Posted on 03/04/2014 10:46:18 AM PST by greyfoxx39
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, a religious organisation registered as a private unlimited company in the UK, was told in 2005 that it was not exempt from paying business tax on its temple in Preston, Lancashire.
Because the public were not allowed access to the temple, which was reserved for the most devout Mormons, the High Court dismissed their appeal in July 2008.
However, the church refused to accept the decision, claiming that it amounted to discrimination on religious grounds and taking their battle all the way to Strasbourg.
Now the European Court of Human Rights has upheld the ruling of the British courts.
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Only the most devout members of the church, who hold a "recommend" status, are entitled to enter the temples.
The House of Lords ruled that the Preston temple was not qualified as a "place of public religious worship" since access was restricted to this select group.
(Excerpt) Read more at telegraph.co.uk ...
Do the Masons pay this tax on their temples?
Bottom line: No one’s religion should be subject to any government’s definition of the word “church”, because once you run down that rabbit hole, there is no going back. Something about the 1st Amendment, if I recall correctly..... Everyone has the right and personal obligation to decide what is or is not their religion. The government, OTOH, gets to keep its paws off completely.
LDS is a real religion,
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well so is Islam and they are good neighbors too, but I don’t see you attacking Christians on behalf of the Moslems...
Don’t you believe in human rights ???
I’m no fan of the LDS church, but I am a fan of religious freedom. The sort of people who deny them status as a “place of public religious worship” also hate Baptists, Catholics, and ANYONE who doesn’t worship government.
This isn’t the USA...the Brits have their laws and the LDS failed to follow them by being highly exclusionary and discriminating to their own members, notwithstanding the general public.
The temples are not places of worship, they engage in rituals that are reserved for those who meet the criteria for being granted access.
Render unto Caesar...
The Brits have the power to implement bad laws, but I still consider it a mistake.
“I’m no fan of the LDS church, but I am a fan of religious freedom. The sort of people who deny them status as a “place of public religious worship” also hate Baptists, Catholics, and ANYONE who doesn’t worship government.”
I have to agree. We either have religious freedom for everyone or no one will have it.
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the 1st Amendment is law only in the US..
the Mormons aren't in the US...
they are in the UK cheating the citizens there of funds through taxes..
and this is a European court..
but then that's how they got Al Capone too..
Can you give actually proof of this? Links to articles? I'd like to read up on it.
I am a fan of religious freedom
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Like Warren Jeff’s ???
all he was doing was practicing his religion the way it had gone for 180 years...
as a good Mormon he was obeying the order “follow the prophet”
but the only religious freedom that is in play here is the fact that the Mormons discriminate against about 85% of their own members..
Paying required taxes on buildings not entitled to tax exemptions is not discrimination..
The Mormons want to be tax free in their businesses too..
Churches get tax breaks because of their charity not because they are “entitled”
the Mormons have a history of exhortation and cheating the government..
from this we can see how Thomas Monson will fare on March 14..
A Valuation Officer (tax official) had determined that an LDS Temple was subject to council tax, while the Stake Center, chapel, and associated buildings were exempt from council tax under Schedule 5, Paragraph 11, of the Local Government Finance Act 1988 (places of religions worship, etc.)
That paragraph read, in pertinent part: (1) A hereditament is exempt to the extent that it consists of any of the following—
(a) a place of public religious worship which belongs to the Church of England or the Church in Wales …or is for the time being certified as required by law as a place of religious worship;
(b) a church hall, chapel hall or similar building used in connection with a place falling within paragraph (a) above for the purposes of the organisation responsible for the conduct of public religious worship in that place.
The five-Lord panel unanimously agreed that the LDS Temple was not a place of public religious worship, relying on Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints v Henning (Valuation Officer), AC 420 (1964). In Henning, a unanimous House of Lords held that a LDS Temple in Godstone was not exempt from taxes as a "place of public worship" because the public was excluded from LDS Temples, including Mormons who did not have a Temple Recommend.
The opinion addresses the European Convention on Human Rights, and related matters of taxation.
How about the Scientologists?
Look out Catholics. Your next!
Your point might be valid in the US, this is the UK
They are?
The U.K. doesn’t recognize Scientology as a religious institution or a charity. Scientology property is taxed without exemption.
“Like Warren Jeff’s ???”
“Who’s more foolish: the fool, or the fool who follows him?” ——Obi Wan Kenobi
The UK Treasury is a Victim of Mormon Church Acts of Criminal Financial Fraud Involving the Mormon Church’s Collection of Tithes
First, note should be made of the Mormon Church’s status as a charity under UK law. Per the administration of that law, a Charities Commission is assigned the responsibility of establishing basic “badges” by which a given group can be legally designated as a charitable organization. The badges have since been expanded to cover seven categories.
Two of those badges include:
1) religion; and
2) relief of poverty
In the past, it was assumed that if one was both “God-fearing” and a religion, then it was a given that the religion involved was for “public benefit.” But, under present UK law, this is no longer the case. Under Charities Commission requirements, a religion must demonstrate that it exists for “public benefit.” A recent ruling from the English High Court declared that even the state-established Church of England is no long automatically assumed to be a “public benefit.” It is required under Charity Commission regulations to make the case that it exists for “public benefit”—meaning that it can no longer claim that because it is a religion, it is for “public benefit.”
Whether the Mormon Church actually serves as a “public benefit” in Great Britain is a matter for serious consideration, given how Mormon Church criminal financial fraud has victimized the UK Treasury.
The following example illustrates that fact:
When UK citizens pay tithing to the Mormon Church, they receive tax relief from the British government. For instance, when a British citizen pays $100.00 in the form of a charitable donation to the Mormon Church, $80.00 of that amount is paid to the Mormon Church directly from the Mormon Church member making the donation. The remaining $20.00 is paid directly by the British government to the Mormon Church, with that amount coming to the Mormon Church from the British government out of taxes which were paid by the donor to the UK government. In other words, based on British tax rates, 20% of the charitable contribution is first deducted and goes to the British government. The UK citizen pays 80% of their charitable donation to the Mormon Church, with the British government paying the remaining 20% to Mormon Church.
In the time period that the Fraud Act of 2006 has been in effect, the total tithing paid by Mormon citizens of the UK to the Mormon Church has amounted to approximately $300 million. This constitutes a financial gain to the Mormon Church. Included in that Mormon Church income figure is tax relief upwards of $60 million. The Mormon Church would not have received that financial gain if its members had not been induced to give tithing to the Mormon Church based on false claims made by the Mormon Church.
The Mormon Church operates a tithe-collecting company in the UK, which serves as its “charitable” arm. This company is registered with the UK Charities Commission as a charity, and is organized under the name of “The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints [Great Britain].” It is the main company incorporated in England by the Mormon Church and is assigned the role of receiving tithes from UK members of the Mormon Church. (Phillips says he could have, if he had so chosen, sought legal redress from this UK-based company).
The financial gains made by the Mormon Church through its collection of tithes—which are generated through intentional false representation of its “truth” statement— therefore constitute acts of criminal fraud committed by Mormon Church against both individual UK citizens and the UK Treasury.
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The mormons are getting an 80% tax break according to this article...
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All the church’s places of worship that are open to the public, such as chapels, have the benefit of the full exemption from rates.
The temple, which is not open to the public, does not attract the full exemption, but does benefit from an 80% reduction in rates in view of its use for charitable purposes.
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http://news.uk.msn.com/uk/mormon-tax-no-human-rights-breach-1
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