Kamala Harris and the Johnson Amendment
Should Democrats do what Republicans have been doing for years?
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Here’s a debate for you: Was it right for Vice President Kamala Harris to record a video played in over 300 Black churches across Virginia encouraging members to vote for the Democratic candidate in the upcoming gubernatorial election?
NEW -- More than 300 Black churches across VA will hear from @KamalaHarris btwn Sun. and November 2 in video message that will air during morning services as part of outreach effort aimed to boost @TerryMcAuliffe. #VAGOV Video first obtained by CNN cnn.com/2021/10/16/pol…Many atheist groups have said this was a bad move, in violation of the Johnson Amendment, which bans politicking from the pulpit if the church wants to maintain its tax-exempt status.
But… if Republicans do the same thing in evangelical churches because they know the IRS isn’t going to do anything about it, I would argue it makes more sense to fight fire with fire than letting Republicans alone get away with breaking the law. No unilateral disarmament!This story has everything: 1) Evangelical Christians possibly cosplaying as Orthodox rabbis in order to convert Jews. 2) Secret online chats. 3) Gossiping relatives. 4) The phrase "SLEEPER CELL."
A new Pew Research Center survey finds that most pastors haven’t talked about vaccines from the pulpit at all. But when the subject did come up — even in evangelical churches — the religious leaders overwhelmingly encouraged people to get vaccinated.
That sounds like generally positive news… the only problem is that those small slivers of anti-vaxxers get outsized attention from conservative media outlets. It’s enough to put all of us in danger.
Here’s the *real* story of the band ABBA… a story I suspect even the band members don’t know.
There are two states where public school students need their parents’ permission to get out of saying the Pledge of Allegiance. If that sounds illegal to you, you’re right. Now, Caroline Mala Corbin, a Professor of Law at the University of Miami who has written extensively on church/state separation, has published a paper critiquing the legal rulings keeping those oppressive laws in place. It’s a fantastic weekend read, even if you’re not well-versed in the law.
You know what’s wrong with the Christian film industry (besides the fact that their finest actors include Kevin Sorbo and Kirk Cameron)? YouTuber Andrew Miller explains everything in this entertaining video:
I’m still waiting on answers:
This is an absolutely wild story about turmoil within the Southern Baptists.
The shot: One leader (Mike Stone) is suing another leader (Russell Moore) for $750,000 for ruining his shot at the SBC presidency.
The chaser: Stone once told church members that suing others wasn’t the “godly” thing to do.Of all the Christian arguments against “Critical Race Theory,” the idea that a million angels will stop schools from discussing our nation’s racist past may be the most absurd. But “prophetess” Kat Kerr never let that get in the way…
Here’s the problem with making contrarianism your entire identity: It leads you to say things like Thomas Jefferson was a progressive hero for raping and impregnating one of his slaves. That’s seriously the argument put forth by Skeptic magazine publisher Michael Shermer in a recent interview.
Michael Shermer asks why Jefferson shouldn't be seen as progressive for raping Sally Hemings and enslaving his children. Even the right wing crank he's interviewing looks creeped out by the question.Looks like someone needs to brush up on consent and power dynamics… again.
These random people speaking to a Jimmy Kimmel Live producer know as much about “Mercury in retrograde” as professional astrologers: Nothing.
Here’s a troubling story: A youth pastor, Jason Greathouse, who raped and impregnated a 14-year-old girl won’t face any jail time after prosecutors concluded that the circumstances of this case would lead a jury to declare a mistrial or “not guilty” verdict.
That’s partly because the two of them got married shortly after she gave birth at the urging of her parents. There’s more to it as well, but the bottom line is that he won’t be behind bars and he also won’t have to register as a sex offender.It is truly disturbing that pastors like this guy exist:
In 2018, this is how Tatiana Elena Fusari and Seth Michael Welch reacted when they found out they faced life in jail for murdering their own baby by not feeding her properly because they assumed God would take care of any sickness:
Seth Welch was sentenced to life in prison without parole in early 2020. And last week, a jury found Tatiana Fusari guilty of first-degree murder and first-degree child abuse. She now faces life in prison too. At least there’s some justice out there.
Right-wing bigots are still mad about gay couples adopting kids. During an episode of his Daily Wire show this week, conservative troll Matt Walsh lashed out at Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg for taking paid time off after the adoption of his twin boys.
That, Walsh said, made no sense. He doesn’t want men to take time off work after they have kids. He doesn’t want federal workers getting any significant time off. And — because he can never go too far — he also doesn’t want gay couples to be allowed to adopt kids at all.
That’s a very long way for Walsh to admit his father never pitched in.Who are the most persecuted people in America? If you said straight white men, you’d be… a Republican activist like Lauren Witzke, I assume.
This brief video from Humanists UK is actually a really nice explanation of how atheists cope with death:
GOP Rep. Madison Cawthorn, who’s been accused of sexual misconduct by multiple women, thinks boys are raised without proper manliness. That’s why he recently told a Christian crowd to raise their sons “to be a monster.”
If you’re giving sermons on the sins of the “ungodly,” maybe hold off on sexting with underage girls.
One month ago, Pastor Joseph Krol of Rochester First Baptist Church in IL delivered a sermon denouncing "ungodly" people who had an "absence of moral restraint." He said they "defile the flesh." If you're truly devout, he implied, you should have nothing to worry about...
That pastor, Joseph Krol of Rochester First Baptist Church in Illinois, had illicit conversations with a 15-year-old girl whose Snapchat account was soon taken over by cops.Perpetually angry evangelist Joshua Feuerstein has a rock-solid argument against the Democratic agenda:
The daughter of Christian sex predator Ravi Zacharias is launching a new ministry! It looks like the old one, and is housed in the same building, and has any of the same speakers, and has the same attorney, and may even get funding from the old ministry. But Sarah Davis insists this is all very different. Somehow.
When the anti-vaccination crowd’s most prominent doctor is arguing that the vaccine is connected to the Mark of the Beast and Satan’s “clones,” they need to just admit they’ve lost the argument.
When the anti-vaccination crowd’s biggest cheerleader argues that the vaccine contains an “egg that hatches into a synthetic parasite,” they need to just admit they’ve lost the argument.
Enjoy this cringeworthy clip:
And this one:
Over the summer, Missouri’s Republican-majority legislature passed a bill requiring faith-based boarding schools to register with the state, conduct federal background checks on staffers and volunteers, and comply with fire/health/safety codes. It was honestly the least they could do after several headlines about abuse at those facilities.
But the state is now being sued by CNS International Ministries (known as Heartland), which claims the new law is “unconstitutional.”
Just to state the obvious, these people are complaining about filling out basic paperwork about who lives and works in their facilities, conducting background checks, and making sure their buildings are safe. If they can’t do those simple things, they shouldn’t be operating these schools.Should churches be allowed to remain open during future pandemics, even if everything else is shut down?
The sane answer is: No! What the hell are you thinking?! Viruses don’t care about your faith! If there’s a restriction on all indoor spaces, it needs to apply to churches, too!
But Texans will soon get to vote for their preferred answer. As if this should be decided by popular vote instead of science.Who knew Christian pseudo-historian had a son, Tim, who was a carbon copy of his father? Turns out Tim also lies about the Constitution, claiming this week that it was quite literally inspired by the Bible.
Here’s some welcome news from Manitoba: A judge ruled that COVID restrictions that shut down in-person church gatherings in the province were “justified and reasonable,” contrary to the persecution claims of several pastors.
This is a very real monologue from a very real candidate for California’s Secretary of State. Be afraid. And then figure out what office you plan to run for, because we cannot cede the ground to people like Rachel Hamm.
This really is conservative Christianity in a nutshell:
Finally, can someone explain this sermon to me?
