Most Americans go to church expecting to hear about salvation, morality and scripture. They don’t anticipate hardball political endorsements. But some churches thrive on delivering politics from the pulpit.
Sure, pastors are citizens, too. And so in other venues, such as op-eds, blogs, books, and other places of influence, a pastor may speak his mind. Even so, he must jealously guard that influence and always speak winsomely. As a gospel minister, he shouldn’t make politics more important than his pastoral duties.
The tax code prevents religious institutions from serving as political machines, a concept in keeping with the separation of church and state our founding fathers envisioned. Pastors cannot make declarations to favor or oppose any candidate from the pulpit. They cannot take money from the collection plate and give it to support a candidate. And if they want to participate in any partisan activity in their personal capacity, they must make sure it is done in a manner indicating it is separate from their religious institution.
The Rev. Dr. Timothy C. Ahrens began his ministry as Senior Minister of First Congregational Church, United Church of Christ in downtown Columbus on January 23, 2000. A church known for its witness to social justice since its birth as an abolitionist congregation in 1852, Rev. Ahrens is the fifth consecutive senior minister from Yale Divinity School and is a lifelong member of the United Church of Christ.
Rev. Ahrens is a 1980 graduate of Macalester College with a double major in Religious Studies and Political Science. Since January 2000, under his leadership, First Church has doubled in membership during an era when seven downtown churches have closed their doors. Rev. Ahrens earned his Doctor of Ministry degree from Chicago Theological Seminary in May 2015. His thesis was entitled: “Young and Growing Stronger: Creating a Model of 21st Century Prophetic Witness Leaders with a New Generation.” He is currently working on two books.