On Mon, 9 May 2005 19:11:35 -0400, "JTEM" <gymraven@hotmail.com>
wrote:

"trijcomm" <trijcomm@yahoo.com> wrote

Nothing. But if those churches require members to vote
for a certain candidate or party they have no business
calling themselves a church.

And what church do you attend?

I'm not sure why you mistakenly believe that to be
relevant. The law is quite clear on the matter, and
no church may endorse a vote for or against any
candidate for public office. Period.

Then arrest Jesse, Bill and Kerry..

Nothing. But if those churches require members to vote

for a certain candidate or party they have no business

calling themselves a church.

And what church do you attend? I love it how so many people criticize
others how they spend their money and act like church experts when they
haven't darkened the door of a place of worship in years.

Typical right wing fanatic this pastor. He should automatically lose
tax exempt status.

And what do you say about the Baptist churches that have become a
must-visit campaign stop for Democratic candidates every election
period? Now THAT is an outrage -- they have been doing that garbage for
YEARS!!!

Typical right wing fanatic this pastor. He should automatically lose

exempt status. Everytime it seems the right wing retard jesus freaks

sink any lower they reach a new low.

Dems Voted Out of Church Weigh Options By PAUL NOWELL, Associated

Writer
Sat May 7, 7:51 PM ET

WAYNESVILLE, N.C. .... etc.

Typical right wing fanatic this pastor. He should automatically lose tax
exempt status. Everytime it seems the right wing retard jesus freaks can't
sink any lower they reach a new low.

Dems Voted Out of Church Weigh Options By PAUL NOWELL, Associated Press
Writer
Sat May 7, 7:51 PM ET

WAYNESVILLE, N.C. - A pastor who led a charge to kick out nine church
members who refused to support President Bush was the talk of the town
Saturday in this mountain hamlet, with ousted congregants considering hiring
a lawyer.

Pastor Chan Chandler greeted people at the door of tiny East Waynesville
Baptist Church on Saturday evening as the church choir practiced and even
welcomed them to attend services Sunday morning - if there's room inside.
But he was not prepared to talk about his mixing of religion and politics.

"On the advice of counsel, I've been advised not to have any comment at this
time," Chandler told The Associated Press. "We will have a statement later."

Members of the congregation said Chandler told them during last year's
presidential campaign that anyone who planned to vote for Democratic nominee
John Kerry needed to leave the church.

Longtime member Selma Morris, who was treasurer at the church, said
Chandler's sermons remained political after Bush won re-election. This past
week, his comments turned to politics again at a church gathering that ended
with nine members voted out.

Morris said Saturday that some of the ousted members planned to meet with an
attorney on Monday to discuss their options. "We're hoping he (the attorney)
will make him leave so that the church members can come back," she said.

"This is very disturbing," said Pastor Robert Prince III, who leads the
congregation at the nearby First Baptist Church. "I've been a pastor for
more than 25 years, and I have never seen church members voted out for
something like this."

Those who are still members did not know if the church would be open for
services Sunday, or if Chandler would be in the pulpit to preach.

The 100-member East Waynesville Baptist Church sits on a bluff a short
distance from downtown Waynesville, a mountain town about 125 miles
northwest of Charlotte. A white steeple and stain glass windows adorn the
simple brick structure, built in 1965, with a view of the mountains from the
front steps.

Across the street sits the church's parsonage, a small brick ranch home with
children's toys scattered in the front lawn. A small wooden sign out front
reads simply "The Chandlers." No one answered the phone there on Saturday.

In the days since the nine members were ousted, many more members have
reportedly left the church in protest.

"He went on and on about how he's going to bring politics up, and if we
didn't agree with him, we should leave," Isaac Sutton told The News and
Observer of Raleigh. "I think I deserve the right to vote for who I want
to."

Sutton, a deacon who worshipped at East Waynesville Baptist Church for the
past 12 years, said he and his wife were among the nine voted out.

"I've been going to this church for 25 years and I've never had a problem,"
Sutton's wife, Lorene, told The Associated Press on Friday. "He's young and
he thinks he knows everything."

Other former members of the church declined to speak with a reporter
Saturday, citing the advice of their attorney. But the furor over politics
at the church was the talk of Waynesville, a community of about 9,200
residents.

"It's just an outrage for something like this to happen in America," said
Heidi Jenkins, 52, as she held a garage sale at her home down the street
from the church.

Prince said he noticed during the presidential campaign that more pastors
made endorsements - although not from the pulpit - than in past years.

"It used to be that pastors would speak about the issues and not specific
candidates," he said. "I think that line is being crossed."