For Immediate Release
October 26, 2004 |
Media Contact:
Michelle Ringuette
+1 (202) 986 6093;
+1 (202) 550 1321 |
Catholics for a Free Choice Files IRS Complaint
Against Archdiocese of St. Louis
St. Louis Archbishop Raymond Burke violates election law
with consistent and rigid instruction to voters.
Statement of Frances Kissling, President, Catholics for a Free Choice
Washington, DC—One week before the United States presidential
election, Catholics for a Free Choice (CFFC) has filed a complaint
with the Internal Revenue Service against the Archdiocese of St. Louis,
MO, for Archbishop Raymond Burke’s statements in violation of
its status as a public charity and his illegal interventions in campaigns
for public office.
Archbishop Burke, the leader of the archdiocese, has used official
archdiocese communications to explicitly urge Catholics to vote against
candidates who support abortion rights, euthanasia, reproductive cloning,
gay marriage and embryonic stem cell research. Additionally, he has
issued overt directions to Catholics to vote against candidates who
support positions opposed by the archdiocese, a clear violation of
the restrictions placed on all tax-exempt organizations.
CFFC has called on the IRS to “immediately exercise [its] authority
to revoke the tax-exempt status of the Archdiocese of St. Louis and
bring an action to enjoin it from conducting further efforts to intervene
in the imminent elections.”
The Archdiocese of St. Louis and Archbishop Burke have patently violated
their tax-exempt status by releasing an official Pastoral Letter aimed
at Catholic voters, specifically instructing them how to vote in the
upcoming election. The letter informs voters about church teachings
and implores Catholics to vote accordingly. Through his letter “On
Our Civil Responsibility for the Common Good,” the archbishop
presents a step-by-step protocol for voters when choosing a candidate.
He states that Catholics are “morally bound” to choose
voters according to the archdiocese’s plan, a plan that includes
the requirement of Catholic voters to consider a candidate’s
stance on abortion, embryonic stem cell research and euthanasia “above
every other consideration.”
Archbishop Burke’s letter outlines a number of different scenarios
involving hypothetical candidates and their positions. These hypotheticals,
suspiciously reminiscent of presidential candidates George W. Bush
and John Kerry, instruct members of the archdiocese to pick the proper
candidate at the risk of “assisting another to achieve evil…which
is never morally permissible.”
The archbishop’s directives have also been consistently articulated
in the St. Louis Review, the weekly archdiocesan newspaper.
Through the Pastoral Letter and the St. Louis Reporter, Archbishop
Burke and the archdiocese have clearly crossed the line into political
intervention because these materials invite the audience to compare
a candidate’s positions with the organization’s own views,
another violation of IRS restrictions.
This year, CFFC has filed complaints with the IRS against Catholic
Answers, Inc., Operation Rescue West, the Culture of Life Foundation,
Priests for Life and the Archdiocese of Denver for their flagrant violations
of their tax-exempt status.
In filing these complaints, Catholics for A Free Choice does not infringe
on either the right to free speech or the practice of religion. Each
of these groups made a contract with the federal government and the
IRS when they sought to be exempt from paying taxes. In return for
such a privilege they agreed not to participate in election campaigns
in ways that constitute an endorsement or opposition to specific candidates,
explicitly or implicitly. In much the same way that campaign involvement
by individuals and profit making corporations is regulated by law,
the involvement of tax exempt organizations is regulated to prevent
the indirect use of taxpayer funds in political campaigns. We think
these laws are equitable and we call on all tax exempt organizations
to follow them.
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Catholics for a Free Choice is a non-partisan organization. We
do not support or oppose candidates for public office. CFFC shapes
and
advances sexual and reproductive ethics that are based on justice,
reflect a commitment to women’s well being, and respect and affirm
the moral capacity of women and men to make sound decisions about their
lives. Through discourse, education, and advocacy, CFFC works in the
US and internationally to infuse these values into public policy, community
life, feminist analysis, and Catholic social thinking and teaching.