Some Americans seem to think that churches1 are merely large buildings
that, after about noon on Sunday, lock their doors and occupy space
for the balance of the week.
This misperception could prove quite costly in the wake of the Supreme
Court's finding of a constitutional "right" to same-sex marriage.
Already, some are calling for the ending of tax exempt status for
churches, religious-affiliated schools of all kinds, and non-profits
in general if they do not actively make accommodations for same-sex
partners.
Not only would this loss be an act of political aggression against
religious entities, but it would adversely affect untold millions of
lives by shrinking countless church ministries to those with profound
and urgent needs.
tax exempt status for churches is a historic, even intrinsic, part of
the federal tax system.
Contrary to an argument made frequently by liberal critics of the
church tax exemption, the exemption is neither sponsorship of religion
nor a subsidy for churches. In Walz v. Tax Commission of the City of
New York (1970), Chief Justice Warren Burger wrote that "the grant of
a tax exemption is not sponsorship since the government does not
transfer part of its revenue to churches but simply abstains from
demanding that the church support the state."
Walz was a cornerstone case regarding tax exempt status for religious
institutions. Describing the reasoning of the case, Georgetown
University's Berkeley Center for Religion, Peace, and World Affairs
summarizes:
... (Walz said that) the purpose of the exemptions was not to advance
or inhibit religion; the exemptions were available to a broad class of
institutions the state found desirable, including hospitals,
libraries, playgrounds, scientific, professional, historical, and
patriotic groups. After examining the long history in the United
States of exempting religious institutions from taxation, the Court
determined that the exemption has not resulted in the excessive
entanglement of religion and the government. In fact, the Court found,
taxing religious property could increase government entanglement by
giving rise to tax valuation of church property, tax liens, and tax
foreclosures. Further, demanding that religious institutions support
the government by paying taxes would also create entanglement.
As seminary president Albert Mohler explains with respect to the
subsidy argument, a "subsidy would be the transfer of tax money to
institutions. That's not what's going on here.... Rather, the tax
exemption is granted with respect to institutions the government does
not feel that it has the right to tax on the one hand and on the other
hand, institutions that it believes are essential to the Commonwealth
and to the commonweal, to the well-functioning of society."
http://www.frc.org/taxexemptionchurches