Burkett's Bible-based ballot guide sparks church-and-state debate

A one-page voter guide headed “Bruce’s Position,” which recommends votes on 16 ballot measures and is credited to the pastor of Lighthouse Baptist Church, drew a church-and-state debate in a large local Facebook group Sunday evening. By 9:13 p.m., the post was no longer available.

The pastor, Bruce Burkett, also sits on the Cortez Planning and Zoning Commission, which advises the City Council on land use. The council appointed him in June, after he lost a council race in April. Among the guide’s positions is “VOTE NO” on City of Cortez Question 2A, which would raise the city’s lodgers’ tax.

The Cortez Current read the post at 8:50 p.m. and saved a copy. When the Current checked again at 9:13 p.m., the post’s address returned Facebook’s notice that the content “isn’t available right now.” By 9:16 p.m., the post no longer appeared in the group’s feed, and a search of the group for its wording returned no results. The Current has not determined why it became unavailable. Shortly after 9:30 p.m. Sunday, the Current emailed questions about the guide, the post and his city seat to Burkett through the church, because it could not find a publicly listed personal email address for him. It asked for a response by 10 a.m. Monday and also called him shortly before 9 a.m. Monday.

Burkett replied by email Monday morning. He said the guide is his own opinion, published on his personal blog, and not that of any institution he serves. “To me these issues are not political, they are biblical,” he wrote. His full response is at the end of this story.

What was posted

The post went up about 5:50 p.m. in The Original What’s Up? Dolores, Mancos, Cortez!, a public group of about 25,000 members, from a group member’s account, with the location tagged as Lighthouse Baptist Church. “Confused by the little blue booklet? Here’s a biblical perspective for the upcoming Colorado ballot initiatives!” it read. “So grateful to Pastor Burkett for putting this together with Bible references.”

The photograph showed a printed table with three columns: the measure, “Bruce’s Position” in green for yes and red for no, and “Reason and Reference,” a one-line rationale with a scripture citation.

The Facebook post at 8:50 p.m. Sunday, 23 minutes before it became unavailable. The Current has blurred the name and profile photo of the group member who posted it. The guide is shown at the top of this story. Screenshot: Cortez Current.

On the city question, the guide said: “Limits government. Reject all unnecessary tax increases for government to fulfill its role. (Matt. 22:21).” Question 2A would raise the city’s tax on hotel, motel and short-term rental stays from 2 percent to 6 percent, capped at $900,000 in the first year, with the city manager saying the money would go to tourism, downtown and the arts. The Current’s explainer has the details.

On County Question 1A, which would end term limits for the county assessor, clerk and recorder, surveyor and treasurer, it said no: “Keep limits on public office. Restrain the sinful nature of man.” It did not list County Question 1B, the county lodging tax.

On the state ballot it said yes to Amendments 81 through 86 and no to 87; no to Proposition NN; yes to Propositions 132 through 136; and no to 137. The two transgender measures the Current has explained both received a “yes” recommendation: 134, “Protect girls and women’s sports. Honor God’s created gender roles,” and 135, “Protect children from being pressured to make choices they aren’t mature enough to make or from having an irreversible surgery.”

The reaction

By 8:50 p.m. Facebook showed 44 reactions, among them likes, angry faces and laughing faces, and 44 comments.

Critics raised the separation of church and state. “What happened to Separation of Church and State ??” Andrea Martin wrote. “And this…is why we should tax the churches,” wrote Adam Quintana. Chris Baker wrote that he was not confused by the blue book “because I can read comprehensively,” and did not need or want “a random person pushing religion and or a god down my throat to sway my vote.”

Others defended the guide. “If you’re a non-church attending, ‘non-believing’ registered voter this post wasn’t meant for you. Simply scroll past,” wrote Doug Cook. Debbie McHenry wrote: “its biblically based!!” Terese Lopez asked whether the objections would change with another name at the top of the page: “Is it illegal for someone to share what they vote for and why?”

What Burkett says

In his email, Burkett said that every election year many people call him for his biblical perspective on the candidates and measures, and that after years of answering the same questions he began posting his take on his personal blog instead. “I put out my opinion on each measure and make it clear that it is my opinion and not that of any institution I serve in,” he wrote.

“To me these issues are not political, they are biblical. And as a Christian I am compelled to vote based on biblical values,” he wrote. “Every year, people get a hold of this blog post content and it sparks controversy. But, the information comes from me as an individual and as an American citizen which is my right to share.”

“My goal is not to tell people how to vote, but to inform them how I am voting so they can do their own research and make their own decision about each measure,” he wrote.

He did not address why the Facebook post became unavailable, his seat on the Planning and Zoning Commission or the April campaign mailer described below.

The post Burkett pointed to, “Biblical Voter Guide 2026,” appears on his blog, The Pastor’s Point. Blogger, which hosts the blog, records its publication time as 9:18 a.m. Monday, after the guide circulated in the Facebook group Sunday evening and after the Current emailed its questions. That time shows when the post went up on the blog, not when the guide was written or first handed out. The blog also carries voter guides he posted in October 2024 and October 2025. The 2026 post says its opinions are his own “as a citizen and as a Christian” and do not necessarily reflect the views of organizations he serves.

Who Burkett is

Burkett, 36, has been pastor of Lighthouse Baptist since 2014. During his tenure, the congregation has grown to an average of 360 a week, and the church is scheduled to open a nearly 20,000-square-foot building with a 500-seat auditorium on County Road L on Nov. 1, The Journal reported last month. The church also runs a K–12 academy.

He ran for City Council this spring on public safety, fiscal responsibility and lower taxes. At the League of Women Voters forum in March he said he would not sign a Pride Month proclamation: “God does love all people and I do too, but it is my personal conviction that homosexuality is a sin,” he said, according to KSJD. On April 7 he finished sixth among 11 candidates for five seats with 757 votes, 69 behind the last winner, according to KSJD.

Two months later the council appointed him to the Planning and Zoning Commission. The council’s June 16 minutes record “two new members of Planning & Zoning: Bruce Burkett, who unsuccessfully ran for City Council, and Rich Landreth.” The city’s commission page lists him, and the commission’s August 4 minutes show him making motions and voting. The commission is an advisory body whose five appointed members are paid $25 per meeting. It holds hearings on rezonings, subdivisions and the land use code and makes recommendations to the council, which makes the final decisions. The commission has no decision-making role in Question 2A.

Days after the April election, KSJD reported that a bulk-mailed postcard featuring several council candidates carried no “paid for by” line. Clarisa Osborn, who appeared on the card and won the most votes, told KSJD that Burkett organized it, that individual donors paid for it and that those involved believed Secretary of State guidance did not require a disclaimer. The city told KSJD it had referred complaints to the Secretary of State. KSJD reported that Burkett did not respond to its questions.

What the law says

Colorado’s conduct standards for local officials, section 24-18-109, deal with financial interests in matters before an official’s own board. The Fair Campaign Practices Act bars a city and its boards from spending public money on a ballot issue, and says in the same section that a member of such a body may spend personal time and money urging a vote on one.

Federal tax law treats candidates and ballot measures differently. The Internal Revenue Code bars churches and other 501(c)(3) organizations from supporting or opposing candidates for public office, and the guide named no candidates. Advocacy on ballot measures counts as lobbying, which a church may do as long as it is not a substantial part of its activities. The IRS judges that against an organization’s overall activities, including time and spending, so a single guide does not answer the question. Burkett says the guide is his personal view, not the church’s. It is headed “Bruce’s Position,” and he says it comes from his personal blog; it reached the Facebook group from a group member’s account with the church tagged as the location.

Disclosure: The publisher of the Cortez Current, Charles P. Borchini Jr., was a candidate in the same April 2026 City Council election, finishing tenth with 235 votes, and served on the Cortez Planning and Zoning Commission from November 2025 to September 2026, including alongside Burkett from June, receiving the same $25-per-meeting stipend. He is no longer a member. See our ethics and disclosures page.

Sources: Facebook post in The Original What’s Up? Dolores, Mancos, Cortez!, read and captured 8:50 p.m. Oct. 18, 2026; unavailable as of 9:13 p.m. · Email from Bruce Burkett to the Cortez Current, Oct. 19, 2026 · Bruce Burkett, “Biblical Voter Guide 2026,” The Pastor’s Point, Oct. 19, 2026 · City of Cortez, Planning & Zoning Commission · KSJD, April 13, 2026 · KSJD, April 7, 2026 · KSJD, March 12, 2026 · The Journal, Sept. 28, 2026 · The Journal, March 10, 2026 · C.R.S. 24-18-109 · C.R.S. 1-45-117