Church is a charity???

[adey67]

I received this email on behalf of my mother today excerpts I've put below, (notice in particular the passage in bold) now since when has church morphed into a "charity"? I'm sorry but to my mind a charity is an organisation with a particular focus or groups of focuses eg the RSPCA for animal welfare, Age UK for care of and services for the elderly, Cancer Research (self explanatory) etc etc. Now while churches do perform charitable acts and missions (if they're following their leaders example) it's actually not really their primary focus or reason d'etre (with perhaps the exception of the Sally army) in the case of my mothers church the money they're trying to raise isn't for charitable purposes per se the majority of it is going to go on the upkeep of a 14th century edifice and place for a few people to meet and worship their sky daddy. I can't believe they get charitable status for something so damned tenuous. What do you guys think about this and church charitable status in general?


The past months have presented lots of challenges for us all, and our parish has been no exception. While we have all benefited from keeping connected as community online, like many registered charities, our income has reduced significantly. I am therefore asking you please to consider giving a one-off gift, right now, to help us in our recovery.

[Gawdzilla Sama]

You expected honesty?

[adey67]

You expected honesty?

Yeah, loI, I guess that's too big an ask from an organisation that claims everyone gets their morality courtesy of its foundational document.

[Minimalist]

since when has church morphed into a "charity"?

Robert Green Ingersoll first noted the tendency long ago.

Ministers say that they teach charity. This is natural. They live on alms. All beggars teach that others should give.

-- Robert Green Ingersoll, "The Truth" (1897)

Ever notice that people who never do any real work always get very sanctimonious about themselves?

[Dancefortwo]

Church isn't a charity.  It's a business that sells fairytales.

[Minimalist]

It's a business that sells bullshit in the Large Economy Size.

[adey67]

Church isn't a charity.  It's a business that sells fairytales.

Your so right there. I can't help but be a little disappointed though, I used to be a member of this church and although I have left and have been gone quite a long time I remember that if they had financial difficulties they used to be honest and just say "look guys we're struggling to pay the bills at the moment can you please dig deep as you can" but dressing themselves up as a pseudo charity just seems so wrong and disrespectful to genuine charities.

[brewerb]

I'll pray for them but that's about it. I'm sure that they'll wish I didn't.

[SYZ]

...I can't believe they get charitable status for something so damned tenuous. What do you guys think about this and church charitable status in general?

here in Australia, the Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC) is the independent national regulator of
charities. It's responsible for registering charities seeking tax concessions in Australia and ongoing administration
of charity registration requirements, including financial reporting. Churches can register as a charity through the ACNC.

In order to register a church as a charity under the ACNC, churches will need to hold an ABN (Australian Business
Number) have a “Governing Document” (normally a constitution) and to have leaders of the church listed as
“Responsible Persons”.

The majority of churches will be classified as a Basic Religious Charity under the ACNC which means that financial
reporting is not a requirement. To maintain a current registration status through the ACNC, churches need to lodge
an Annual Information Statement (AIS) each year.

Donations to religious institutions in Australia are tax deductible, but the donor must have a written receipt for his/her
personal taxation records.  

Registered religious institutions are entitled to the following tax concessions:

• Income tax exemption,
• Land tax exemption,
• Fringe benefits tax (FBT) concessions,
• Goods and services tax (GST) concessions,
• Council rates exemption, etc.

Australian church operations are tax-free—based on the escape clause of advancing religion— a statute dating
back from Queen Elizabeth the First, and inherited from England when Australia was first colonised (1788–1850).  The
Catholic church in Australia holds more than $30 billion in assets (2018) with $7 billion of that in my home city
Melbourne (2016).

—And they don't pass the plate around anymore;  these arsewipes now use fucking buckets!



      

[Dancefortwo]

I'll pray for them but that's about it. I'm sure that they'll wish I didn't.

Yeah, send them some thoughts and prayers.  That's the ticket! 

[Gwaithmir]

I can't comment on Protestant churches, having grown up Catholic. As for the Catholic Church, I'll refrain from saying what I think of them for the present as I'm going through a bad time healthwise and don't want my blood pressure going up through the ceiling.