Same-Sex Marriage Ballot Repeal May Cost Mainea s Catholic Church Its Tax Status

It has been alleged that the Roman Catholic Diocese in Maine is violating the IRS tax exempt status by gathering signatures for an attempt to repeal Maine's same-sex marriage law.

[s-sdca]

Churches are smart and devious when it comes to taking away rights from others, while pushing their own agenda. I'm sure they found a loop hole.

[DNF]

I hope that this turns out to be a violation and that their tax exempt status IS revoked. I have no problem with a Church declaring it's views, that's what press releases are for. But if it is found that the Church itself is violating the law, then it should receive the maximum penalties for doing so.

[Gaybriel]

I hope someone finally does this, since it was churches that spent over $30MM to help get Prop 8 barely enacted and if they want to do that they do not deserve tax exempt status.

[Dan]

IMO, huge blunder on part of the gay activist group.

If this gets any traction (which I believe it won't), it will simply unite all deniminations against the marriage movement as this activist group has presented the pro-gay marriage folks in Maine as a group who will use the full force of the Government against those who may disagree with them.

If you don't get the catholic vote, you can win-if you make sure all the religious groups oppose you, you will lose.

Bad judgement.

[devons]

Dan wrote:

IMO, huge blunder on part of the gay activist group.
If this gets any traction (which I believe it won't), it will simply unite all deniminations against the marriage movement as this activist group has presented the pro-gay marriage folks in Maine as a group who will use the full force of the Government against those who may disagree with them.
If you don't get the catholic vote, you can win-if you make sure all the religious groups oppose you, you will lose.
Bad judgement.

I don't agree with you. First of all it would not be the gay movement doing this. This would be the government doing it. If some people got together to blame gays for pointing out their illegal activity.....oh well.

In reality nothing will come of this anymore then any other church that has been caught violating their tax exempt status requirements. We don't have anyone in government that has the guts to uphold the law when it comes to churches. I'm surprised they out lasted the Catholic Church when it came to forcing them to release records of child abusers they had been hiding for years. It's a shame those in charge got away with that and were not sent to jail.

The churches know that nothing will happen to them which is why they blatantly go out and break the law.

[OutVoice]

So what you are saying Dan is that churches rule the U.S. and all should bow down to religious zealots??? NO WAY!
Considering these statistics from:http://www.studentsagains thunger.org
"Who is Homeless and Why?
The homeless population includes people from all walks of life:
In the U.S., more than 3.5 million people experience homelessness each year.
35% of the homeless population are families with children, which is the fastest growing segment of the homeless population.
25% are U.S. military veterans.
25% are children under the age of 18 years.
30% have experienced domestic violence.
20-25% suffer from mental illness."
It seems that the Christian right / Catholics would have better things to do than expel hate. But then remember that the KKK is a right-wing Christian organization. Any church which does not make this horrid statistic a priority has no business with tax exempt status or to have a pulpit. For they are shams and hypocrites.
We need to vote more and vote on work performance geared to the benefit of all not a select few. Hold these bigots accountable for the hate they cause and by their inaction the hunger and homelessness they support! As we all know the RCC has lots of sins in this area. See the recent reports from Ireland on RCC child abuse for the last sixty years. http://www.examiner.com/x-10571-Jackson-Athei...
As a RECOVERD Catholic, I vote remove the tax exempt staus. The Catholics response with closing adoption service to controll who gets to adopt shows the RCC priority is the power of the church, not God or its followers.

Dan wrote:

IMO, huge blunder on part of the gay activist group.
If this gets any traction (which I believe it won't), it will simply unite all deniminations against the marriage movement as this activist group has presented the pro-gay marriage folks in Maine as a group who will use the full force of the Government against those who may disagree with them.
If you don't get the catholic vote, you can win-if you make sure all the religious groups oppose you, you will lose.
Bad judgement.

[tomas]

I truly hope that the Catholic church will be held accountable. It is about time. If the church can pay out millions to silence its pedo-problems, it can abide by the tax laws.

[Mona Lott]

YES! Screw the Catholic Church! They should keep their hate mongering for their masses....yes, the Catholic Mass where they drink blood and eat the body of Christ. How REVOLTING!!!!!!

[Dan]

devons wrote:

<quoted text>
I don't agree with you. First of all it would not be the gay movement doing this. This would be the government doing it. If some people got together to blame gays for pointing out their illegal activity.....oh well.
In reality nothing will come of this anymore then any other church that has been caught violating their tax exempt status requirements. We don't have anyone in government that has the guts to uphold the law when it comes to churches. I'm surprised they out lasted the Catholic Church when it came to forcing them to release records of child abusers they had been hiding for years. It's a shame those in charge got away with that and were not sent to jail.
The churches know that nothing will happen to them which is why they blatantly go out and break the law.

An activist group filed the complaint.

Trust me, if there's tax money to be gotten, the IRS gets it.

If this has legs, fine, if not it's a giant blunder.

[Dan]

OutVoice wrote:

So what you are saying Dan is that churches rule the U.S. and all should bow down to religious zealots??? NO WAY!
Considering these statistics from:http://www.studentsagains thunger.org
"Who is Homeless and Why?
The homeless population includes people from all walks of life:
In the U.S., more than 3.5 million people experience homelessness each year.
35% of the homeless population are families with children, which is the fastest growing segment of the homeless population.
25% are U.S. military veterans.
25% are children under the age of 18 years.
30% have experienced domestic violence.
20-25% suffer from mental illness."
It seems that the Christian right / Catholics would have better things to do than expel hate. But then remember that the KKK is a right-wing Christian organization. Any church which does not make this horrid statistic a priority has no business with tax exempt status or to have a pulpit. For they are shams and hypocrites.
We need to vote more and vote on work performance geared to the benefit of all not a select few. Hold these bigots accountable for the hate they cause and by their inaction the hunger and homelessness they support! As we all know the RCC has lots of sins in this area. See the recent reports from Ireland on RCC child abuse for the last sixty years. http://www.examiner.com/x-10571-Jackson-Athei...
As a RECOVERD Catholic, I vote remove the tax exempt staus. The Catholics response with closing adoption service to controll who gets to adopt shows the RCC priority is the power of the church, not God or its followers.
<quoted text>

What does the homeless thing have to do with this? The RCC is prohibiting aid to the homeless? Really?

Um, yeah, the RCC will make religion a priority-so do Jews, Hindus and every religious group. Most religious groups hold their faith as a pretty high priority. Duh.

Tell you right now-if someone thinks that pissing off voters and getting them afraid of having the IRS shut their church down is a way to win an ballot initiative, you go right ahead and think that. Just don't bitch when you lose.

[bobby]

Religion -- the root of all evil!

[tomas]

I think we should start sending notices to the tax offices where these churches practice breaking the law. Apparently, the IRS needs a reminder when it comes to the Holy? They are missing out on a lot a cash.

[lndychick]

I LOVE this. Yank the tax exempt status out from under all religious institutions. Economic Crisis: SOLVED!

Next: find those douchebags that send "healing cloths" and "healing oil" through the mail and charge them with mail fraud.:)

The light of reason is starting to glow.

[Imprtnrd]

TAX 'EM!!!!!!!!!!

[Out and Proud Lesbian]

If the church is indeed found guilty of violating the rules that govern their tax exempt statues then they should lose that exemption.

[tomas]

But, will they? When the Irish catholics in Ireland beat and raped children in their care, the Govt. looked the other way for years. When they finally had to pay up, it was the tax payer who footed the bill. Here they get by with murder, and again we look the other way. Are we a theocracy or a democracy?

[EnochSpeaks]

Now the gay marriage movement is attacking the Catholic Church because they are using their G-D given right to protest gay marriage.

EnochSpeaks

[Rose]

EnochSpeaks wrote:

Now the gay marriage movement is attacking the Catholic Church because they are using their G-D given right to protest gay marriage.
EnochSpeaks

God doesn't give rights. The government does.

[Rose]

Tax religious institutions. All of them.

[Dan]

Rose wrote:

<quoted text>
God doesn't give rights. The government does.

Rose-

I'm telling you, this thing will blow up in the face of this activist group and it will damage the gay marriage supporters' cause.

All it did was give ammunition to the anti-gay marriage folks. If they have any brains at all, they'll have a TV or radio ad up in 5 minutes saying "If you got to Church, Synagogue or a Mosque in Maine, the supporters of gay marriage want the IRS to tax your church. Do you want to lose your house of worship? If not, Vote NO (or whatever-you get the idea).

This complaint won't have legs, and it will backfire-guarntee it. Instead of putting together a cogent, instructive ad campaign to garner public support, now you'' end up with every religion in the state voting against you all because some wiseass wanted to try to make a point since he was pissed about Prop 8 in California.