Posted on 11/09/2012 9:37:21 AM PST by marshmallow
The Church of England and other religious groups are not necessarily acting for the good of the public, Britain’s charity watchdog said in a decision letter.
Its officials cited a tribunal ruling that religion is not always for “the public benefit” as it denied charitable status to the Plymouth Brethren, an exclusive Christian group, for one of its churches in Devon.
In a letter to the Plymouth Brethren, the watchdog set out a recent tribunal decision that “there is no presumption that religion generally, or at any more specific level, is for the public benefit, even in the case of Christianity or the Church of England”.
The Charity Commission has been in a long running battle with independent schools over how they should get charitable status.
However, this is thought to be the first time it has denied the label to a religious group on the grounds that it does not advance public benefit.
The Plymouth Brethren, an evangelical movement whose 16,000 believers try to keep themselves separate from the outside world, have been in a lengthy fight with the watchdog over the issue.
The group has already appealed to the charity tribunal and is intending to take its battle to the European Court of Human Rights if necessary.
The letter emerged in evidence to the Public Administration Select Committee, which is investigating the work of the Charity Commission.
Some MPs are now concerned that the commission could start denying charitable status to a growing number of religious groups.
Charlie Elphicke, a member of the committee and the MP for Dover and Deal, believes the commission is “committed to the suppression of religion”.
(Excerpt) Read more at telegraph.co.uk ...
1)Churches Not Necessarily For Public Good.
2)Churches Not Necessarily For Public Good.
3)Churches Actively Do Harm.
No mosque would ever receive this type of ruling. Coming soon to America.
I worry about that. My church is affiliated with Plymouth Brethren but not nearly as insular as the one in the article
On top of that, the Plymouth Brehtren are one of the most innocuous groups around.
I think the mere existence of Christians offends Caesar.
....Churches Not Necessarily For Public Good....
BALDERDASH!!!!
Anyone who stepped into a United Church of Canada church would agree. Rainbow flags and socialist rhetoric everywhere.
1)Churches Not Necessarily For Public Good.
Possibly, in the area of education. Thus it is up to us to support the effort. Videos like:
1) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t_Qpy0mXg8Y , Why we are afraid, a 1400 year secret
2) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9IstZSgniH8 Indian Genocide, over 80 million killed
3) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lh8h2Iw4UAM , Islams 1400 years of brutal black slavery
4) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=krvCQbzPKiI , Islam, What the West Needs to Know, by Robert Spencer
need to be required viewing for enhancement of education on our history and our future.
These things need to be viewed and spread and viewed, before Obama claims they are slandering his faith and outlaws them as hate speech.
Be aware, we were warned about the number.... it is on its way now.
Not exactly true.
One half of the movement is known for its aggressive and quasi-legal behavior toward former members, and its nasty internal politics.
Going after the smaller groups is a calculated slippery-slope move.
Why not feed the Christians to the lions and be done with it? /s
They may be bad internally, but they don’t have any impact on the state. And since when does the state get to judge an organization by its internal conflicts (unless it erupts in a shooting war, as happened at some Orthodox churches in Cleveland in the 1960s...).
Why would any one expect Christianity to be a benefit for a public good, i believe in God and am glad because he is the only way i can be saved from what i deserve, hell:.
I can only believe every one else deserves the same thing so if that is what they want why deprive them.
The gospel of Jesus has already been preached to all of the world, now we are just waiting for the judgement.
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