Another shady reverend

The pastor accused of booting John Kerry voters out of his church has resigned. Rev. Chan Chandler insisted it's all a big misunderstanding.

"I don't believe he preached politics," church member Rhonda Trantham said. "I don't believe anyone should tell a preacher not to preach what's in the Bible."

But some congregants of the 100-member church in western North Carolina have said Chandler endorsed President Bush from the pulpit during last year's presidential campaign and said that anyone who planned to vote for Democratic nominee Sen. John Kerry needed to "repent or resign."

It seems to be a misunderstanding of the church's relationship to politics. A church can take a stance on political issues, as the Catholic church does with abortion and the death penalty, without becoming embroiled in endorsing candidates.

There are such things as anti-choice Democrats. And I've never heard a pro-choice Democrat disagree with Bill Clinton that abortion should be rare. But when a pastor moves from the issue to the candidate is when it becomes a problem. Because abortion isn't the only issue believers should consult their Bible for.

What ever happened to the cause of the poor and the suffering? What if those Kerry voters in Chandler's Church thought Kerry's overall stance was more in keeping with Jesus's teaching than Bush's? The abortion debate has become a litmus test for some Christians at the cost of other problems.

It's why spirituality is so personal and why preachers shouldn't even say the names of political parties and candidates within the church. And if they do, we should treat the church as just another 501(c)(3) organization. And does Jesus really need a place on K Street?