In the run-up to the November election, Homer had some controversy about the presence of political signs on the property of one of the churches here. The pastor of that church chose not to respond to comments on social media to calm the situation. Now that the election is over, Pastor Mark Edens wishes to share his personal thoughts about the matter in this forum.

He has written the following letter, which has been published unedited and in its entirety. This letter is being shared in the hope that it will help to inform and encourage respectful dialogue between the different factions in this matter.

LETTER FROM MARK EDENS

December 5, 2024

To my fellow citizens,

I am Mark Edens, one of the pastors of Regent Life Church in Homer, and I am writing to a very torn and divided nation. It is now one month after our election and this battle continues. But I am full of hope. I am in fact projecting that the history books will one day look back on this time and declare it to be America’s Third Great Awakening. I am expecting an amazing unity to be birthed, and we will once again be boldly and joyfully pledging our allegiance as “…one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”

I realize that not all will agree with me, both outside and inside the church, but I extend my hand to you and honor your unalienable right to freedom of conscience. To be clear, I am not representing any official position of the church. I am writing from my own personal perspective.

During the campaign for this recent election, it came to my attention that some in our town were quite concerned about the signs posted on the street corner supporting certain candidates. So, for those who are still curious why I posted those signs, please allow me to give an abbreviated explanation.

Yes, I am very aware of the Johnson Amendment which became a law in 1954 essentially saying that 501c3 entities cannot endorse candidates or openly support their campaign. Today, it is used as a billy club to restrain the clergy from freely speaking and entrap them in fear of losing their 501c3 status.

So, let me ask you a question: If there was a sign on the lawn that said, “Stay Off The Grass,” would you obey it? You probably would. At least I certainly would! But let’s say one day you are walking on the sidewalk, and you witness a man beating up a little girl right in the middle of that lawn. Would you obey the sign and stay off the grass? I would not! Everything in me would seek to protect that little girl, sign or no sign.

My point is, I believe some laws are higher than others, and in this case, the laws of love and protection far exceed the law on the grass.

In the same way, I believe the Johnson Amendment to be like the sign on the grass. If there is no issue on the lawn, by all means, stay off the grass. But my friends, our beloved nation has a huge issue on the lawn! The government’s job is to secure the rights of the people, providing safety and prosperity for its citizens. Instead, we are witnessing a tyrannical and corrupt government beating up on We The People.

I believe I have the duty to run past it and do my small part in standing up to the tyranny in the current establishment. Who knows? Perhaps it will be this case that will make it to the Supreme Court.

The highest law in our nation is the Constitution of the United States. The first amendment declares our unalienable God-given rights including freedom of religion, freedom of speech, and freedom of the press.

In my opinion, the Johnson Amendment violates these rights and is therefore unconstitutional. These rights and many others come from our Creator. The government did not give them to us and the government cannot take them away.

I am aware of hundreds of pastors who, several years ago, preached messages intentionally including political speech as well as endorsing candidates. They recorded their messages and sent them to the IRS in hopes of challenging the Johnson Amendment in court. The IRS did nothing about it. Can you guess why? Because they too know it is unconstitutional.

To be clear, it is not about Democrats versus Republicans. Rather, it’s about good versus evil. In my opinion, we have a government that calls evil good, and sees good as evil.

Now, my friends, the most common rationale in support of the Johnson Amendment is the misinterpreted and unconstitutional belief of “Separation of Church and State.” To those who feel I am breaching the constitutional law of the Separation of Church and State, please allow a little clarification… It’s not a law. It’s not even in the Constitution of the United States. And it’s not an amendment. Neither is it included in the Declaration of Independence. Even more, it is not found anywhere in the Federalist Papers which literally recorded all of the debates and discussions during the framing of the Constitution. It’s just not there. To be bold, I will personally give $1,000 to the first person who can show me that this phrase, “Separation of Church and State,” is in any of these founding documents. Go ahead and research it.

You will also discover that today’s interpretation of the separation of church and state is quite contrary to its literal meaning when Thomas Jefferson wrote it in his letter to the Danbury Baptists assuring them that government would not infringe on their freedom of religion. The highest law in our land says, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof…” The Johnson Amendment is such a law!

I hope that President Trump will be able to completely get rid of the Johnson Amendment as he has promised to do. Until then, I believe that churches must be proactive in matters of religious freedom. The most important thing for the church is to proclaim the Gospel of the Kingdom of the Lord Jesus Christ.

The second most important thing is to fight for the freedom to do the most important thing.

Concerning the sign on the lawn (the Johnson Amendment), I believe I have the duty to run past it and do my small part in standing up to the tyranny in the current establishment. Who knows? Perhaps it will be this case that will make it to the Supreme Court.

Peace to All,

Pastor Mark

The views expressed here are those of the authors. Read more posts at Seward’s Folly substack.

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