Would you pay a "Church tax"?

mike65

I find the very concept bizarre but several European countries have one.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/09/21/german-bishops-church-tax_n_1903038.html?utm_hp_ref=religion

In Germany the Catholic Church is getting worried by the numbers who are opting out and so are threatening to withdraw all privileges, which includes work in Catholic run bodies like schools and hospitals.

How are Churches funded here? Is it just by passing the plate, donations and maybe sales of land/property?

Would you prefer an official tax with an opt out/in that carries sanctions/privileges?

Big Nasty

Would I fcuk! :eek:

Biggins

MCMLXXV wrote: »

Would I fcuk! :eek:

Took the VERY words out of my mouth.
Like fcuk I would.

Its bad enough we are now likely going to pay a "Household media" tax!

Light Switch

They can **** off.

Irishcrx

Eh no...TBH I can't see their even being a church in 200 years. The worlds evolving fast and they are being left behind. Like it or not science will eventually prove them wrong and that's already showing with numbers dropping all over the world.

Of course there will always be certain types of religion/extremeists etc.

jokettle

Isn't it similar to paying tithes? And if so, wasn't that common enough here not too long ago?

admiralofthefleet

what about us non catholics? i feel sorry as it is for people paying into the catholic cult but now the animals could force a tax on people.
let the animal in the vatican sell off all the nazi gold and art

Rented Mule

Pay a tax to support one of the richest tax-free entities in the world ?

You wonder why the country is ****ed ?

rainbow kirby

Wouldn't give the Catholic church the steam off my piss, tbh.

Sir Digby Chicken Caesar

TIL some people don't know what opt-out means

eth0

I'd pay it long before I'd pay the household charge / property tax

Slurryface

mike65 wrote: »

I find the very concept bizarre but several European countries have one.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/09/21/german-bishops-church-tax_n_1903038.html?utm_hp_ref=religion

In Germany the Catholic Church is getting worried by the numbers who are opting out and so are threatening to withdraw all privileges, which includes work in Catholic run bodies like schools and hospitals.

How are Churches funded here? Is it just by passing the plate, donations and maybe sales of land/property?

Would you prefer an official tax with an opt out/in that carries sanctions/privileges?

I do not believe that it is the role of the State to collect fundsw on behalf on third party organizatios, particularly organizations with such a dubious reputation as organized religions.
I would be oppossed.

demanufactured

No

Sergeant

It isn't mandatory to pay in Germany, and is also collected by the regional authorities on behalf of the various Protestant denominations. If you don't believe or want to pay then you do not need to, however you also lose the right to get married in a Catholic church, have your children christened by the church, be buried in a graveyard ran by the denomination in question and so forth.

MJ23

A Cult tax ? No way.

Fromthetrees

Call it, 'the collection of compensation for victims of paedo priests tax'.

Zebra3

mike65 wrote: »

How are Churches funded here?

Priests rape kids, taxpayer pays the compo, bishops who facilitated the raping get off scot free.

PogMoThoin

I'd like to see the church pay tax

Dravokivich

Who will it go to?

What about other religions?

Apanachi

Sergeant wrote: »

however you also lose the right to get married in a Catholic church, have your children christened by the church, be buried in a graveyard ran by the denomination in question and so forth.

Never paid a cent (or pfennig as it was back then) in Church tax, but I still got my daughters Christened in Germany

super_furry

Pay to pray. And here was me thinking they'd stopped selling indulgences.

The Catholic Corporation is undergoing some turbulent financial times, give them your money or go to hell.

wendell borton

Rented Mule wrote: »

Pay a tax to support one of the richest tax-free entities in the world ?

You wonder why the country is ****ed ?

We dont pay it here and we are still fooked.


It seems fair to me, if your avail of the services provided by the church funerals, weddings etc. you should pay for them.
There would also be a lot more financial acountability as the gov. would know what income the churches take in.

ejmaztec

I thing the RCC should be taxed to cover the compensation that they wriggled out of.

super_furry

wendell borton wrote: »

It seems fair to me, if your avail of the services provided by the church funerals, weddings etc. you should pay for them. .

And you do. Anyone getting married or buried in Ireland will have to hand over a brown envelope of cash to the priest. Often you have to pay the priest and pay for the church hire.

Stinicker

I'd wish they'd introduce this here, it would quickly sort the religious from the non-religious and allow those of us who truly hate the evil church to get excommunicated for one and for all.

Cienciano

I'd love if they brought it in. I wouldn't pay it though.

Mountjoy Mugger

I'd be buggered, if they tried it.

krudler

Id love if it came in, lets see how many "Catholics" are actually in this country.

BunShopVoyeur

Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha hahahahahahahahahahahaha


Cheers for that

Capt'n Midnight

Father O' Malley answers the phone.

'Hello, is this Father O'Malley?'
'It is'

'This is the Revenue, income tax department. Can you help us?'
'I can.'

'Do you know a Ted Houlihan?'
'I do'

'Is he a member of your congregation?'
'He is'

'Did he donate €10,000 to the church?'
'He will.'

GLaDOS

Would quickly see a drop in the number of people claiming to be Catholic in the census if this was brought in

Gunmonkey

Sir Digby Chicken Caesar wrote: »

TIL some people don't know what opt-out means

Wouldnt it be easier for the people who want to pay to just donate to their church...some form of a benefit, an entitlement, a "collection" if you will.

And now the means to do this...hrm would have to be wide to ensure the money doesnt fall off, and flat too....so some form of a planar object..a "plate" if you will pardon my terminology.....

wendell borton

Taxpayers also have to pay for the compo to victims of the church, whether a member or not, thanks to FF and alleged opus dei member micheal woods.

CreepingDeath

The very fact that the Church is not taxed at the moment, means we are already paying a Church tax in the form of unlimited tax credits.

ringadingding

Here in Austria, there is a church tax.

Alot of expats moving here do not realise that, and when you register to live here, there is a religion box. Alot of people tick catholic out of habit, especially Paddys or Brits, then 10 % of your wage is automatically billed to you or taken directly out of your wages.
Its very difficult to opt out once you´ve signed up and they will chase you for the money, employing debt collectors etc....

Luckily I was warned and ticked no religion, but I have friends who have 1000´s of Euro debts racked up this way....

Its a fooking sham, and it disgusts me that its dealt with this way.

Religion should play no part in the running/ taxing of a nation.

krudler

ringadingding wrote: »

Here in Austria, there is a church tax.

Alot of expats moving here do not realise that, and when you register to live here, there is a religion box. Alot of people tick catholic out of habit, especially Paddys or Brits, then 10 % of your wage is automatically billed to you or taken directly out of your wages.
Its very difficult to opt out once you´ve signed up and they will chase you for the money, employing debt collectors etc....

Luckily I was warned and ticked no religion, but I have friends who have 1000´s of Euro debts racked up this way....

Its a fooking sham, and it disgusts me that its dealt with this way.

Religion should play no part in the running/ taxing of a nation.

just like religion then :pac:

Gurgle

mike65 wrote: »

several European countries have one.

In most of those cases, its a membership fee. Non members don't pay.
If I understand the German system correctly, everyone has to pay their tithe but you get to nominate an organization (from a list?) to send yours to. This includes non-religious organizations.

CreepingDeath wrote:

The very fact that the Church is not taxed at the moment, means we are already paying a Church tax in the form of unlimited tax credits.

They operate a business, charge for their services, make profits. The RCC is nothing more than a foreign multinational operating in Ireland, surely they (and all other cash-for-god outlets obviously), their employees and shareholders should be taxed accordingly.

PopePalpatine

It sounds like something that should have been buried under the sands of time. They can start asking for tithes when they start actually paying taxes!

P.S. - I can't wait until the "LEAVE THE CHURCH ALONE!!!"-types come across this thread!

D1stant

I'd pay a tax to outlaw the bast*rds

TwoTokeTommy

LOL. Can we just tax the church instead?

StephenHendry

the government atm are a bit like how the catholic church used to operate

holystungun9

They're the last people I'm going to bend over for.

TwoTokeTommy

Gurgle wrote: »

They operate a business, charge for their services, make profits. The RCC is nothing more than a foreign multinational operating in Ireland, surely they (and all other cash-for-god outlets obviously), their employees and shareholders should be taxed accordingly.

"...cash-for-god..."

That's very good. I like that one.

say_who_now?

What's with all the outrage? There are plenty more religions in Ireland than the RCC-


You don't pray, you don't have to pay. It's hardly rocket science!

OneArt

Gurgle wrote: »

In most of those cases, its a membership fee. Non members don't pay.
If I understand the German system correctly, everyone has to pay their tithe but you get to nominate an organization (from a list?) to send yours to. This includes non-religious organizations.

You don't have to pay any kind of tithe unless you are a member of an organisation, especially if you're earning under 19, 000 a year. I just ignored the box completely :pac:, though I was tempted to put down snake-worshipper.

Peanut

Irishcrx wrote: »

Eh no...TBH I can't see their even being a church in 200 years. The worlds evolving fast and they are being left behind. Like it or not science will eventually prove them wrong...

Umm no it won't, given that a) most things are only rigourously provable in certain abstract/logical systems, e.g., types of logic and maths, not the physical world, and b) even when these logical systems get marginally complex, there still usually remain fundamentally unknowable/unprovable statements, e.g. the halting problem in computation.

ilovesleep

Wasn't Enda Kenny gone off to rome or the vatican or somewhere, just this weekend gone to visit the pope. And after his almighty speech issued last year and all.
Off topic, I know, but god knows what he's scheming up.

As for a church tax, I was raised as a catholic but have very little faith. I do believe that there is something there and some sort of an afterlife but I will not and do not want to support the catholic church or anything to do with them because of the past and what they are known for.

Priests raping boys

Women placed in madaline laundries and the nuns who were supposed to care for them, abusing them and humilating them.

Sheer fcuking sadists.

wendell borton

An idea has just come to me. Move to austria start religion call it Not Applicable then when all the non believers thick the box i get 10%. mmmwha haaa ha.

Gurgle

OneArt wrote: »

though I was tempted to put down snake-worshipper.

The Germans being who they are, I suspect your tithe would have been directed to the nearest municipal zoo without a blink

smcgiff

It'd sort out the census catholics

Seaneh

Gurgle wrote: »

They operate a business, charge for their services, make profits.

The catholic church makes nothing even close to "profit" in Ireland.

It's run at a massive loss in the vast majority of parishes.