www.theEFC.ca/election
When an election swings around and your church is registered with the CRA and able to issue tax receipts for donations, there are rules to follow.
First rule: love God and love your neighbour as yourself, so be engaged and show your care for your community, as always.
But make sure you know what churches can and cannot do.
First, here’s the no-go list.
Churches can’t:
• Promote one candidate or particular party
• Oppose one candidate or particular party
• Hand out campaign material
• Put up campaign signs
• Donate money or other resources to a candidate or political party
• Sell party memberships on church property
• Have candidates visit and speak to the church at different times
• Link a church’s views on issues with a particular party or candidate
• Talk about how one candidate voted when in power
That may seem like a lot of “can’ts.”
But don’t worry, there are some great things churches can do.
Churches can:
• Pray for all of the candidates
• Encourage people to be informed and to vote.
• Serve your community by hosting an all-candidates meeting and inviting everyone to attend.
• Talk about issues from a biblical perspective, without getting specific about a party or candidate.
Church staff can engage in political activity outside the church, using their own time and resources. They need to be careful not to identify themselves as church staff if they volunteer for a party or candidate, and not talk about their personal support for a candidate or party at church.
And yes! The rest of us can and should get involved in the civic process. Just remember, it’s not good manners to get into heated political debates during coffee hour.
Voting is one of the ways we contribute to society and help make the world better. It’s one of the many ways we can love our neighbour.
Stay above the fray. Voting matters. [ Ссылка ]
