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Churches Could Lose Tax Exemption Over Gay Marriage
American Thinker ^ | June 30, 2015 | Daniel John Sobieski

Posted on 06/30/2015 10:40:19 AM PDT by raptor22

Lost in the celebrations over universal gay marriage, like abortion, being deemed a right found in the “penumbras and emanations” of the Constitution is the chilling effect the ruling has on religious liberty. In a telling exchange between the Obama administration’s Solicitor General Donald B. Verrilli, Jr. and Justice Samuel Alito, detailed by Tom Blumer at Newsbusters.com, in which Verrilli admitted that churches could lose their tax exemptions if they refuse to perform gay weddings:

Justice Alito: Well, in the Bob Jones case, the Court held that a college was not entitled to tax­exempt status if it opposed interracial marriage or interracial dating. So would the same apply to a university or a college if it opposed same­-sex marriage?

General Verrilli: You know, ­­I don’t think I can answer that question without knowing more specifics, but it’s certainly going to be an issue. I don’t deny that. I don’t deny that, Justice Alito. It is­­ it is going to be an issue.

(Excerpt) Read more at americanthinker.com ...


TOPICS: Constitution/Conservatism; Crime/Corruption; Culture/Society; Government
KEYWORDS: 1stamendment; amthinker; catholic; catholicchurch; catholics; churches; firstamendment; gayagenda; gaymarriage; gayrights; gays; homosexualagenda; homosexuals; lesbians; lgbt; religiousfreedom; religiousliberty; samesexmarriage; transgender; waronreligion; waronreligison
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1 posted on 06/30/2015 10:40:19 AM PDT by raptor22
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To: Nachum; markomalley; Clairity; Carlucci; grey_whiskers; meyer; WL-law; Para-Ord.45; ...

GAY MARRIAGE PING


2 posted on 06/30/2015 10:41:13 AM PDT by raptor22 (Follow me on Twitter @gerfingerpoken or facebook.com/danielsobieski)
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To: raptor22
Churches Could Lose Tax Exemption Over Gay Marriage

And then pray tell, what will you threaten them with to force obedience to your morality?

3 posted on 06/30/2015 10:41:47 AM PDT by DiogenesLamp
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To: raptor22

If the church loses its tax exemption then the pastor will be free to speak on political issues.

It’s worth it.


4 posted on 06/30/2015 10:42:38 AM PDT by MeganC (The Republic of The United States of America: 7/4/1776 to 6/26/2015 R.I.P.)
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To: raptor22
Make your tithe a gift. You can gift the church $28,000 per year.

It's not tax-deductible, but it's a way around the gay supremacists.

5 posted on 06/30/2015 10:43:15 AM PDT by E. Pluribus Unum ("One man with a gun can control a hundred without one." -- Vladimir Lenin)
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To: Grampa Dave; granite; GreenFreeper; grjr21; I got the rope; IchBinEinBerliner; jaredt112; JayB; ...

GAY MARRIAGE PING


6 posted on 06/30/2015 10:44:22 AM PDT by raptor22 (Follow me on Twitter @gerfingerpoken or facebook.com/danielsobieski)
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To: DiogenesLamp

Morality. The art of loving and respecting others and honoring them.

Immorality: The art of throwing off all concerns for others and taking and dishonoring

You know, morality is easy to teach once a person is ruined emotionally over the immorality in their relationships, employment and daily life. You don’t have to force morality, it is a natural occurrence. Immorality needs to be taught


7 posted on 06/30/2015 10:45:38 AM PDT by realcleanguy
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To: raptor22
I've long questioned the spirituality of tax exemption for religious organizations. Worldwide Church of Satan. Islam. Church of the Spaghetti Monster.

Seems to me a "church" should just stand by its fidelity to truth. It's gotten too corporate. Too big business. Charlatans like Joel Olsteen have become multimillionaires off of sham religion and have consequently become influential in politics.

"In the temple, and at home, they ceased not to teach and preach Jesus as the Christ." Acts 5:42

Let's get away from the entertainment oriented Sesame Street presentation of a feel good message and become what God demands. We don't need tax exemptions, income producing property, etc, to do that.

8 posted on 06/30/2015 10:50:55 AM PDT by LouAvul (Liberalism: much more than just a mental illness)
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To: DiogenesLamp
And then pray tell, what will you threaten them with to force obedience to your morality?

That's what concentration FEMA camps are for.

9 posted on 06/30/2015 10:51:45 AM PDT by 17th Miss Regt
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To: raptor22

Except for most congregations of the United Church of Christ, the Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A., the Evangelical Lutheran Church, the Unitarian Universalist Association, the Society of Friends, the Episcopal Church, the Conservative Jewish Movement, and the Reform Jewish Movement. Plus others that will eventually jump on the bandwagon. These will constitute the “established religion” of the United States.


10 posted on 06/30/2015 10:55:29 AM PDT by Southside_Chicago_Republican (If liberty means anything at all, it means the right to tell people what they do not want to hear.)
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To: MeganC

No. First they lose the tax exemption, then they are arrested for hate speech. Still worth it for those serving God, but the Gay Nazis cannot see that.


11 posted on 06/30/2015 10:58:22 AM PDT by Ingtar (Capitulation is the enemy of Liberty, or so the recent past has shown.)
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To: MeganC

Agreed...they don’t realize they’ve opened Pandora’s box. If they come after the Church the tyranny will be obvious and have consequences bigger than they could possibly imagine. If they take away tax-exemption we will be able to speak freely.

...the fact that we have “freedom of speech” and “freedom of religion” and yet we can’t “speak freely in the Church” is very telling. The power to tax is the power to destroy. The Church is not subservient to the government, even if a Church does not apply for 501-c3, it is still not required to pay taxes. You do not need permission to exercise a right, as was the case prior to the 501-c3. Just because the government decided to create it doesn’t mean the Church has to do anything with it.


12 posted on 06/30/2015 10:58:47 AM PDT by fuzzylogic (welfare state = sharing consequences of poor moral choices among everybody)
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To: raptor22
Pastor post a sign: I do not preform marriages in this Church/building.......

But he can find a pastor of another Church to preform the ceremony......Reciprocate among the Churches, and shut your mouth..

The key word in this is "I".

13 posted on 06/30/2015 10:59:39 AM PDT by annieokie
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To: annieokie

Yeah but, that theory is now that is out of the bag.


14 posted on 06/30/2015 11:02:03 AM PDT by annieokie
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To: raptor22

I am not sure that the ruling elite would be happy having churches participating in elections directly. So probably they won’t lose their tax status.

Boy, they don’t want to go there. Seriously.


15 posted on 06/30/2015 11:06:26 AM PDT by buffaloguy
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To: DiogenesLamp

First it will be imprisonment, later it will progress to execution. If you want to see America’s probable intermediate term future, look no further than post-revolution Cuba and China.


16 posted on 06/30/2015 11:24:53 AM PDT by Trod Upon (Every penny given to film and TV media companies goes right into enemy coffers. Starve them out!)
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To: buffaloguy

Simple, just conduct marriage RITES or bestowing Sacraments. That is truly within the province of the Devine’s representatives. Wedding is a civil service. In fact, my church does not recognize a civil marriage as having received the church sacrament.


17 posted on 06/30/2015 11:26:24 AM PDT by Mouton (The insurrection laws perpetuate what we have for a government now.)
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To: raptor22

Mosques too?


18 posted on 06/30/2015 11:27:31 AM PDT by Mr. K (Palin/Cruz - to defeat HilLIARy/Warren)
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To: raptor22

Churches could avoid this by requiring all who seek the blessing of holy matrimony to first get a civil license. Then the churches will be able to confir their blessings on those who meet the church’s requirements for the blessing.


19 posted on 06/30/2015 11:30:48 AM PDT by taxcontrol
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To: DiogenesLamp

mob violence


20 posted on 06/30/2015 12:12:57 PM PDT by silverleaf (Age takes a toll: Please have exact change)
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