The IRS Just Blinked: Why Pastors Can Endorse Candidates Without Fear
Neil Mammen, President Values Advocacy Council
For years, pastors across America have lived in quiet uncertainty.
Can I mention a candidate’s name from the pulpit?
Will I lose our 501c3 if I speak clearly about a law that violates Scripture?
Will the IRS come knocking if I urge my church to vote for righteousness and against evil?
Some pastors avoided the topic altogether, convinced they were standing on legal quicksand. Others whispered their convictions like fugitives, afraid of drawing the wrong kind of attention. A few preached boldly and waited for the axe to fall.
But here's the question: Was the threat ever real?
On July 8, 2025, the IRS finally admitted the truth.
After a lawsuit by the National Religious Broadcasters, in a court filing that should have made front-page headlines across the country, the IRS stated that pastors may endorse political candidates (note: like Jeremiah and John the Baptist did) during worship services without risking their church’s tax-exempt status. Internal religious communication—such as a sermon—is now recognized as protected speech.
The parties (NRB + the two churches + IRS) filed a consent judgment in National Religious Broadcasters, et al. v. Billy Long, Commissioner of the IRS in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas. Americans United+2holtzmanvogel.com+2
Let that sink in.
The consent judgment proposes that in certain situations, churches may endorse candidates without risking their 501(c)(3) status—specifically when speaking to their congregation, through customary worship channels, on matters of faith, in connection with religious services, viewing electoral politics through the lens of religious faith. holtzmanvogel.com+2Lathrop GPM+2
Note there never ever was a limitation about talking about good and bad laws, or about how to vote on propositions, or teaching about the Constitution or about what does God say about what kind of person you should vote for, or discussing what each candidate had publicly said about moral issues.
The bluff has been called. The muzzle removed. The government has backed down.
Pastors, you are free to do so.
Now here’s the twist: for churches, this entire debate may be moot anyway. But I’ll deal with that in the addendum.
Still, for most pastors and boards who’ve bought into the fear, this moment matters. So let me give you the rest of the story.
The Johnson Amendment: A Phantom Weapon
Let’s rewind. The so-called “gag rule” comes from the Johnson Amendment, added to the tax code in 1954 by Lyndon B. Johnson while he was a Senator (D) —not out of principle, but out of political vengeance. Two non-church nonprofits had opposed his re-election, so he pushed a vague ban on political “intervention” for 501c3s.
It was never debated. Never tested. Never aimed at churches. It was merely tacked on to a bill that was going to pass. But it cast a long shadow.
For decades, pastors were told—by tax attorneys, by socialist atheistic politicians, by progressives—or actually by the devil who saw an opportunity to control those people who then advised churches and denominational headquarters, that endorsing a candidate from the pulpit could bring the IRS down on them. And so, many remained silent. Worse, laws change hearts, and so the hearts of the people, pastors, Christians even non-Christians believed without reason that political involvement by the church was just wrong.
But Has Any Church Ever Lost Its Status for a Sermon? No.
Only one church has ever had its 501c3 revoked: Branch Ministries in the 1990s. But here’s the key detail—it wasn’t because of a sermon.
Branch Ministries ran full-page political newspaper ads telling Christians not to vote for Bill Clinton. Not a sermon. Not a worship service. A political ad in USA Today. The IRS struck, saying you can’t make political campaign expenditures with donated money, and the courts upheld it.
But no church—zero, none—has lost tax-exempt status for what a pastor said inside a worship service.
The myth was real. But the threat was never enforced.
Pulpit Freedom Sunday: The Great Dare
Yet pastors around the nation cowered in fear. So in 2008, Alliance Defending Freedom decided to call the IRS’s bluff. They launched Pulpit Freedom Sunday. Pastors across the country were invited to record themselves endorsing or opposing candidates and mail the sermon directly to the IRS.
Thousands did.
No one lost tax status.
The IRS, faced with a legal standoff it didn’t want, went quiet. And now in 2025, they've admitted in court filings that such speech is constitutionally protected.
But Here's the Problem
In four years—or eight—a new president could appoint a Treasury Secretary who does want to silence pastors. One who hates the God of the Bible. One who doesn’t believe our laws should reflect the laws of nature and nature’s God despite that all laws are based on someone’s moral values.
So how do we stop this from happening again?
How do we permanently kill the Johnson Amendment’s power—not just repeal it, but bury it so deep no progressive administration can revive it?
There are two ways.
Precedent Is Built by Action, Not Hesitation
First: pastors must build the precedent now.
Courts do not respect silence. History does not honor timidity. If we want to establish the normalcy of pastors speaking boldly about candidates and laws, then it must happen regularly—not symbolically.
Endorse candidates from the pulpit. Oppose wicked laws. Name names when necessary. Do it not once a year, but all the time and certainly every election season, as a normal part of shepherding God’s people.
When one church does it, it’s a novelty.
When a thousand do it, it’s a trend.
But when ten thousand pulpits thunder, week after week, year after year, no IRS commissioner, no Treasury Secretary, and no progressive court can reverse it without igniting a constitutional firestorm.
What don’t we just have Congress Repeal the Johnson Amendment?
There are two issues:
Will they? Yes, Republicans talk against the Johnson Amendment. But most lack the spine to actually repeal it. Democrats cling to it like armor against the church. If we wait for D.C., we’ll wait forever.
Let’s say they do repeal it. Here’s the problem: a future Congress could reintroduce it.
So what’s the best thing to do?
We don’t just need repeal. We need a kill shot.
Here’s the Tactical Solution
If you have connections to Trump, pass this on.
The current Treasury Secretary should select 100 willing Christian churches. These churches—fully informed, fully cooperative—each deliver bold sermons endorsing a candidate and condemning another. Then, in coordination, the Treasury sues them.
Yes—sues the very churches it’s working with.
Strange? Yes. But stay with me.
The cases race through the courts—deliberately, efficiently—and land in the Supreme Court, where they are thrown out in a sweeping First Amendment ruling. That one decision destroys the Johnson Amendment’s enforcement mechanism forever.
The current IRS has been hiding. This forces their hand. It forces the issue into the Supreme Court. This establishes binding precedent. It neuters all future efforts cold. Nobody could create a new law that would muzzle churches again. It would require a future supreme court to try and reverse that ruling.
It ends the war with victory—not delay.
Addendum: But wait: Here’s The Truth About Churches and 501c3
Did you know that all Churches are automatically tax-exempt under 501c3, even if they never file for recognition. Section 508(c)(1)(A) says so. Yes you read that right, we don’t need no stinking 501c3s.
Deductibility
Did you know that all donors may deduct gifts to churches—even those without determination letters—under IRS Publication 1828, p. 3.
Audits
Did you know that audits of churches are rare. The Church Audit Procedures Act (IRC §7611) limits the IRS. Only high-level officials can approve inquiries, and only with “reasonable belief” of a violation.
The bottom line
So as long as a church functions as a church, donors and churches are protected—even without any formal 501c3 recognition.
The 14 Criteria
The IRS uses a 14-point test to determine whether something is a church. These include things like regular worship, ordained ministers, and a body of doctrine. No single factor is required—but the more you meet, the stronger your protection. See the footnote for the list.
So can a church without 501c3 be taxed?
No. Not unless the IRS can prove it’s not really a church.
You can’t lose a status you never applied for.
But Then Why Does the Johnson Amendment Matter
Yes, legally, churches don’t need to apply for 501c3 status to be tax-exempt. They’re automatically exempt under 508(c)(1)(A). Donations are deductible. The law is already on your side.
So why fight this at all?
Because perception is more powerful than law.
Try convincing a pastor, a board, a lawyer, or a bank that they don’t need an IRS letter. Try convincing a hesitant donor.
The problem isn’t just the code—it’s the fear.
That’s why the Johnson Amendment must be gutted publicly. Judicially. Irreversibly.
Once it’s dead in the courts, pastors won’t need courage. They’ll have precedent. And precedent protects where conviction wavers.
Bottom Line
You’re already free.
But most don’t believe it.
So we need to kill the lie publicly—once and for all.
Because as long as the Johnson Amendment exists, fear will remain. And where fear remains, pulpits stay silent.
And we’re out of time for that.
IRS’s 14 Criteria for "Church" Status
The IRS confirms this in Publication 1828, page 3:
"Churches that meet the requirements of section 501(c)(3) are automatically considered tax exempt and are not required to apply for and obtain recognition of tax-exempt status from the IRS."
So churches that have never filed anything are already protected—unless the IRS can somehow prove they’re not really churches.
According to IRS Publication 1828 (Tax Guide for Churches & Religious Organizations) and congressional guidance, the IRS generally looks for these characteristics (as outlined in Publication 1828 and summarized in later explanations):
IRS+13IRS+13Congress.gov+13
Distinct legal existence
Recognized creed and form of worship
Definite and distinct ecclesiastical government
Formal code of doctrine and discipline
Distinct religious history
Membership not associated with any other church or denomination
Organization of ordained ministers
Ordained ministers selected after completing prescribed courses of study
Literature of its own
Established places of worship
Regular congregations
Regular religious services
Sunday schools for the religious instruction of the young
Schools for the preparation of its ministers
These are guiding characteristics—not a rigid checklist. The IRS and courts weigh them alongside other facts and circumstances to determine eligibility