From: altheimm@nextnet.csus.edu (Murray Altheim)
Subject: Re: Tax the Church
Organization: California State University Sacramento
Date: Thu, 7 Jan 1993 19:14:28 GMT

In article <1idjc5INN4vo@titan.ucc.umass.edu>
   locklin@titan.ucc.umass.edu (SCOTT C LOCKLIN) writes:
>In article <1993Jan02.130632.24844@jcnpc.cmhnet.org>
   mam@jcnpc.cmhnet.org (Mike A. McAngus) writes:
>
>>I'm in full agreement.  I find it appalling that more and more property gets 
>>bought up by religious organizations and taken off the tax rolls. The general 
>>tax exemption for religious organizations must be abolished.  For all the 
>>"Followers of alternative religions", yes this means your religion would be 
>>taxed on its income and property also.
>
>One religion I know of, The Church of Satan, has the same views & voluntarily
>pays taxes. Other satanist groups that derive from the CoS do not pay taxes,
>demonstrating that the CoS pays voluntarily.
>
>There is a fellow in Texas (where else) who will legally ordain anyone for free
>making certain of their activities tax-exempt. So far the IRS has not 
>challenged the validity of this mans ordinations (after 30 odd years of it).
>He is listed under the category "Universal Life Church" in the Encyclopedia
>of American Religions. An ordination would not only ease your tax-burden, but
>move the fed in the direction of taxing all religions, a no-lose situation for
>the atheist/pagan/atlernative religionist...
>
>-Scott

I was in Vermont and upstate New York earlier in the fall, and drove through
the Adirondacks. There is a huge amount of really beautiful land that has
been bought up by some evangelical church ("Church of Life" or some such
thing), which apparently has most of the small towns really angry, as it 
has significantly reduced the tax base of the entire region. And they own
a LOT of land, including a great deal of expensive lake-front property. It's
all in the form of religious camps and "retreats", and grandiose signs are
everywhere. It's an incredibly grotesque display of land-grabbing wealth,
and hardly justifiable for a "church" to own so much property. I wish I
could give more specifics about the church and its founder (whose name 
shows up on all the signs); maybe an East Coaster could supply it.

Anyway, taxing the churches would have a great deal more impact on those
whose holdings are substantially in real estate, an area I find difficult
to fathom the need to such an extent as I've seen. Small churches would
not have so much a problem, as their grounds are small. In fact, we could
exempt the actual church grounds, including the parking lots and just tax
their land investments. Do I hear cacking noises from the throats of a
few church administrators? * cack * cack *

For the smaller pagan organizations whose holdings are miniscule, taxation
would not be much of an issue at all. In my experience, none of those I 
know would probably pay ANY tax based on what was kept in the piggy bank.

Murray

-- 
Murray M. Altheim      "Ils ont l'orteil de Bouc, & d'un Chevreil l'oreille,
Instructional Consultant    La corne d'un Chamois, & la face vermeille
CSU, Sacramento          Comme un rouge Croissant: & dancent toute nuict
altheimm@csus.edu       Dedans un carrefour, ou pres d'une eau qui bruict."