By james art 
This story originally appeared on KUNR.org and is being republished as part of a partnership between The Indy and KUNR.
On a recent Friday night, the Rev. Dr. Debra Whitlock-Lax took the microphone to warm up a crowd of voters who were at her church to hear from candidates running for office in Reno, Sparks and Washoe County.
“If you can hear me, clap your hands!” she said, followed by applause and cheers.
Whitlock-Lax is pastor of Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Sparks. Her church hosted the forum in partnership with Faith in Action, a nonprofit activist network that organizes people of faith around social issues.
She opened the event by asking the audience to commit to voting – but didn’t say for whom.
“We are not endorsing any candidate,” she said. “But we invite all candidates to come, participate and make their voices heard. You know, to share what it’s all about.”
Across town, Pastor Phil McKay of Calvary Chapel Reno Sparks is also running. But he takes a different approach.
“We’ve put together — our community impact team put together for you — a voter’s guide that we hope will help you learn to vote so you know who you’re voting for and what you’re voting for.” Amen,” he said during a recent sermon.
McKay preaches a literal interpretation of the Bible and promotes conservative cultural values, including opposition to gay marriage and transgender rights.
And in his church’s voter guide, McKay endorses a range of Republican candidates. According to experts, this is a violation of federal tax law. His church’s involvement in politics is also a key component of a national effort to activate evangelical voters for former President Donald Trump.
KUNR reviewed dozens of McKay’s sermons, social media posts and podcast episodes — as well as content from other local pastors. The investigation found that McKay had been working with Turning Point USA and its founder Charlie Kirk since at least November 2023, when he hosted Kirk for a question-and-answer session at his church.
“What would you say to the Christian who is here tonight and is struggling with their conscience about voting for a candidate who is not 100 percent consistent with their biblical values?” McKay asked the 31-year-old Republican activist and campaign operative.
“First, I’m glad you’re here,” Kirk replied. “I’m glad you’re considering this. So, I mean, obviously the only person they’re saying that about is Trump.
Kirk went on to compare Trump to biblical figures such as Cyrus II, the Persian ruler who freed the Jews from captivity.
According to the Old Testament, Cyrus was anointed by God even though he was an unbeliever.
“If you have to hire a bodyguard, do you want someone who’s polite or someone who can win?” Kirk continued. “[Trump] is the bodyguard of Western civilization.
As the crowd cheered, McKay responded with an emphatic “Amen.”
Kirk directed voters for the Trump campaign in Nevada and other battleground states through Turning Point Action, a social welfare organization affiliated with the Turning Point family of activist organizations, which Kirk founded in 2012.
But that night at Calvary Chapel Reno Sparks, he appeared under the brand Turning Point USA Faith, which is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. IRS regulations prohibit such tax-exempt organizations from speaking for or against any candidate for public office—a prohibition that also extends to churches.
Notre Dame law professor Lloyd Meyer said both Kirk and McKay broke the law by endorsing Trump.
“Charities are free to talk about issues,” Mayer explained. “It’s only when they start talking about candidates that we have a problem.”
McKay told KUNR he was too busy for an interview before this story was published. And Turning Point never responded to a request for comment.
But experts on Christian nationalism say Kirk is building relationships with churches to get evangelicals to support the former president. In Reno, he also became involved with the Hope Center Christian Fellowship and the CONVO Church.
Religion scholar Matthew D. Taylor said that after the pandemic, Kirk restructured Turning Point around a Christian nationalist philosophy called the Mandate of Seven Mountains. It divides societies into distinct spheres of influence or “mountains” that Christians must strive to control.
“There’s the mountain of government, the mountain of education,” Taylor said. “The tops of these mountains are controlled either by Satan and demons or by God and Christians.”
Taylor said proponents of the idea believe that once Christians take power, they will be able to bring the U.S. into line with what they consider “biblical values” and bring God’s blessing to the nation.
There is nothing illegal about promoting these ideas. But according to Meyer, McKay overreached by promoting a voter guide from the pulpit — which included at least two members of his caucus: Sam Brown, who is running for the U.S. Senate; and Reno City Council candidate Dennis Meyer.
“It’s a little surprising that more groups haven’t crossed the line in this area, especially given the sharp partisan divides we have today,” Meyer said.
McKay’s political activities could threaten his church’s tax-exempt status — at least in theory.
But Meyer says it’s doubtful the IRS will look into them because the agency doesn’t have enough resources. He also suspects it is prudent to go after churches, especially in this political climate.
Back at Bethel AME in Sparks, however, Whitlock-Lax is firmly on the right side of the law. The forum she hosted featured candidates from both major parties and several nonpartisan races.
The goal was to help voters get engaged, no matter who they planned to vote for.
“I believe an educated community is a community that can vote wisely,” she said.