Why it is that Religions don't pay tax? How can these religions make so much money and not be forced to pay taxes?

Surely the church and other religions earning hundreds of billions of dollars should have to pay some kind of tax? I could maybe understand if God had been proven and there was something more than a Bible or religious manuscript to prove his/her/its existence...

Is there any valid argument why they shouldn't have to pay taxes?

I would think that Jesus would be pretty angry at the church for not paying taxes like everyone else....

Any theist care to enlighten me why thier church or relgion shouldnt be taxed?

Even a witches coven if they file as a tax exempt church could do this......its not as easy as you think, there are lots of laws involved, the goverment has lots of control over certain things they do, they cannot bash the goverment in any sermon even if the goverment deserves it, its kinda like if the goverment gives a handout to you, then you are in there back pocket to a degree....

Jesus commanded the people to "render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar's" while pointing out a coin with Caesar's face on it.

It makes sense for churches to be tax exempt; they are building the community, feeding the poor, helping the sick and those in need, helping orphans, widows, handicapped. They use the money (hopefully) for these sorts of needs, which is ultimately why taxes are supposed to be collected in general--to take care of the needs of the population.

So if any person does any of the above they shouldnt need to pay taxes?

Tax isnt an ethical issue - it's a game. Religions don't pay tax because that's the rules. The rules aren't "fair", they're arbitrarily derived through a chaotic combination of political and social factors evolving over time.

First of all you can't tax a religion. Also, ever hear of Seperation of Church and State? Well this is what you get when you seperate the two. Churches are tax exempt because they are seen as non profit organizations. While they take in revenue they also have expenses and do a lot of charity work in the comm.unity.

This is more a political/economical discussion, as it's ultimately a debate about tax laws.

There's already a lengthy post about this in the Politards forum.

Those who made the decision to not tax the church believe there is a God .... whether you accept the belief they have or not doesn't matter.

None of the non-profit organizations get taxed, and most churches are non-profit organizations. Also, any money paid to church employees is taxed just like corporate employees' income.

On top of that, most ministers don't make a very lucrative living. I fail to see who could possibly be the person here who's taking advantage of the system.

Just off the top of my head: Rick Warren, Pat Robertson, Ted Haggard, John Hagee, Jerry Falwell (well, not anymore).

I agree that churches shouldn't be taxed for their non-profit activities. But they are much less regulated than other NPOs, and they unfortunately have a tendency to be used as pyramid schemes or political action committees given the opportunity.

Fail.

This just isn't true.


Sure...there are small ministers that certainly don't make what I would call "big bank" but the mega church people EASILY make over a mill per year with perks.

tbh i'm more against anyone paying a Federal Income Tax than churches not paying it

(state tax is different)

Right. Which is why most pastors and ministers don't make much money - most churches aren't megachurches.

For every megachurch that exists, there are hundreds if not thousands of smaller churches with pastors making an honest wage (or less).

Just because someone can list the name of half a dozen big name celebrity ministers only really proves the point: estimate how many pastors and ministers there are in the world, then think of how many you know.

It's like saying most novelists make good money, I mean think of Stephen King, Dean Koontz, John Grisham....

In all seriousness: I spent much of my youth as a Christian, knew many pastors, and dated many pastors daughters. Nearly all of them struggled with financial issues, because either their congregation wasn't large/wealthy enough to give them enough money to support their family, or wasn't willing.

The idea that your average pastor makes a good wage off their profession, (let alone an unfair one) is just wrong.

Yeah, they shouldn't need to. If only the government gave tax credits or something for charitable donations.

Oh, wait....

tax em all

Been away for a day, I had a little temporary ban.

From what I have been told, correct me if I am wrong.

To be classified as a non-profit organization you only need to donate 15% of your profits to be tax exempt?

Im all for non profit organizations being tax exempt or tax free. But if you run your business as a charity it should stay exactly like that, a charity, dont go threatening people with hell, offering food and clothes in exchange for the word etc. This is just a guess but id say the church preaches about 90% of the time and 10% of their time goes to charity....

Like George Carlin said, "Im all for the church getting involved in politics aslong as they pay taxes like everybody else". I found this little link about a church winning the lottery and not having to pay tax because the church bought it, this is just rubbing their tax priviledge in the face of everyone else.

http://thebeattitude.com/2009/08/16/...-to-pay-taxes/

Also why is it that homeless people arent allowed to sleep in the church at night time, I see countless homeless people sleeping outside churches, if they need shelter, as a charity organization should provide that for them.'

I dont think the red cross would let someone sleep outside there office with no clothes and not clothe the person, if they had clothing to spare.