Christians Engaged, a self-described “educational, Christian and nonpartisan” group based in Texas, is appealing after the Internal Revenue Service denied its request for tax-exempt status.
In a letter last month, Stephen Martin, director of exempt organizations, informed Christians Engaged it is disqualified from nonprofit status because it operates “for the private interests” of the Republican party and its “bible teachings are typically affiliated with” that party. The group, meanwhile, says it merely encourages Christians to get involved with the political process, and it accuses the IRS of “engaging in both viewpoint discrimination and religious discrimination.”
In its rejection letter, the IRS acknowledges that Christians Engaged does indeed “educate voters on what the bible says about issues,” but it concludes that those “educational activities are not neutral.” Instead, “the topics typically are affiliated with distinct candidates and specific political party platforms.”
These include “the sanctity of life, the definition of marriage, biblical justice, laws vs. lawlessness, freedom of speech, religious liberty, government and business ethics, human trafficking, fiscal responsibility in government budgeting, defense, borders and immigration, U.S. and Israel relations,” according to Martin’s letter. “Specifically, you are engaged in prohibited political campaign intervention,” he informs Christians Engaged.
These activities include a month-long political activism course, Martin writes, with topics such as “instructing individuals on becoming a citizen lobbyist, working with elected officials and candidates, discerning between the [lesser] of two evils, keeping the Christian soul right when working on politics, practical steps and pitfalls in political activism, [and] how to work with an interest group.”
The IRS says the group’s leadership team also raises red flags. Bunni Pounds, founder and president of Christians Engaged, lost a political race as a Republican in 2018. Vice president Trayce Bradford is a former leader of the Texas Eagle Forum, which boasts of its “unashamedly pro-life” and “strong conservative” values. And advisory board member Michael Cloud is a current Republican member of Congress.
Christians Engaged Calls IRS Conclusions Incorrect
First Liberty Institute, which is representing Christians Engaged in its appeal, says the IRS is incorrect on three points: inventing “a nonexistent requirement that exempt organizations be neutral on public policy issues,” concluding that the group “serves private, nonexempt purposes,” and violating the group’s First Amendment rights.
On its website, First Liberty asks, “Has Cancel Culture come to the IRS?” It also calls this case “eerily reminiscent of a scandal that made headlines during President Obama’s administration when the IRS, under the leadership of Lois Lerner, was accused of targeting Tea Party groups.”
Lea Patterson of First Liberty says, “The IRS states in an official letter that Biblical values are exclusively Republican. That might be news to President Biden, who is often described as basing his political ideology on his religious beliefs.”
Patterson adds, “Only a politicized IRS could see Americans who pray for their nation, vote in every election, and work to engage others in the political process as a threat. The IRS violated its own regulations in denying tax-exempt status because Christians Engaged teaches biblical values.”
Pounds, president of Christians Engaged, says, “We just want to encourage more people to vote and participate in the political process. How can anyone be against that?”
