Justice Sunday II: Purpose vs. Intent

Justice Sunday 2 is tomorrow evening. There website is pretty vague so finding out the purpose of the event can be pretty tough. Luckily Brittney posted about an email that she received that explains the purpose. Unfortunately I did not receive this email.

We seek no theological conformity on the Court–only conformity to the Constitution. We hold judges in high esteem–when they respect American values, religious liberties, and democratic decision- making. And while we have defended Supreme Court nominee John G. Roberts, Jr. against unfounded attacks, this is no pep rally for his confirmation. We seek only a fair confirmation process and an up-or-down vote.

I believe this is the purpose, but I do not believe this is the intent. I believe the intent of Justice Sunday has very little to do with John Roberts, The Supreme Court, or even the Christian stance on the issues. I think Justice Sunday is intended to be a way to co-opt Christian Churches for partisan politics. I understand that is a big claim so I will explain.

The other day I did a little research for my post about Separation of Church and State in regards to Justice Sunday II. It was very quickly clear that Justice Sunday had nothing to do with the separation of church and state. However, I started thinking about the non-profit tax status of churches and the rules that dictate how churches can be involved in politics. I was actually curious if Two Rivers Baptist Church might be in violation of IRS guidelines.

I read the Tax Guide for Churches and Religious Organizations thoroughly. I seems to me that Two Rivers (or any other church or religious organization participating in Justice Sunday) is not in violation of the tax law, but I do not know about legal precedents and interpretations that may have been set. What I learned is that the IRS prohibits churches from participating in a “political campaign”. The Supreme Court Nomination is not a political campaign. We are not voting on John Roberts.

As I was reading about the kinds of activities that are prohibited I realized that Senator Frist was not snubbed from Justice Sunday 2; having him speak could be in violation of tax law. I also won’t be surprised if we don’t see Two Rivers’ pastor speaking at Justice Sunday; as the church representative it could be risky. We probably won’t see any politician who is up for re-election (which is why Zell Miller is perfect). It is almost like this event is crafted to be a political event that is not in violation of any tax laws.

This is what got me thinking about the intent of the event. If the attendees of this event have essentially no power in the nomination and confirmation of Supreme Court Justices then what is the point? Is the intent to make it clear to a community that these organizations have taken a side in the partisan politics that have divided our country?

I agree that there is no Theological conformity to this event. However, since this is (supposedly) only about defending the Constitution there is no good reason to hold this event in a Church (nor to tie it to a single religion since all religions have a vested interest in defending the Constitution). This event is definitely political in nature. There is only one side to every story being represented. Many Christian leaders and denominations are not represented, and only one political party is truly represented (I think it is obvious to everyone that Zell Miller has switched parties). I think this event is intending to confuse voters into thinking there is only one Christian choice in the next election(s). I think this is intended to attempt to co-opt Jesus for political purposes. If this event is about trying to co-opt Jesus and Christianity, would it not be blasphemy?

Tomorrow should be interesting.