Iowa pastor threatens to 'slap' woman for objecting to anti-LGBT political activism

An Iowa pastor who has called for an Iowa judge to be removed because he voted to legalize same sex marriage recently used a sermon to castigate a woman for objecting to political activism at his church.

The Associated Press reported on Sunday that City Church of Burlington Rev. Steve Youngblood had acknowledged wanting to "slap" the woman in his Oct. 7 sermon after she raised objections to fliers that were being distributed at the church on the grounds that it was illegal for tax-exempt organizations to promote political candidates or causes.

The fliers backed the removal of Iowa Supreme Court Justice David Wiggins, one of the justices who joined in a unanimous decision that overturned a law banning same sex marriage in the state. The woman contacted the group Vote Yes To Retain Iowa Supreme Court Justices, which later filed a complaint with the Internal Revenue Service.

In the Oct. 7 Sermon, Youngblood lashed out at the woman, saying that he would "like to slap her" and that her husband should "correct her." The pastor added that the woman's actions were "not Christian behavior."

"What makes me madder is that this person’s husband won’t correct them," he ranted. "I don’t like rebellious women. I don’t like rebellious men, either. They’re even worse."

The pastor went on to urge the 150 attendees to pick up one of the fliers before leaving the church.

"He read from that pamphlet during the sermon and encouraged people to pick it up after church and in my opinion that is a direct violation of the law, which prohibits houses of worship and nonprofits from endorsing candidates," Interfaith Alliance Executive Director Connie Ryan Terrell told the AP.

For its part, the IRS would not say if it would pursue a case against the church.

"The IRS is prohibited by law from commenting on any specific taxpayer or entity," spokesperson Christopher Miller explained to the wire service.

The Alliance Defending Freedom has offered to provide the church with legal representation if the IRS decides to take action.

Watch this video from WHBF, broadcast Oct. 14, 2012.

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