Stephen Colbert on politics from the pulpit

(Mark Wilson/The Washington Post)

Are you ready for ‘Pulpit Freedom Sunday’? Or as we Catholics call it, just another weekend? I’ve written before about how churches can preach the Gospel of red or blue and still maintain their tax-exempt status. (Short answer: Who would want the political liability of persecuting believers by prosecuting them?) But this weekend, a bunch of ministers who think there’s no reason they should have to keep mum on politics will be trying to get arrested by telling their congregations how to vote on November 6.

On Tuesday, Stephen Colbert interviewed Pastor Jim Garlow on the preacher’s own so far fruitless attempts to be jailed. Garlow deserves huge credit for being willing to argue his case on Comedy Central, armed only the conviction that First Amendment guarantees churches both unfettered free speech and freedom from taxes. And Colbert’s questions about how he could get a deal like that for his Super PAC laid out where that would lead.

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