Would it be a sin for me to lobby against the Church's tax exempt status

[Corki]

Couldn`t agree with you more!

ive been saying the same thing for ages, but all the average Catholic thinks about is how much cash we can get from "The Government" (ultimately, of course, the taxpayer) for schools and hospitals etc. No one seems to care that theres the payback: were falling more and more under the thumb of "The State". These days, CS Lewiss words: “When you sup with the Devil, use a long spoon.” are more relevant than ever.

Father Corapi has the right idea: he pays tax on everything, and says what he has to say; and no one can do anything about it!

The big financial impact if the Church gave up tax-exempt status wouldn’t be on losing money from the government but individuals who contribute to the Church would give up the tax break they get for charitable giving. One way to get around that is to create an organizational division between the charitable arm of the Church which could stay tax-exempt, and the teaching “arm” which would regain its first ammendment right to free speech. That approach has its own problem since the charitable side might not be able to maintain any concsience protection such as not having to hire enemies of the Church or having to promote immoral causes (such as abortion).

According to our parish bookkeeper, many if not most of the people who contribute to the weekly collection still do so anonymously with cash. They aren’t concerned with the deductibility; they just are supporting the parish. There has also been a lot of talk lately about reducing the charitable deduction and/or eliminating it altogether for some people. So this side of the argument might be moot anyway.

 

[tafan]

Furthermore, we have no obligation in charity to anyone who has not fulfilled their obligations in justice to us…

Someone needs to do some thinking about what it means to be Christian. We have an obligation to love everyone. We may not like someone or a group of people, but we must love them. Love is an act of will, it is manifested in what we do towards them. There is a reason why the words charity and love are often interchanged.

 

[rodomonte]

Someone needs to do some thinking about what it means to be Christian. We have an obligation to love everyone. We may not like someone or a group of people, but we must love them. Love is an act of will, it is manifested in what we do towards them. There is a reason why the words charity and love are often interchanged.

I do love illegals. But that has no practical significance. I don’t have to do anything towards them because there are plenty of others whom I can be charitable toward. I have no contact with them. If you are saying I must support the Bishops position that we must give them a path to citizenship, I would strenously disagree.

When I get to the border, however, if I find any dying of thirst or needing medical attention, I will give them water and first aid, while waiting for the Border Patrol to arrive.