There is a perilous divide between religious organizations and politics.

Such a divide is a requirement of the Internal Revenue Service, which is the grantor of 501(c)3 nonprofit status. Any number of tax exemptions come with being designated a 501(c)3. In fact, our church is not required to file a federal income tax statement unless someone makes a contribution of $25,000 or more in one offering.

Here's why I call it a perilous divide: It was revealed last week in The Boston Globe that e-mail accounts from Brigham Young University were used to seek interest to help fellow Mormon, Mitt Romney. The e-mail sought recruits to serve as campaign volunteers.

Romney, the darling organizer of the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, is governor of Massachusetts. There is a political action committee that is garnering support for Romney, but he has not officially declared his candidacy for president of the United States.

The original e-mail went on to say, “Governor Romney's chances for success are significantly enhanced and energized by people, such as you, who are willing to help him at the grass-roots level throughout the United States."

Get too close to the precipice and you could cause your organization to tumble into the abyss, meaning your organization could be fined or lose its nonprofit status.

One of the 101 requirements for pastoring a church is an awareness of the rules that come with being the executive director of an organization granted charitable status. Whereas some government rules and regulations can be difficult to discern, IRS language about exempt dos or don'ts is very clear.

Political campaign activity is prohibited with a disclaimer provided by the IRS:

“The political campaign activity prohibition is not intended to restrict free expression on political matters by leaders of organizations speaking for themselves, as individuals. Nor are leaders prohibited from speaking about important issues of public policy. However, for their organizations to remain tax-exempt under section 501(c)3, leaders cannot make partisan comments in official organization publications or at official functions.”

Furthermore, for a church with 501(c)3 status, there is plenty of room for error. In the Baptist church, the pulpit is a favored place for politicians during campaign season. When I introduce a candidate at our church and allow him or her to speak from the pulpit, it is always with a disclaimer.

The LDS Church is walking a fine line trying to remain neutral when one of its own is thinking about running for the most important elective office in the United States.

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* COREY J. HODGES writes about current events and ideas from a moral perspective. Hodges, the senior pastor of the New Pilgrim Baptist Church in Taylorsville, welcomes comments at coreyjhodges@ comcast.net. You may also comment at religioneditor@ sltrib.com.