Posted on 02/28/2018 5:39:24 PM PST by marshmallow
Jerusalem, Feb 27, 2018 / 04:16 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Christian leaders are re-opening the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem after the city backtracked on proposals seen as targeting Christianity in the region.
On Sunday, Catholic, Greek Orthodox and Armenian church leaders jointly decided to close the sacred site indefinitely, protesting two controversial proposals in the city.
The proposals would have allowed the government to claim land that was sold by Churches to private organizations in recent years, and would have also removed tax exemptions from Church-owned properties that did not contain houses of worship, such as schools, hospitals, and social outreach centers.
However, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel intervened in the dispute and worked with Jerusalem’s mayor, Nir Barkat, to “formulate a solution to the issue of municipal taxes on buildings belonging to the churches that are not houses of worship,” according to the Washington Post.
Additionally, deliberations on the land bill have been delayed, and its author says it will be reworded to clarify Church tax exemptions.
In a statement released on Feb. 27, the religious leaders gave “thanks to God for the statement released earlier today by Prime Minister Netanyahy and offer our gratitude to all those who have worked tirelessly to uphold the Christian presence in Jerusalem and to defend the Status Quo.”
“After the constructive intervention of the Prime Minister, the Churches look forward to engage with Minister Hanegbi, and with all those who love Jerusalem to ensure that Our Holy City, where our Christian presence continues to face challenges, remains a place where the three Monotheistic faiths may live and thrive together,” the statement continued.
(Excerpt) Read more at catholicnewsagency.com ...
bttt
nothing targeted anybody
the clerics protested paying normal property taxes on commercial developments they own.... the church is NOT taxed and would never have been taxed
without owners of commercial properties paying normal taxes, every other citizen (including Christians) has to pay more to just keep normal municipal services operating (fire, police protection,— the church “uses” a whole lot of these things as Muslims would dearly love to bomb or burn the churches down)..................also streets, water service, you name it. All the usual things.
again, nobody is taxing the Church of the H. S.
What, according to the article, would have been taxed are schools, hospitals, etc. These are religious charitable properties, not commercial. They would also have been able to claim land that the church sold. This would hamper the ability of the church to dispose of its property freely and would amount to theft from those who bought the property from the church.
For later.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.