In a Fox News interview tied to the midterms, SBC President Dr. Willy Rice stirred up controversy last week when he called on pastors to “step up” and not run from divisive issues such as abortion, same-sex marriage, and illegal immigration.
"Should pastors engage in the political process? They absolutely should,” Rice told the news outlet.
“Because there are many political issues that are, at their heart, theological issues and moral issues,” he stated, “that strike at the very center of what we believe to be true, and what we believe people need to know to flourish personally and as a culture.”
It appears from the Fox News story that Fox News Digital reached out to Rice for a pre-election story, since the story does not describe a recent social media post, or a sermon, from the prominent SBC leader.
Regardless of how Rice waded into the midterms, he told “Washington Watch” host Tony Perkins he doesn’t regret addressing politics with Election Day coming soon.
“You're calling on pastors to step up and to address the issues,” Perkins, referring to the Fox News story, stated. “And some are criticizing that because it's right before an election.”
“Well, we are where we are,” Rice replied, “and it’s a moment in which people are thinking about these issues again.”
Dems depend on majority-black churches
Self-identified evangelical voters comprise about one-fourth of eligible voters in the United States, and about 85% of them voted for Donald Trump in the 2024 election, according to Public Religion Research Institute.
The political activism hasn’t gone unnoticed by either party, Democrats or Republicans, but the Republican Party is likely aware most evangelical churches run from politics on Sunday mornings.
Democrats, on the other hand, have historically leaned on majority-black churches to organize “souls to the polls” trips to get church members to the polling precinct. Those churches also routinely welcome political candidates to address their congregations and the pastors openly endorse them from the pulpit.
During the 2024 election, the Kamala Harris campaign collected funds from Black Church PAC. Her presidential campaign also spread $3.7 million among black civil rights groups and church organizations for get-out-the-vote efforts in key swing states, Newsweek reported at the time.
Churches were silent when culture needed them
Looking back over several decades, Rice said, many evangelical churches have struggled with cultural and political issues, and when and how to address them, since the core mission of the church is to share the gospel. That decision to stay silent, he said, has created two problems that still exist today.
“One, it silenced our voice at the very time our culture needed our voice,” Rice shared.
Secondly, and more troubling, he said, that decision to stay silent prevented churches and their leaders from addressing those issues among their own members.
“So what happens if the pulpit is silent on these issues?” Perkins pressed. “Where do those people in the pew get their cue?”
“Well, they get it from social media. They get it from all their media sources,” Rice answered.
In other words, Rice summarized, the church members in the pews will form opinions about controversial issues, such as abortion and same-sex marriage, with or without the influence of their own church and its leaders.
“These are critical issues that are theological at their core,” Rice said. “And our churches must be speaking to them, or people are going to be getting very flawed, and very unsound, information.”
