Churches
Every time you pay tax or rates you are subsidising other people’s religion. These include mainstream religions, and cult-like groups opposed to the values of normal Australian life.
Put simply, less than 20 per cent of Australians are seriously religious and the rest of us subsidise their religious organisations. There are a lot of wonderful people who do good work in the name of their particular belief, but do we need taxpayer-funded bureaucracies for them to be effective?
Australia is one of the few nations that make all investment earnings by religious bodies tax free, regardless of whether these are spent on charitable activities. And all the property they own is free of rates and land tax. If they sell these assets for a profit they pay no capital gains tax. And often these are properties that were gifted to them many years ago by government.
Continue reading "Rich men in the tax-free kingdom of God" »
Go on , be a good Christian, sign the petition to stop parental choice about ethics classes for kids in public schools.
That’s the message of Christian and Catholic lobbyists in NSW at the moment (I separate the two because I wouldn’t want to offend all those evangelical Christians in Sydney who don’t believe Catholics are real Christians).
Just last Sunday a family member asked what the story was about ethics in schools because an announcement had been made in the morning service about signing the petition.
Continue reading "Churches need an ethics lesson of their own" »
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Casey1954 says:
I think we should give this ho-hum debate a good Christian burial!! Read more »
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Joffre Balce says:
The proposed course title, I believe is “Towards an Ethics-based Complement to Scripture in NSW Primary Schools”. Why not be fair dinkum about it & call it “Towards a Ethics-Based ‘Antithesis/Alternative/Challenge ’ to Scripture in NSW Schools”? Say it as it is. It’s like selling a car lubricant when it… Read more »
The Wayside Chapel in Sydney’s King Cross has always been something of an “edgy” place.
In the 1960s when Australia was very different, The Wayside Chapel was about the only place in Australia where a Protestant could easily marry a Catholic, Hindu or Atheist without much fuss or where you could get a cup of coffee at 3am.
It was a place you could wait for some poet to walk in the door and address a ready crowd with some words that reached beyond the confines of a high structured, fairly unimaginative world; and you never had to wait for long.
Continue reading "Big-hearted Church that’s crumbling around the edges" »
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Luke says:
I’ll have to visit the joint and give alittle donation… its not much, but my donations… and the publics… are what keep churches running… Read more »
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Daniel says:
Its a grimy lane way but the wayside chapel does such great work for these people that really need it. Read more »
Writing on The Punch yesterday David Gazard bemoaned the left-winged over-righteousness of some parts of the Christian church, who get all hot under the collar about political stuff rather than sticking to the spiritual. This is, I suppose, a change from the attacks on the right-winged over-righteousness of the other parts of the Christian church.
Of course, problems emerge when God and the Church are captured by just one side of politics. The Church may be vulnerable to such temptations in the wildernesses of power, but any God worth his name surely isn’t. It’s a lesson the followers are still learning.
Continue reading "Heaven help us if churches don’t speak about politics" »
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Kevin says:
Phil you make me laugh with your so simple view of life, your the exact example the article relates to Dawkins being theologically sound. Your ‘superior’ attitude that you display indicates a complete bias and non understanding of anything outside your own little bubble. And yet you are evolving???? Interesting… Read more »
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Payton L. Inkletter says:
There is a compelling reason why religious establishments should keep out of politics in their own names, and rather focus exclusively on trying to be good at spiritually catalysing their members – who then as individuals can choose to morally and ethically enliven their families and the other people and… Read more »
I keep waiting for the traditional church to launch its campaign against the government’s treatment of boat people.
After all, boats carrying asylum seekers keep entering Australian waters in greater numbers, there are allegations that boats are left to drift and, worst of all, some have perished along the way.
I glance skyward in Melbourne, looking for the immense banner hanging from the spire St Paul’s Cathedral, like there was a few years ago. Instead of “Justice for David Hicks”, it will read “Justice for SIEV 624”.
Continue reading "Churches pray for terrorist and ignore a businessman" »
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Christian Eden Monaro Voter says:
Thank you so much for this post. I am a voter in the Eden Monaro electorate. Just this morning, I was wondering who on earth I would vote for at the next election. Traditionally, I have voted Labor. But lately, like many other people it seems, I have turned against… Read more »
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Simon H says:
“And then, of course, the traditional church can’t even agree on its social agenda.” Gee, the church (really dozens of churches) being politically split and all over the place: that’s a massive change of pace from what’s been happening for most of the last 2000 years. And your point is?… Read more »
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