America is not a democracy. Never was. The founding fathers feared democracy. Democracy is only one step away from anarchy.

America is a Republic. "...and to the Republic, for which it stands."

I think this tax paying by the individual would be fantastic here in the USA. People would actually have to decide between their apathetic religious beliefs and how much they hate to pay taxes. I think even a 1% tax on churchgoers would suddenly see the country turn at least 25% atheist overnight. Bring it on!

I don't think the idea is wrong on taxing churches. I think the approach is wrong. If you want someone to buy your argument you don't debate them on it you sell it to them. They see how it benefits them.

tax'em

I definitely think that they should pay property taxes (they don't have to in my state). I also think that they should also have to file money reports like all of our non-profit companies have to. If all of those things don't show how they are working then I say they should pay taxes.

IIRC it was Cervantes who came up with the idea of taxing church estates. That got him in a whole heap of trouble. And IMHO i's not taxing churches that is the issue; it's the fact that donations to them are tax deductible by the donors. So the government is, in fact, creating what are called "tax expenditures" (money goes from person A to Church B, money get's deducted from A's taxable income, everyone else has to make up the difference) which fund churches.

How many 'good Christians' would lie on their tax forms to get out paying that extra 1%?
A lot I bet.

Yes. Religion has become more of a business and some church leaders draw millions in salaries and benefits.

Also, it is specifically written into the tax code that religions are only tax exempt if they stay our of politics.. If churches want a voice in government they shoudl help support that government. We shoudl at least be taxing those churches that have intruded into politics!

In the US, collecting a church tax would violate our separation between state and church. Our gov has no business supporting churches, either by keeping them tax exempt or collecting taxes for them. Let them stand on their own, hopefully causing many of them to fail. There are four categories of tax exemption in the US. Health, education, welfare, and religion. The first three file a 990 form with the government, which means that they have to declare their income and for what it is used. Religions do not file and their tax exempt profits are not recorded. We can only estimate their incredible wealth. Not only do they accept donations, as well as selling holy oil, holy water, DVD's, and books, but they own vast amounts of land. That land is bought, sold, rented out, and used for profit making businesses, without paying a dime in taxes. In addition, the churches run other profit making businesses which they categorize under religious exemption. They also will operate schools, soup kitchens, and health facilities, filing under religion, instead of education, welfare, or health, enabling them to cheat the tax payer. We are all subsidizing religious organizations, which violates our separation between state and church.