New Calls To Strip Churches of Tax Exempt Status After Same-Sex Marriage Ruling

[bryant.coleman]

First of all tax is theft, so any time there are more taxes I am not for it, I am not sure how more being taken from others some how befits you personally considering the financial black hole that has become the US government. Second of all reducing the ability for these churches to fund themselves is very much so a direct attack on them. Yeah of course there always some fat cat leeches skimming off the system, but that is the case in absolutely every industry. It doesn't make it ok, but it also doesn't mean you throw the baby out with the bathwater.

We are talking about a situation where the hard working middle class is being made to pay hefty taxes, and at the same time individual churches, some of which are having tens of millions of USD in annual funding is being exempted from paying any tax. I don't think that this is fair at all. Either abolish the taxes, or make them uniform for everyone without any exceptions.

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[celestio]

Why should the places of worship be exempt from taxes? Now most of them are acting just like organized business cartels, especially the Catholics, Muslims and various evangelical sects. These people should be taxed like any other business, since most of the religious activity seems to be for the creation of profit and asset building.

This may be the only thing I have ever agreed with you upon. These religious organizations should not and should never have been tax exempt. America is finally waking up.

[PenguinFire]

Yes, churches should pay taxes.  I go to church unfortunately, my parents make me, and we are VERY small with only 70 members.  With only 70 members they still have 50,60k in a bank account. My church does do a lot of good things and provide free services for the community but I still believe they should be taxed.

[BADecker]

Taxation in America is in the process of backfiring right now, through the things that Karl Lentz is showing people.

Taxation is slavery. If it is donations that people give, then it is not taxation; it's donations.

Slavery has been abolished. All it takes is people using the law the right way to get out of taxation by showing that it is slavery. Getting exemptions from the IRS isn't the right way.

Google and Youtube "Karl Lentz common law."

[Wilikon]

Yes, churches should pay taxes.  I go to church unfortunately, my parents make me, and we are VERY small with only 70 members.  With only 70 members they still have 50,60k in a bank account. My church does do a lot of good things and provide free services for the community but I still believe they should be taxed.

Do you wait for the logistic of your church to do good for the community or do you help out as much as you can directly and for free?

60k as cashflow for helping a whole community is not much...

[rodzimajid]

Before Disney evolved and went LGBTQ.

[TECSHARE]

First of all tax is theft, so any time there are more taxes I am not for it, I am not sure how more being taken from others some how befits you personally considering the financial black hole that has become the US government. Second of all reducing the ability for these churches to fund themselves is very much so a direct attack on them. Yeah of course there always some fat cat leeches skimming off the system, but that is the case in absolutely every industry. It doesn't make it ok, but it also doesn't mean you throw the baby out with the bathwater.

We are talking about a situation where the hard working middle class is being made to pay hefty taxes, and at the same time individual churches, some of which are having tens of millions of USD in annual funding is being exempted from paying any tax. I don't think that this is fair at all. Either abolish the taxes, or make them uniform for everyone without any exceptions.

I never justified it or said it was right. My point was throwing more money into a black hole won't fix anything and will have negative side effects such as lack of funding for actual charities. If there are truckloads of rice going to Africa, and the truck driver steals a few bags to sell for himself, should we tax the whole truck now and cause less people to be fed just so the truck driver pays his fair share? I understand and agree with your argument, but removing their tax exempt status will not fix anything at all. It is basically like two little sisters playing with their toys, and one of the sisters breaks theirs and then cries that its not fair. If you don't like the fact that you are taxed, do something about it, don't just demand its imposition on more people. That is idiotic. 

This is very clearly a divisive attempt of dividing the nation even further along race, religion, sexual orientation, class, age, etc. These are Marxist tactics designed to destroy the nations ability to act in unison to defend itself. All this religious intolerance is getting out of hand. Religions have convinced people to kill, we get it... so has money, and corporations, government, etc, but we don't abolish those things.

[pedrog]

Churches spent a lot less in charity than what is claimed by them.

Can you prove this?

If common sense isn't enough you can find lots of material online.

Comment on a study: http://holysoup.com/2013/08/06/the-shocking-truth-of-church-budgets/

You could argue about comparing a church’s expenses to a public charity’s expenses. But the enormous disparity is striking, especially to the public. It’s made worse by looking at how churches allocate funds to direct ministries. According to the ECCU study, churches use 3 percent of their budget for children’s and youth programs, and 2 percent for adult programs. Local and national benevolence receives 1 percent of the typical church budget.


"In the United States, 50 percent of social services are provided by the Catholic church,"

http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2013/mar/19/frank-keating/does-catholic-church-provide-half-social-services-/


Mormons are all for profit: http://investigations.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/08/13/13262285-mormon-church-earns-7-billion-a-year-from-tithing-analysis-indicates

[TECSHARE]

Churches spent a lot less in charity than what is claimed by them.

Can you prove this?

If common sense isn't enough you can find lots of material online.

Comment on a study: http://holysoup.com/2013/08/06/the-shocking-truth-of-church-budgets/

You could argue about comparing a church’s expenses to a public charity’s expenses. But the enormous disparity is striking, especially to the public. It’s made worse by looking at how churches allocate funds to direct ministries. According to the ECCU study, churches use 3 percent of their budget for children’s and youth programs, and 2 percent for adult programs. Local and national benevolence receives 1 percent of the typical church budget.


"In the United States, 50 percent of social services are provided by the Catholic church,"

http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2013/mar/19/frank-keating/does-catholic-church-provide-half-social-services-/


Mormons are all for profit: http://investigations.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/08/13/13262285-mormon-church-earns-7-billion-a-year-from-tithing-analysis-indicates

 From your politifact link: "So by our estimate, Catholic-affiliated charity amounts to 17 percent of the funds spent by nonprofits on social services -- well short of the 50 percent Keating cited. Even doubling this share to create a generous margin of error brings it to 34 percent -- still well short of half."

Just catholic churches? So what? This one idiot overstated numbers, does that not mean that is not a large % of charitable funding? How much will that number be after taxes? What will that tax money go to? Also do you think this is some how limited just to catholic charities? The law doesn't work like that. People are just being tricked into demanding their own slavery.

[Wilikon]

Before Disney evolved and went LGBTQ.

[pedrog]

Careful with that baby, there's a Catholic priest in the scene...

[BADecker]

Yikes! That baby is Muslim!!!

 

[Wilikon]

Careful with that baby, there's a Catholic priest in the scene...

He will get his turn, after them...