Religion In The United States

Society as a whole has changed tremendously since the United States was first accepted as a country. The founding fathers chose to base this newfound country around freedom; more specifically, the freedom to worship any religion that the people woefully chose to worship. Since society has molded itself, the views of religious institutions and how they play a role in the country’s economic status has changed as well. Religious institutions such as churches, mosques, and prayer temples are, for the time being; exempt from taxation due to the simple statement that government and church should be separated. Many opinions orbit around the idea of taxation for houses of worship; one in particular is that these institutions should be taxed. This opinion

Today, people question whether or not churches are technically businesses. In order to begin discussing that, citizens should know an exact definition of a business. According to Webster’s Dictionary, a business is, “the activity of making, buying, or selling goods or providing services in exchange for money (Merriam-Webster 1).” Thus, the definition now being clear, a comparison can be made. Churches, by definition, are businesses because they provide services for a massive portion of society. There are many countries where religion is solely what the government is based around. A select few, such as the United States of America, separate church from state. This is the root of the initial issue. State, referring to government, is the central holding place for all things that have an impact on financials and laws. Church, referring to religion, is where the freedom that the United States was based upon is focused. These two enormous sections of society seem utterly different, but in saying that, church and state are very dependent upon each other. State, is heavily weighted with representatives with different views about religion. This being said, it proves that church and state are not initially separated the way that may be assumed. Church influences everything in a society, including law making and financial input into the community. These religious

Most people, given the chance, would argue that the placement is not about the money; the job itself is about serving the members of the church or organization. Although religious institutions don’t label important members as employees, the groups of people who work for the church are making money for themselves. In case some people were unaware, when the offering is passed around in a church, the money made each day is split up amongst the few employees that a church may have. What is left over is used solely for repairs and maintenance of the building. To conclude, tax paying citizens go to church once and sometimes twice a week, these people offer money so graciously, and in return, the higher members of the church get these donations as their salary. If a church or a religious institution is going to so viciously use taxpayer dollars, the organization as a whole should be forced to pay