Catholic parishes and affiliated groups around the country are pouring money into Minnesota's fight to pass a Constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage.
From the $3,000 sent by Catholics in Baton Rouge, La., to the $500 from the Diocese of Austin, Texas, more than two dozen dioceses and archdioceses have dug deep for the local effort. The
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No, really, enough. No more economic privileges/funding, particularly for institutions that violate basic church/state separation principles, and especially while politically "fundraising" for the obstruction of civil rights.
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Holy shit.
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I'm not certain what he was trying to say here: is he worried about church members being ripped off? Or the way their money is being used to fund hate?
And: why doesn't the IRS go after these groups? Is it because they are considered politically a third rail?
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Is it actually illegal for churches to back ballot initiatives? I was under the impression that endorsing candidates was forbidden but getting involved in ballot questions was not
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amendments and similar ballot initiatives?
Yes. Referenda, constitutional amendments and similar ballot initiatives are classified as lobbying
activities for purposes of the Internal Revenue Code.18 As such, they are subject to the insubstantial
lobbying limitation, not the political campaign intervention prohibition.
What are the consequences if a religious organization engages in excessive
lobbying?
If a religious organization’s lobbying activities constitute more than an insubstantial part of its total
activities, the organization’s section 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status may be revoked, which means that
its income for the year would become subject to income tax
source (found on page 6)
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Kudos to you for your efforts, there are a ton of lawn signs around my neighborhood and tons of people and organizations fighting the good fight too. *crosses fingers*
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Take away their damn tax-exempt status once and for all and be done with it.
And fuck 'em an their constitutional amendment. I cannot wait for DOMA to be overturned and same-sex marriage to be federally legalized so that we can wipe that atrocity of *my* state's constitution.
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Against abortion and birth control? Okay, the natural consequence of forcing women to carry pregnancy to term means that children will be born either not knowing one or both biological parents, or not being loved by one or both of them.
Say that adoption is the answer to that? Except for white babies born completely free from physical or mental health issues, there are more kids who need stable loving families than there are families willing to adopt. Gay couples can make up some of the difference there.
Conservative Christian churches of all denominations are very much in favor of the separation of church and state when they want to be allowed to do things their way. They're very much against it when they want to force everyone else to do things their way. Fuck that.
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