Quandary of giving money to a non-Catholic organization

[MCL]

Currently, our children’s Catholic school is debating whether to rent a nearby gymnasium for athletics that is owned by the Assemblies of God. I have serious concerns about giving money to an organization that does not support our beliefs and at times is anti-Catholic and seeks to convert Catholics. Any thoughts?

 

[Orionthehunter]

Currently, our children’s Catholic school is debating whether to rent a nearby gymnasium for athletics that is owned by the Assemblies of God. I have serious concerns about giving money to an organization that does not support our beliefs and at times is anti-Catholic and seeks to convert Catholics. Any thoughts?

If that was a standard, it could apply to the government, just about most corporations, people from whom we buy land to build churches, cemetaries, or schools, etc. ’

You are not making a donation. You are purchasing a good/service from someone who has offered these services to you legally. If they allow you to rent the facility, it meets your needs, and they do nothing to offend your religious choices (ala don’t try to convert), and the price is right, it is morally permissable for you to purchase this service/good from them.

 

[kage_ar]

Having spent many years in the A/G, I’d be a bit shocked if they would rent to a Catholic group.

I agree, you are buying a service from them, it is not a big deal and your group can give them a good impression of Catholics

 

[MCL]

If that was a standard, it could apply to the government, just about most corporations, people from whom we buy land to build churches, cemetaries, or schools, etc. ’

You are not making a donation. You are purchasing a good/service from someone who has offered these services to you legally. If they allow you to rent the facility, it meets your needs, and they do nothing to offend your religious choices (ala don’t try to convert), and the price is right, it is morally permissable for you to purchase this service/good from them.

That’s just my quandary. My husband and I try to live a seamless Catholic moral life as much as possible. When it comes to situations where we don’t have much choice, I believe we should do the best we can to change it. I don’t like that my taxes are used to fund Planned Parenthood. So what should I do? Don’t vote for candidates who support the funding. Send letters to senators and congressmen, etc.

But when it comes to those areas in which I have some choice we try to be informed and make the right decisions even if it is not the cheapest or easiest. We use Sienna communications for telephone service where possible because they do not have porn numbers or give their donations to anti-life organizations. We are converting our investments to the Ave Maria funds. We send our children to a Catholic school so that they are not inundated with secular humanism.

So I guess that is why this really bothers me. Personally, I would not enter into a business or legal relationship with the Assembly of God. Just because it is legal, doesn’t make it moral. No matter how you look at, my dollars would be used to fund activities that I find reprehensible (i.e. converting Catholics).

 

[THutch04]

For something like that I wouldn’t have a problem giving money to them. It’s a service that they’re providing. If they have the best services, that’s what I’ll use. I don’t see anything immoral with it.

I will admit though, there’s a difference between paying for a service, and donating money to a Missions trip.

 

[Island_Oak]

I recently encountered a similar dilema. I was approached by the older brother of one of my daughter’s classmates. I barely know the family–though his middle school brother is a nice kid and the family maintains good rules, discipline and supervision–not always something you can count on these days!

Anyway…the older brother wants to make a sales pitch for “Cutco” knives as part of his efforts to raise funds to support a “mission trip.” I know the woman who gave him my name and assumed he was a member of her Presbyterian church. Turns out he is Mormon and going off on the two-year mission all young LDS adults are expected to take~the main purpose of which–as I understand it~is preaching and attempting to educate/convert members of the public to their faith.

I felt ill at ease with this. It could be viewed as nothing more than buying a product/service from someone of another faith–no different than hiring a Jewish accountant, a Hindu doctor or shopping at a store run by an athiest. OTOH since the direct purpose of these funds is specifically to support his mission trip–it feels different, not an incidental use of my $, but as if I’m directly funding the LDS conversion efforts. Am I nuts? Over-thinking this?