Government’s assault on religious liberty has hit a new low as the IRS settles with atheists by promising to monitor sermons for mentions of the right to life and traditional marriage.
A lawsuit filed by the Wisconsin-based Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF) asserted that the Internal Revenue Service ignored complaints about churches’ violating their tax-exempt status by routinely promoting political issues, legislation and candidates from the pulpit.
The FFRF has temporarily withdrawn its suit in return for the IRS’s agreement to monitor sermons and homilies for proscribed speech that the foundation believes includes things like condemnation of gay marriage and criticism of ObamaCare for its contraceptive mandate.
The irony of this agreement is that it’s being enforced by the same Tax Exempt and Government Entities Division of the IRS that was once headed by Lois “Fifth Amendment” Lerner and that openly targeted Tea Party and other conservative groups.
Among the questions that the IRS asked of those targeted groups was the content of their prayers.
h/t Jim D
What the churches are going to have to do, is bite the bullet and LET GO of the IRS’s tax exemption they’ve been given in exchange for being muzzled.
They need to tell the IRS to go to H#ll, tighten their belts and let ‘er go. Then they’ll have true Freedom of Speech.
If some of them are so poor, they cannot make it financially without the tax exemption, then they will need to meet in each other’s homes, and let the church buildings go, to save money.
That will teach strength of commitment. And put the IRS and the hypocritical atheists in their place.
Very disturbing. And here’s the FFRF boasting about it on their web site:
http://ffrf.org/news/news-releases/item/21076-ffrf-anti-church-electioneering-victory-is-final