with the laws that govern the rest of us.  Think Progress looks at what is really behind the city of Houston's subpoenas.  Here are excerpts:

There has been a new clash this week in the fight over the Houston Equal Rights Ordinance (HERO), a law that would protect LGBT individuals and other targeted groups from discrimination. The latest hubbub involves the city subpoenaing five pastors for their sermons, which has prompted conservatives to claim that religious liberty is under attack and that the subpoenas are a form of intimidation.

Tony Perkins, president of the Family Research Council, was on Fox News last night claiming that Houston Mayor Annise Parker (D) is “taking a bulldozer to that wall of separation [of church and state]” and trying to “dictate what pastors preach.”

The Houston City Council approved HERO in May with a vote of 11-6. In addition to its inclusion of LGBT protections, it was actually the city’s first nondiscrimination bill protecting any classification, including race, sex, and religion. Houston was one of the only large cities in the country with no nondiscrimination policy on the books.

After the law passed, a coalition formed known as “No Unequal Rights,” spearheaded by local church groups like the Houston Area Pastor Council and Baptist Ministers Association of Houston. The anti-LGBT coalition began collecting signatures to challenge HERO with a referendum.

Enough of the pages were disqualified to bring the number of signatures below what was required, leading Feldman and Parker to announce that the petition effort had failed.  Opponents of the law responded by immediately filing a lawsuit against the city, demanding the referendum be placed on the ballot.

[T]he case largely hinges on the validity of the signatures and the process by which they were collected. A video posted by Equality Texas shortly after the suit was filed shows Pastor David Welch, director of the Houston Area Pastor Council, training signature collectors about the very city rules that Feldman used to disqualify entire pages of signatures. The subpoenas seek to collect additional information about how pastors like Welch communicated with their congregations about the petition process.

The subpoenas targeted five pastors in Houston: David Welch, Steve Riggle, Khan Huynh, Magda Hermida, and Hernan Castano. The requests seek documents related to the funding of the petition effort, t he training of petition circulators, and the messaging used to convince individuals to sign. What has particularly drawn conservative ire was the request for “All speeches, presentations, or sermons related to HERO, the Petition, Mayor Annise Parker, homosexuality, or gender identity prepared by, delivered by, revised by, or approved by you or in your possession.”

The fate of the subpoenas will ultimately be determined by the court. In the meantime, conservatives seem intent on using the controversy to spread myths about the petition, the implications of the subpoenas, and more of the same anti-LGBT rhetoric they used to unsuccessfully oppose HERO in the first place.

If these pastors and their churches were funding this petition effort, they have likely violated the provisions of Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and should lose their tax exempt status.

Snake Oil Evangelists Intend to Defy Congressional Probe

In yet another example of how it is in reality the Christianists and their "ministries" that seek "special rights" as opposed to the LGBT community, attorneys for two "evangelists" have indicated that their clients will not cooperate with a Congressional investigation to determine whether or not their "ministries" have been operated within the requirements of Sec. 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code which governs tax-exempt and charitable organization status. One of the requirements of holding tax-exempt status is that none of the proceeds of the organization inure to the benefit of private individuals not in line with the organization's charitable purpose.

In the case of these "ministries," under investigation, the ministry leaders are living like multi-millionaires, in some cases driving Rolls Royces, etc. Hence, Congress has every reason to be reviewing the non-profit/charitable purpose of the alleged ministries. In my opinion, these "evangelists" are crooks who shake down the ignorant and unwary and reap incredible personal financial benefits. There are times I think that I should form a "ministry' and get on the gravy train. The problem is, I am too honest to fleece people the way these preachers do. Here are some highlights (http://www.bpnews.net/bpnews.asp?id=27749&ref=BPNews-RSSFeed0403):

Lawyers for "prosperity gospel" televangelists Kenneth Copeland and Creflo Dollar have told U.S. senators that they will not comply with a probe into their ministries because it threatens religious freedom rights.Letters on behalf of Copeland and Dollar were sent March 31 to inform members of the Senate Finance Committee of the noncompliance, contending that the probe was based in part on the targeting of teachers from the "word of faith" movement. The lawyers said Copeland and Dollar not only objected to the investigation's potential infringement of the First Amendment but also the senators' failure to operate through the current process provided by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). The other targeted televangelists –- Joyce Meyer, Benny Hinn, Eddie Long, and Randy and Paula White -– provided the requested documents by March 31 or pledged to do so.

Grassley has said his questions of the televangelists were based on accounts of abuses from watchdog organizations and whistleblowers, as well as investigative news reports. Accusations of contributions being used to support lavish lifestyles have been leveled against at least some of the televangelists.

Grassley's inquiry called for the televangelists to provide such documents as credit card statements, expenses for their secondary residences, gifts given by the ministries and lists of private automobiles. The Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability (ECFA) has encouraged cooperation by the televangelists, but the National Religious Broadcasters (NRB) has expressed concerns about the probe's implications for ministries.

The names of the televangelists and their ministries, plus the locations of their headquarters, are: Kenneth Copeland, Kenneth Copeland Ministries, Newark, Texas; Creflo Dollar, World Changers Church International, College Park, Ga.; Eddie Long, New Birth Missionary Baptist Church, Lithonia, Ga.; Joyce Meyer, Joyce Meyer Ministries, Fenton, Mo.; Benny Hinn, Benny Hinn Ministries, Grapevine, Texas; and Randy and Paula White, Without Walls International Church and Paula White Ministries, Tampa, Fla.