TOGETHER:
Tax changes, not government funds, can help ministries
___What happens when the government funds the ministries of churches?
___Well-meaning people have introduced "charitable choice" programs directing tax dollars to faith-based groups. It is nothing new for religiously affiliated institutions such as hospitals and children's homes to receive government funds. But it's another matter for churches--institutions that the courts recognize as "pervasively sectarian"--to receive governmental aid.
___Here are thoughts to consider.
___First, where government dollars go, government rules and regulations necessarily
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CHARLES WADE
Executive Director
BGCT Executive Board
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follow. Some have said that since government respects the good that people of faith are doing, the state will not burden them with red tape and regulations. But suppose that a faith-based group did not properly handle the tax dollars. Then new regulations would be laid down upon all recipients of federal monies.
___Second, when the government channels dollars to churches, the temptation to depend on tax funds will be too great to resist. As government funds increase, churches are likely to funnel their limited dollars to other church needs and away from the ministries that help the poor.
___Third, it is shortsighted for the government to look to churches to solve the needs of citizens. Churches need to develop ministries to the needy in our communities. But churches should not be expected to assume the responsibilities government rightly has on behalf of all citizens.
___Our churches can help provide food and clothing. They can enlist volunteers to provide some medical care, do some job training, provide temporary shelters and offer safe havens for the abused and the addicted. They can fill in the gaps that happen in life. And for this, the offerings of the people should be used, and the faith that causes them to care should be shared unashamedly.
___But it is wrong for government to abdicate its responsibility to find ways to meet the challenge of its entire population. Do churches really want the criticism that will come when our welfare efforts do not solve all the problems, and fraud is discovered in some places, and the faith-based efforts have grown dependent upon public monies?
___There is a way government can help churches and other faith-based organizations do more to help the poor.
___The government can give individuals the opportunity to deduct from their taxable income as much as they actually give to their church or to a ministry that is meeting human needs. This allows the wealthy to give more, and it allows those who presently cannot itemize their contributions to do so.
___It means that government does not entangle itself in the life and ministry of the church, it does not have to decide which faith-based groups are acceptable and it allows the faith of the ministry to be freely shared.
___There were very good reasons that Baptists advocated for the separation of church and state in the early days of our republic. Those reasons remain. Churches help the citizens of any land most when they are free of government control or influence.
___Encourage lawmakers to let the churches remain free to do their work. And urge officials to do the work they have been elected to do. Let legislators represent all the people. And then together, with government and the church each in its sphere, let us do good for all.
___That sounds like Jesus' admonition; "Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's; and unto God the things that are God's" (Matthew 22:21).
___We are loved.
The Baptist Standard
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