Another Day Another Church Political Activity Complaint

The Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports that Americans United for Separation of Church and State has filed a complaint with the IRS regarding Pastor Steve Riggle’s letter endorsing Shelley Sekula Gibbs to fill Tom DeLay’s former congressional seat.  Pastor Riggle is the Senior Pastor of Grace Community Church in Houston, which has 12,000 members.  Dr. Sekula Gibbs is in an April runoff to determine the Republican Party nominee for the congressional seat. 

Pastor Riggle responded to the complaint by stating that the letter did not violate any law as he wrote it on his personal stationary, he did not discuss his endorsement in the church, and the church did not distribute the letter.  The letter states it was paid for and authorized by the Shelley Sekula Gibbs for Congress Campaign Committee.  The only apparent connection to the church is that the letter identified Pastor Riggle as the Senior Pastor of Grace Community Church.  Americans United stated in its press release regarding the complaint that it is exactly this aspect of the letter that it found problemmatic, noting that the letter twice identifies Pastor Riggle in this fashion without any indication that he is speaking solely as a private citizen.

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