Neighborhood Ministries

Our forefathers came to the United States to escape the State supported churches that used their government influence to threaten and intimidate other churches in order to maintain their monopoly. Our founding fathers wrote into the Constitution a specific Amendment which forbid government interference with churches to protect them from the rise and domination of a State sanctioned religion. Our forefathers then wrote into the tax laws specific exemptions for churches to prevent the government from interfering with churches. It made churches tax exempt since the power to tax is the power to destroy. They also released the churches from filing the financial disclosure information required of regular non-profit organizations since filing it would open the churches to potential scrutiny that could lead to government intervention and control. Formerly, churches were held in high regard, even by unbelievers, because of the good which the churches did in their communities. Not only did they hold their members to a higher standard of morals, they also provided care and relief to those in the community through church benevolence and social services. Now social services have been divorced from the churches and is carried out mostly by the government and independent non-profit organizations and the church is no longer held in high regard. In fact, many cities now try to restrict the expansion of churches through zoning laws that prevent churches from expanding or building new buildings. They would rather have a business there that would produce tax revenue. Many liberal government officials also talk quietly about taxing churches which would provide a huge windfall for city and State governments, as well as for the federal government, but do not dare try it because of the huge backlash they would get from churches.