S.C. Church sign links Obama with Osama bin Laden, pastor "just wanted to make people think"

[Amerigo Vespucci]

Church sign links Obama with Osama bin Laden

1 hour ago

JONESVILLE, S.C. (AP) — A South Carolina pastor says he wasn't trying to be political when he posted a sign in front of his church linking Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama and al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden.

Pastor Roger Byrd said he just wanted to make people think when he put up a sign reading "Obama, Osama — humm, are they brothers" in front of the Jonesville Church of God on Thursday.

Obama, a Christian, attends Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago. Fifteen percent of respondents to a recent Associated Press-Yahoo News poll said they thought the Illinois senator was a Muslim.

WYFF-TV reported Monday on its Web site that Byrd said he won't take the sign down. He said his congregation voted unanimously Sunday to keep it up.

The church is part of the Church of God, a Pentecostal denomination based in Cleveland, Tenn., according to the organization's Web site.

Jonesville is a town of about 1,000 people in northwestern South Carolina.

http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5jCDMJorjgJD4QWdlxFBNt3h_GGZgD906KMT80

[Skittles]

1. I don't know which is sadder

the idea that he thinks the people in his area are ignorant bigots or the suspicion that he KNOWS they are :o

[parasim]

10. Excellent response to that inane story of the crazy pastor of Jonesville...

[Ice-9]

2. I like how they think "Hmm" should be spelled "Humm."

Morans.

[QC]

3. Someone needs to report them to the IRS. n/t

[Danger Mouse]

8. I'm with you on that one.

:evilgrin:

[Thrill]

4. Keep on making people dumber

[CreekDog]

5. i've got a new sign for them

[ourbluenation]

6. Paging IRS, paging IRS...

that is bullshit.

[guyanakoolaid]

9. Yank their tax exemption immediately. Seriously.

Does nobody enforce broken rules anymore?

[Divernan]

11. Yup! audit the little prick's entire congregation and disallow their charitable contributions too!

Hopefully they are tithing.

[AspenRose]

7. Oh, people are thinking, all right

This Christian thinks you're an idiot....

[TPerrellaCrne]

12. This has been my quest today...

I contacted the State offices and the international offices after I emailed the local TV NEWS, here in Greenville. This began early this morning when a coworker told my husband about the sign. BELIEVE ME...We are disgusted with this podunk mentality. You guys are welcomed to send your comments as well. Any help righting this wrong is appreciated.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
To: [e-mail]
Cc: [e-mail], [e-mail]
Subject: Christian Doctrine?
Date: Tuesday, April 22, 2008 1:08:15 AM



Dear Sir,
I sent an email to you earlier today, even though you have failed to respond I am compelled to inform you that your flock's hate and ignorance has now gone international! It has cast a shadow on all Christians, especially those of us from the State of SC. Frankly I have grown weary with the ignorance of uneducated mean spirited people that do such things. I know where this message and the words on your sign came from, it was spoken by a secular talk-radio personality located in Ohio that introduced John McCain during the Rep.primary campaign there. THIS IS NOT A CHRISTIAN MESSAGE, QUESTION, STATEMENT OR VERSE...therefore it is inappropriate and your congregation has caused pain in their community and to the other people that live there! (the proof is on the video)
This is a sample of the posts and a question being put forth concerning the tax exempt status given to faith based organizations, YOURS IN PARTICULAR! Given you Have e publicly posted a political sign on Church property...
This is taken from a post on a political site that seems to be discussing your issue aggressively;
Please note that this is one of many discussions, on many sites, including the United Kingdom and beyond.
The video and the pastor's flippant attitude is not serving your denomination well...the true Christian message of a truly Christ based church seems caught between pride, resistance, and ignorance. The Pastor does not state a believable reason for constructing the sign nor does he offer to remove it and apologize to the people that are telling him it offends them! Again, how is this the message of the Christian Faith?
It certainly isn't based on my Christian faith and it doesn't represent the words of the Christ I serve!
Your Pastor may want to remove the plank (or deck) in his eye and forget about the splinter he sees(or thinks he sees) in Barack Obama's eye! By the way his congregation, your congregation, is said to have voted unanimously to leave the message intact! This seems cultish and extreme, unless his membership share his lineage. Even if his membership is 10 other people this is a frightful example to the world and other Christian denominations of The Church of God faith.
Thank you for your attention to this issue,
Tami Perrella-Crone
Greer, SC

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

From Americans United:
http://www.au.org/site/News2?abbr=resources&page=NewsAr...

Religion, Partisan Politics And Tax Exemption:
What Federal Law Requires And Why
- snip -
This regulation is also designed to protect the integrity of the election process. Special types of organizations already exist to help political hopefuls win public office. Those groups, such as Political Action Committees, have a different tax status and are organized under a different set of rules than 501(c)(3) groups, rules designed to ensure that the nation's campaign-finance laws are followed. Blurring the distinction between these two types of organizations would harm both religion and politics.

Due to misinformation spread by advocates of church-based electioneering, some clergy are confused about federal tax law and how it impacts political activity in houses of worship. For example, some religious leaders might wonder what constitutes an endorsement of a candidate. Prohibited activities include letters of endorsement printed on the letterhead of the church, synagogue, temple or mosque. Distribution of campaign literature, pulpit endorsements of candidates, display of campaign signs on religiously owned property and other similar activities also clearly indicate partisan involvement in an election. (It should be noted, however, that clergy may endorse candidates as individuals in forums outside the church or work on behalf of candidates during their personal time.)

Penalties for violating federal law include loss of tax-exempt status or financial penalties imposed on officials of the house of worship in question. This is more than a theoretical concern; the IRS does enforce the law in this area. The Church at Pierce Creek near Binghamton, N.Y., lost its tax-exempt status in 1995 after the IRS determined it had violated federal tax law by publishing a full-page ad in USA Today in late October of 1992 advising people that voting for presidential candidate Bill Clinton was a sin and soliciting tax-exempt donations to defray the cost of the ad. The church sued in federal court to regain its tax-exempt status, but a federal appellate court ruled unanimously that the IRS was right to revoke the church's tax-exempt status.

So what are the election-related activities that a house of worship may engage in? There are many. For example, houses of worship may sponsor nonpartisan voter registration drives. They may encourage voting and transport people to the polls on Election Day. They may also sponsor non-partisan candidate forums at which all legally qualified candidates for a given office are invited to appear.

What about "voter guides" produced by outside groups? Houses of worship should be extremely wary of voter guides produced by outside groups, especially the Christian Coalition. Many of these groups hold a tax status that permits them to engage in partisan activities that religious organizations are not permitted to take part in. Also, when a guide has been produced by an outside group, religious leaders have no way of knowing if the answers are accurate or if the guide has been intentionally slanted to favor certain candidates.
- More at above link -
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
BELOW YOU WILL FIND MY ORIGINAL MESSAGE SENT EARLIER TODAY TO THE STATE OFFICE AND THE INTERNATIONAL OFFICE


I would be interested in knowing if this is the foundation on which you put forth the message of Christ? I have failed to find a message in my Bible (King James Version, Ryrie Study Bible) or concordance that it is in line with! Perhaps I have overlooked something or my Bible is not in line with your doctrine. Please feel free to enlighten me on the passage in YOUR Bible where Jesus instructed us to put someone at risk. Not only have you taken it upon yourself to judge his character, your sign denounces his faith or even that he has as much right as you do to claim Jesus as his Lord and Savior! (Which he has done repeatedly and publicly).
These words of hate and slander are foreign to the Jesus I know and strive to serve...Please remind your people of these important words "WHAT WOULD JESUS DO". I trust this is an oversight and truly your faith doesn't perpetrate hate and division. I will also trust that you are committed to sharing the Love of Christ and not the hate filled words of division and slander.
Please find below the email I sent to WYFF 4 earlier this morning, my only regret and hope is that you'll forgive me for not contacting you first. I should have allowed you to right this oversight but as you can see I too make mistakes in times of fear.
Thank you in advance for your attention in this matter, and I am reminded of one of my favorite passages;
"As a man thinketh, so shall he be."
Sincerely,
Tami Perrella-Crone
Greer SC


++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
THIS IS THE ORIGINAL EMAIL I SENT TO WYFF 4 THAT I MENTIONED ABOVE;

Please note: There is a church in Jonesville that has a frightening hate message posted on their sign. The sign questions Sen. Obama's relationship to Osama Bin Laden asking if they may be brothers! I believe this is a most dangerous stance for this supposed "Church of God" to put forth. I believe this could be considered facilitation or at the very least slander. I hope this congregation is prepared to accept responsibility for their actions, if God forbid any harm should come to Senator Obama! Because someone should inform THESE people that this is not how a democracy works! If they do not support Senator Obama they should work for the candidate they do support and push his agenda forward, not try to slander the other candidates or post hate messages in a public forum against them. This type of social ignorance must be addressed and a true understanding of the democratic process has to be instilled in all Americans. Please address this issue and stop this madness!
I would ask this congregation to show me in my Bible the scripture they base this on and exactly what part of Jesus' message are they executing. After all they do publicly claim an alliance with the Christian Church, and they do so on the same sign! The only message I see fitting is one of the last statements Jesus made..."Forgive them Father for they know not what they do."

Here is the name of the Church and the Pastor,
Pastor Roger Byrd of Jonesville Church of God put the sign up which reads "Obama Osama humm (sp) are they brothers?"
(maybe the minister could use a gift...a dictionary or spell check might be fitting!)

NOTE:This is posted on WSPA channel 7's website and it also states the congregation voted 100% to leave the message intact!
Thank you for your consideration in what I see as a potential danger for the congregation and
maybe even an elected official.

Sincerely,
Tami Perrella-Crone
Greer, SC

[sandnsea]

13. I contacted the Spartanburg County Democrats

I suggested they organize an outing to church on Sunday morning. The only way to stop this is to confront it, in person.