Iowa Religious Leaders Who Opposed Using Churches For the Trump Campaign

The Iowa Faith Leader Coalition doesn’t tell you about the large number of religious leaders in Iowa who oppose the Trump campaign’s exploitation of churches as cogs in his political machine.

Charles Huntley of the First Church of God in Des Moines didn’t heed their warning, and used his position as church pastor to promote the partisan political campaign of Donald Trump, not only by appearing in the Iowa Faith Leader Coalition, but also by working to host Trump for President campaign events at the First Church of God itself.

In 2017, shortly after the networks of churches were used to campaign for the election of Donald Trump, a group of religious leaders from across the United States wrote a letter to Congress raising an alarm about the growing problem of politicians transforming churches into instruments of their partisan political campaigns.

The letter stated:

“We must not allow our sacred spaces to be transformed into spaces used to endorse or oppose political candidates.

Faith leaders are called to speak truth to power, and we cannot do so if we are merely cogs in partisan political machines. The prophetic role of faith communities necessitates that we retain our independent voice. Current law respects this independence and strikes the right balance: houses of worship that enjoy favored tax-exempt status may engage in advocacy to address moral and political issues, but they cannot tell people who to vote for or against. Nothing in current law, however, prohibits me from endorsing or opposing political candidates in my own personal capacity.

Changing the law to repeal or weaken the “Johnson Amendment” – the section of the tax code that prevents tax-exempt nonprofit organizations from endorsing or opposing candidates – would harm houses of worship, which are not identified or divided by partisan lines. Particularly in today’s political climate, engaging in partisan politics and issuing endorsements would be highly divisive and have a detrimental impact on congregational unity and civil discourse.”

 Religious leaders from Iowa who signed the non-partisan letter were:

1.     Sr. Vicky Arndorfer, Member Sister of Mercy New Hampton, IA

2.     Dr. Robert Ashman, Mission Board Chair Congregational United Church of Christ Iowa City, IA

3.     Pastor W. Michael Biklen, Musserville/San Pablo United Methodist Church, Iowa Conference, United Methodist Church Muscatine, IA

4.     Ms. Darlene Broughton, Spouse of Pastor Evangelical Lutheran Church in America Humboldt, IA

5.     Philip Carver, Field Outreach Minister Iowa Conference United Methodist Church Coralville, IA

6.     Mr. John Champion, Lay Leader Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) Altoona, IA

7.     Rev. Christine Cowan, Pastor Immanuel Lutheran Church, ELCA Ogden, IA

8.     Ms. Eloise Cranke, Iowa Chapter Coordinator Methodist Federation for Social Action (MFSA) Des Moines, IA

9.     Rev. Wyatt Dagit, Hospital Chaplain United Church of Christ Cedar Rapids, IA

10.  Rev. and Mrs. Jim and Barbara Dale, Retired Clergy and Laity Leader

11.  United Methodist

12.  Sr. Mary Day, Sisters of St. Francis, Dubuque, Iowa Sioux City, IA

13.  Rev. Pamela Deeds, Pastor Dallas Center United Methodist Church Dallas Center, IA

14.  Beth Douglass, Lay Leader First Baptist Church Ames, IA

15.  Rabbi Steven Edelman-Blank, Rabbi Tifereth Israel Synagogue, Des Moines, IA

16.  Rev. Erin Gingrich, Associate Minister of Social Justice, First Unitarian Church of Des Moines, Des Moines, IA

17.  Rev. David Glenn-Burns, Director and Campus Minister, Threehouse: A Wesley Foundation Cedar Falls, IA

18.  Pastor Lisa Griffith Tierney, MID United Church of Christ Des Moines, IA

19.  Rev. Deborah Hill-Davis, Senior Minister Unity Church of Ames Ames, IA

20.  Laura Hollinrake, Director of Religious Education St. Anthony Catholic Church Knoxville, IA

21.  Rev. Sheryl Hughes Empke, Priest St. Martin's Episcopal Church Perry, IA

22.  Rabbi Henry Karp, Rabbi Temple Emanuel Davenport, IA

23.  Rev. Reva Karstens, Retired Pastor United Church of Christ Sioux City, IA

24.  Rev. Dr. Charles Kniker, Retired Pastor United Church of Christ Ames, IA

25.  Mr. Terry Lowman, Lead Organizer Iowa Unitarian Universalist Witness/Advocacy Network Ames, IA

26.  Jere Maddux, Lay Leader First Baptist Church Ames, IA

27.  Sr. Janet May, Director of Campus Ministry Briar Cliff University Catholic Franciscan Learning Place Sioux City, IA

28.  Wayne McDermott, Fellowship Member FCUCC Dubuque, IA

29.  Rev. Dr. Curt Miner, Retired Clergy United Church of Christ Cedar Rapids, IA

30.  Rev. Julie Monnard, Pastor Zion Lutheran Church Princeton, IA

31.  Mr. David J. Nelson, Board of Directors United Church of Christ Des Moines, IA

32.  Rev. Clairnel Nervik, Pastor St. John's United Church of Christ Griswold, IA

33.  Rev. Roy Nilsen, Pastor Emeritus Evangelical Lutheran Church in America Des Moines, IA

34.  Rev. Gary Nims, Minister of Congregational Care Grace United Methodist Church Urbandale, IA

35.  Sr. Brigid O'Connell, Sisters of Mercy Cedar Rapids, IA

36.  Sister Helen O'Connell, Sisters of Mercy Cedar Rapids, IA

37.  Sr. Anne Martin Phelan, Retired Sisters of St. Francis Clinton, IA

38.  Rev. Julia E. F. Poulsen, First United Methodist Church Jefferson, IA

39.  Rev. Julia Rendon, Pastor Crossroads United Church of Christ Indianola, IA

40.  Dr. Steve Rose, Lay Leader Crossroads United Church of Christ Indianola, IA

41.  Rev. Carina Schiltz, Pastor St. John Ev. Lutheran Church Preston, IA

42.  Mrs. Patricia Shaw, Financial Secretary United Methodist Church Birmingham, IA

43.  Rev. Dr. Wayne Shireman, Retired American Baptist Churches Ames, IA

44.  Rev. Michael Slagenweit-Coffman, Chaplain United Church of Christ Cedar Rapids, IA

45.  Sr. Marge Staudt, Retired Sister Sisters of St. Francis Dubuque, IA

46.  Rev. Stephen Stepp, Pastor Zion United Church of Christ Lowden, IA

47.  Rev. Melissa Sternhagen, Pastor Baxter Congregational United Church of Christ Baxter, IA

48.  Rev. Loren Strait, Minister Central Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) Marshalltown, IA

49.  Deborah Svec-Carstens, Lay Leader Wellspring Community Church Des Moines, IA

50.  Mr. Paul Talkington, Assisting Minister, Past Council Positions Lutheran Church of the Good Shepherd ELCA Des Moines, IA

51.  Rev. Carol Teare, Pastor American Baptist Waterloo, IA

52.  Rev. Cheryl Thomas, Communications Director American Baptist Des Moines, IA

53.  Rev. Paul Uzel, Retired Presbyterian Church (USA) Dubuque, IA

54.  Rev. Jane Voigts, Elder United Methodist Church Waverly, IA

55.  Rev. Charles West, Retired United Church of Christ Algona, IA

56.  Rev. Kate West, Pastor First Congregational United Church of Christ Belle Plaine, IA

57.  Rev. Joan White, Retired Disciples of Christ Perry, IA

58.  Rev. Gilbert Dawes, Retired Pastor United Methodist Indianola, IA

This list of name shows that religious leaders in Iowa are not united behind Donald Trump, and that many of them oppose his diminishment of religious communities into mere political tools to boost his personal obsession with power.