ORLANDO (FBW)–Passing out petitions aimed at getting a voter initiative on the ballot or hosting a voter registration drive at church is not only legal, but is a natural result of a church which teaches “basic, biblical moral issues,” a legal expert says.

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Though people might not agree on whether a church ought to be involved in such activities, information is sometimes misconstrued to frighten church members into thinking they will lose their tax-exempt status with the Internal Revenue Service if they speak out on political issues.

“That’s crazy,” Mat Staver, the founder of Orlando-based Liberty Counsel, told Florida Baptist Witness. “It’s amazing how this is a myth that seems to never die.”

Staver, who has prepared guidelines for Florida4marriage.org and a number of other organizations which promote active participation by churches to involve their congregations in citizenship issues, said specifically churches may participate in a current initiative to get a marriage amendment on the ballot in Florida.

“It is not a violation of any law,” Staver said. “Some people erroneously think that you cannot distribute or ask members to sign a petition on this or anything else. No church has ever been told that they cannot distribute voter initiatives.”

John Sullivan, the executive director-treasurer of the Florida Baptist Convention agrees.

“Not only is this something we ought to do because it’s the right thing, but also because we have a legal right to do it,” Sullivan said in a statement to the Witness.

“The Florida Baptist Convention would not be promoting the petition effort if it were not legal. We have a legal right to become involved in the political process, as well as a moral obligation to support political initiatives and vote in elections,” Sullivan continued.

The Florida Baptist Convention’s State Board of Mission authorized the advance of $25,000 to the Florida4Marriage organization and intends to issue another $15,000 during the month of January, Sullivan noted.

“This is the responsibility of Christian citizenship to have every Baptist involved in the political process,” Sullivan said.

On a Web site hosted by Americans United for the Separation of Church and State, an organization outspoken in its efforts to limit political activities in churches, a Question and Answer piece written by Milton Cerny, an attorney who formerly worked for the IRS, makes the distinction between a church promoting a particular candidate for office and in supporting initiatives which involve public policy.

“Churches can speak out on public policy issues as long as such messages are not attempts to urge support for or opposition to any candidate. Churches can also engage in lobbying (supporting or opposing legislation, including ballot initiatives) as long as doing so remains an insubstantial part of the church’s total activities,” Cerny continued.

Both Staver and Cerny said generally a church may spend up to five percent of it’s time and expenditures on this type of activity without being in danger of violating IRS rules.

And although in the case of the current petition initiative the focus is to get the amendment on the ballot, Staver said it is “incomprehensible” that once the amendment appears that Christians would not support it.

“If Christians are having a difficult time making that decision, then churches have not done their jobs in educating the members about basic, biblical, moral issues,” Staver said. “This is a non-negotiable, non-debatable, non controversial issue through maintaining the status quo that has been in existence since God created Adam and Eve.

“There are moms and dads, husbands and wives, male and female—and gender does matter to the raising of children,” Staver continued.

If the amendment does not pass, Staver predicted “one radical activist judge, with one stroke of a pen, will undermine marriage, will hurt families and will damage our children.”

Looking behind to what has passed in America, Staver said if people don’t believe their involvement counts, they are not looking in the right direction.

“If someone has the idea that America is doomed, they simply haven’t been where I’ve been,” Staver said. “I’ve see great things happening in America when people stand up for righteousness.”

Citing the Great Awakening as a time when people didn’t realize what a difference they made or, more recently, the November 2004 elections and the Christmas 2005 religious liberty skirmishes, Staver said “when people of faith stand up, they can make a difference.”

For an copy of Staver’s essay on the issue, go to www.florida4marriage.org.