(WWJD Disclaimer: Before any of y'all go getting your knickers in a twist here, let's all keep in mind that I'm NOT denigrating Christianity. In point of fact, I respect and honor Christianity. It's CHRISTIANS that I have a problem with...those who call themselves "Christians" but in actuality know as much about the teachings of Jesus Christ as they do about running the West Coast offense. Christianity is not about power, control, and reaction...though you'd never know it from listening to most- not all- Christians.)
Their buddies - who include at least one individual known for his extreme anti-Semitic pronouncements (he went on a rant a while back about Hollywood Jews liking anal sex, seriously) - ran a full-page ad in the NYT today calling anyone who stands up the Mormons guilty of "mob violence." Wow, talk about making free speech illegal. Now you can't even tell a Mormon to back off, when he tries to forcibly convert you to his religion, without being accused of a violent crime. Talk about people who have an attitude problem.
(You can see the full-page NYT ad here...and yes, it's every bit as self-serving as you might expect.)
I'm beginning to wonder if perhaps it might not be time for the federal government to begin looking at revoking the Mormon Church's tax-exempt status. It won't happen, of course, because they're a big part of the 24% who still think that Our Glorious and Benevolent Leader © really is all that and a bag of chips. Still, a religious organization, if they're to remain tax-exempt, is required to refrain from political advocacy and activity...and the Mormon Church is clearly refraining from neither. And now they're demanding that we cease and desist demanding that they be called to account for advocating hatred and divisiveness in the name of their flavor of Jesus Christ. Yeah, who are the REAL haters?? Well, to the thinking of some, that would be those of us who opposed religious zealotry and taxpayer-subsidized hypocrisy.
Without the money and effort poured into California by the Mormon Church, it's quite likely that Proposition 8 would have been defeated. So why then does the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints continue to enjoy tax-exempt status? And why has no one attempted to take the necessary steps to have this status revoked? I can't begin to answer those questions, but I do think that it's high time that the Church be called to account for abusing it's tax-exempt status. I have no problem with Mormons and their Church making their voices heard; that's their right in our democracy. What they do not have, however, is the right to have their activities subsidized by taxpayers, which is what is effectively happening since they aren't required to pay taxes.
This is not about religious oppression...at least from the side of those fighting hate. It's not about making LDS into a collection of martyrs, though if you listen to them, that's exactly the argument the Church is making. No, this is about demanding the truth.
When did the LDS Church become the victim? It's hard to believe, but that is exactly what it is trying to convince the public of. It is continuing to spend an excess of dollars in an attempt to mislead the public and transform its image. But the truth is that this is the same church that conducted a national broadcast to every temple, calling on members to organize and write checks to the Prop 8 campaign. The same church that donated more than half of the $40 million behind Prop 8, even though California Mormons represent just 2 percent of the state's population. Yes, it's the same church.
At some point, Mormons need to be held accountable- no, not for their beliefs, but for the brazen political advocacy of hatred and their financial support of those who worked successfully to legislate morality in California. If your church wants to aggressively push a political agenda, that's fine. I just don't want to be paying for it. If the Mormon Church is going to be conducting itself as a quasi-political advocacy group, it needs to lose it's tax-exempt status and be subject to the same rules and regulations that other political groups and parties are required to adhere to. And it needs to pay taxes, just like any other political entity.
There is in this country a tradition of the separation of Church and State. If your Church is going to blur...nay, obliterate...that line, it needs to recognize and understand that there are consequences that flow from that. No, that's not religious persecution (and the only thing more despicable than the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints obliterating the separation of Church and State is their whining about being "persecuted"), that's merely expecting that they be treated as every individual and organization that engages in political activity would be.
You're either a church or you're a political organization. According to the tax code of the United States, you can't be both...not if you want to remain tax-exempt.
Memo to Mormons: stop your pitiful, self-interested whining and lose the poorly-camouflaged hypocrisy. If Jesus Christ were walking the Earth today, he'd be kicking your asses from here to Tuesday...and you'd be deserving of it. It's time to either take your medicine or obey the law of the land. You cannot reasonably expect to flagrantly violate US tax laws without being help to account...which is apparently exactly what you're continuing to expect.
Then again, most of y'all wouldn't recognize Jesus Christ if he showed up on your stoop wearing a flowing white robe, Birkenstocks, and a crown of thorns....
