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The first time viewers of ABC's hit drama Scandal see Olivia Pope go to church, she's there to oversee the success of a "fix" she negotiated for the wife of a prominent pastor who died on top of his mistress. Pope spends much of the episode counseling and empathizing with the mistress, while the long-suffering wife--still reeling from the depth of her husband's betrayal--has to accept both his lover and her secret child.

The second time we see Olivia in a pew, she's mourning the loss of a corrupt mentor her own married lover murdered. She's also there to hook up with that lover of hers--until she discovers that he knows she's betrayed him. Then, she's there to seek forgiveness--not from God, but from her man, President Fitzgerald Grant.

In short: Olivia Pope uses church for surprising reasons. Perhaps the same could be said for how the church uses her. Since Scandal's debut (its second-season finale airs Thursday night), its rapidly growing audience has taken to Twitter to live-tweet the series along with its stars. Pastors are capitalizing on the series' success by live-tweeting with the rest of the viewership, and even crafting sermons and conferences around the show and its protagonist.

It's a familiar technique. Churches, to remain engaged with popular culture, have been name-checking television shows, films, and pop songs for ages. The more risqué or controversial the media, the more rousing the congregational response. For better or worse, scandal--in all its varied forms--grabs attention.

But it can be tricky to pull off this tactic for connecting with congregants, and some ways of going about it can be more helpful--or hurtful--to churchgoers than others.

Dr. Tejado W. Hanchell, Senior Pastor of Mount Calvary Holy Church of Winston-Salem, North Carolina, is one of many ministers to use Scandal as an object lesson. In the May 2 episode, "A Woman Scorned," Olivia growls the instant-classic line, "You want me? Earn me!" to Fitz. In response, Dr. Hanchell used the hashtag #DearSingleSister to dispense a bit of admonition to any women who may have been looking to Olivia as a relationship role model. "#DearSingleSister," he wrote, "A married man can't 'earn you.' His assets are tied up in another investment." Other advice from that week includes: "#DearSingleSister, you can get free from your 'Fitz' but you can't do it alone. Seek help." And then there's this observation: "Fitz is acting like those pastors who lose their church over a side piece."

For faith leaders who use the show primarily to address the perils and fallout of adultery, useful commentary seems limited. Lessons along these lines assume that there's a great need for addressing extramarital affairs in church--and there very well may be. But these quips also place the bulk of blame on Olivia Pope. She--and by extension, the female contingent of a church's Scandal-viewing audience--become whipping girls for the Purity Police. The message is: Don't end up like Olivia Pope, the mistress who will most assuredly received her well-deserved comeuppance. And, apparently: Don't be a "side piece" who causes a pastor to lose his church. Beyond that, there isn't much of a faith message to be gained.

Dr. Hanchell isn't alone in his adultery-based critique of the show and its viewers, but some churches are using Scandal as less of a shaming device and more of a conversation-starter and a Bible study. Take Impact Church of Atlanta, where Pastor Olu Brown preached a series on Scandal that was strategically planned to coincide with the show's last three-week hiatus. Three Scandal-centric sermons, "I've Been Hucked," "Every Scandal Has a Harrison," and "The Olivia Pope Syndrome," dissect the show's characters and plot in interesting and less judgmental ways.