Church and Tax Exemption

I am in Wilmington, NC today, staying at my mom's while she is in the hospital. I will be visiting her tonight, and so I had the day to drive over to a public library to access the internet and write a few words to folks who had emailed me lately. On my way here, I was driving from Gordon Road down Military Cutoff when I noticed a Baptist Church on the right with one of those marquee signs out front. On it, they had advertised that you could "Come in, read and sign the NC Marriage Amendment Petition INSIDE."

I have not read their petition, but it seems to me that any petition that would involve a "marriage" amendment in NC would be political in nature. I was under the impression that it is against the tax-exempt status laws for any church to promote political ideas or to campaign for any issue on that basis. I know that there must be some loophole here that violates the intent of the law, but I do not know what it is.

I plan to stop by and have a visit to see just what this petition is about on my way back home.

Categories: religion politics separation+of+church+and+state LGBTQ gay+marriage