It would seem like an abuse of power to use the pulpit to push your opinion to a captive audience who is there for an entirely different message.
Maybe Percy will resurrect the red minus for this:
I cannot agree that voicing a political opinion from the pulpit is an abuse of power or an inappropriate use of the preacher’s station. Preachers are legitimately leaders of a community. Their duty is to guide the flock and serve as opinion leaders for that community. That is supposed to be part of their role. Any and all political, personal and social subjects are/should be open for discourse from the pulpit. That, imho, would include actions of government at any level, candidates, court judgements, social commentary on the happenings of interest, death penalty, tipping for service, gay marriage, race relations, business conduct, whether the local high school should or shouldn’t have a Christmas pageant or a Halloween dance or anything else that involves the moral and ethical actions or opinions of the community as laid upon by the creed of the specific religion.
Where I would see an abuse, hypocrisy, is where a preacher pushes an opinion that violates the creed they were consecrated to lead. Where they twist scripture to excuse violence, oppression, greed and all the other violations of their creed (Assuming those are violations of their creed. You can never tell about religions these days).
If the preacher is one who says, Vote my way or go to hell, or is so authoritarian that no one feels they can voice disagreement (not during the sermon, obviously, but in side discussion afterward) then the lay person has a decision to make. Move to get rid of the preacher, find a different church or sit on your hands like a mindless wet noodle.
The best option, again my opinion, is to be atheist and adopt a humanist agenda as ones guiding moral and ethical code, but if there must be religions and churches for people to lean upon then the church’s role is to provide that moral and ethical guidance in all aspects of life for a community, is it not? And how do you do that without preaching about them?
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