Posted on 01/31/2013 5:05:06 PM PST by Colofornian
Late last year (2012) a copy of the 2006 Mission Presidents Handbook was posted on an individuals blog site. This document, produced by the Mormon Church as a practical instruction manual for mission presidents, contains basic policies and guidelines established by the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles to help you lead your missionaries and direct the work (6). The book is not intended for general readership; general readers have found that it contains some things that are surprising in light of the public face that the Church puts forth.
PaycheckOne such surprise is found in Appendix B, Family Finances. It begins,
While you are serving as mission president, the Church reimburses the necessary living expenses for you, your wife, and your dependent children. Dependent children are defined as those who are under age 26, have not been married, and are not employed full-time. Living expenses include food, clothing, household supplies, family activities, dry cleaning, personal long-distance calls to family, and modest gifts (for example, Christmas, birthdays, or anniversary). (80)
Additional reimbursable or paid expenses are also listed including (but not limited to) medical expenses; support for children serving full-time missions; dance lessons (and the like) for elementary and secondary school-aged children as well as their school tuition, fees and books; undergraduate college tuition; a gardener; a housekeeper; internet and other utilities; babysitters; transportation expenses including the use of a car and all fuel and maintenance expenses; and personal health and life insurance premiums.
The handbook instructs,
The amount of any funds reimbursed to you should be kept strictly confidential and should not be discussed with missionaries, other mission presidents, friends, or family members. (80)
One can only speculate about the reasons for this confidentiality among friends and family. But the mission president is also instructed to keep mum about these financial benefits to the taxman.
Because you are engaged in volunteer religious service, no employer-employee relationship exists between you and the Church. As a result, any funds reimbursed to you from the Church are not considered income for tax purposes; they are not reported to the government, and taxes are not withheld with regard to these funds
To avoid raising unnecessary tax questions, please follow these guidelines closely:
Do not share information on funds you receive from the Church with those who help you with financial or tax matters. Any exceptions should be discussed with the Church Tax Division.
Never represent in any way that you are paid for your service.
If you are required to file an income-tax report for other purposes, do not list any funds you receive from the Church, regardless of where you serve or where you hold citizenship. (82)
Eric Johnson and Bill McKeever did some calculations on a hypothetical mission president serving in the state of Utah. This imaginary Mormon Church leader ended up with benefits equaling $99,500 per year. Furthermore, Eric Johnson writes,
It must be mentioned that tithing on these items are not supposed to be paid. Unlike other church members, this family can receive temple recommends without paying tithing on income. Hence, for the value of this compensation, which we list here at almost $100,000, the tithe amount would be at least $10,000. So, this particular mission presidentwho, remember, is considered a volunteeris getting compensation for at least $110,000! Not bad for someone who is not supposedly getting a wage!
Indeed.
sniff, sniff
Welcome to the religion forum of FR... or should I say...welcome back?
Ah...
Qualifiers.
Ya gotta luv 'em!
Can any of you prove me guilty of sin? If I am telling the truth, why dont you believe me?
Whoever belongs to God hears what God says. The reason you do not hear is that you do not belong to God.
KJV 46 Which of you convinceth me of sin? And if I say the truth, why do ye not believe me? 47 He that is of God heareth God's words: ye therefore hear them not, because ye are not of God.
(I don't read GREEK; so SOMEone had to translate this for me.)
And that part is why I agreed to start another thread.
To easy.
You can talk to yourself but won’t answer my question.
What church do you attend, where do you hang your hat...
Retread stunt Mormon...
I don't know if the count has actually gone up to a full three yet, but it seemed like it. and somebody thinks they are sneaky? oh what lengths are gone to. such a variety of false flags with vague resemblances to others. but the dyes used are thin, and get washed out enough by the slightest breezes, showing the crazy-quilt pattern underneath.
It's the seams. The stitching's have unmistakable pattern, leaving the conspicuous bulges, well, conspicuous.
ho ho ho ho ho ho ho ho too funny, and sort-of pathetic at the same time.
time for nap? right around now, this time of day is when I usually finish counting all the lucre brought in from pulling guard duty on this forum. all that counting...and what with all those furry critters with fleeces shaped like clouds passing over head,
is causing me to ......zzzzzzz..........skO-aACh...zzzzz... skoA-aackch......zzzz....
“Mormons believe that protestants are employed by the devil to deceive people.”
We know that this is not true, the devil would have to pay his Obamacare tax or provide an approved benefits package, pay increased withholding and would have to get an EPA approved scrubber for his furnace - and pay to convert it to clean-burning natural gas.
Then he’d have to make sure he has accommodations under ADA or risk being fined. Assuming he’s running a non-profit, he’ll have to file the appropriate forms to make sure there isn’t “excess” compensation provided to his executive team.
All in all, I think under the Obama regulatory regime, the devil would throw up his hands and give up in disgust at having been outdone.
......
We know that this is not true...P>Then I'll change it to something that IS true:
MORMONism used to teach that protestant preachers are employed by the devil to deceive people.
You have absolutely no sense of humor.
What do mormons have to say about that?
They hate it.
(I guess)
JESUS: Hey Smith! Remember that boast you made about doing more than even I had done to hold the 'church' together?
JOSEPH SMITH: Where am I?
JESUS: Don't you remember? A few seconds ago you were in that jail.
JOSEPH SMITH: Oh; yeah; but where am I NOW?
JESUS: Don't you remember? Does bang - bang ring a bell?
JOSEPH SMITH: Oh; yeah - that crummy gun I had was about USELESS!
JESUS: I hope you left instructions on how to hold your church together.
JOSEPH SMITH: Dang! I knew there was SOMETHING I was forgetting!
JESUS: Looks like there's a power struggle going on down there.
JOSEPH SMITH: Yeah; there was always SOMEone who wanted the power that I held - especially over the LADIES - wink wink.
JESUS: No need to worry about that now; remember what my friend Matthew wrote down?
JOSEPH SMITH: This? At the resurrection people will neither marry nor be given in marriage; they will be like the angels in heaven (Matthew 22:30)
JESUS: That's it.
JOSEPH SMITH: I thought that was mistranslated.
JESUS: Nah - it was right.
JOSEPH SMITH: Oh well; it was fun while it lasted. My buds will still get it on with the girls.
JESUS: Uh; I'm sorry; in just a few more years; your followers will cavein to the United States government and abandon the 'Eternal Covenant' that you came up with.
JOSEPH SMITH: ME!? YOU are the one that told me to do that!
JESUS: Sorry; but you must have mistranslated what I told you. What part of Do NOT commit ADULTERY did you not understand?
JOSEPH SMITH: mumble....
JESUS: What did you say?
JOSEPH SMITH: Oh, nothing.
JESUS: Well; it was interesting talking to you; but now I must get back to perparing a place for those who believe in Me.
JOSEPH SMITH: Oh, yeah; the Celestial Kingdom.
JESUS: No...
JOSEPH SMITH: The Telestial one?
JESUS: Nope.
JOSEPH SMITH: SUREly not the TERRESTRIAL one!!
JESUS: Nope. Didn't you read that the mind of man had NOT conceived of it? Paul wrote it down in 1 Corinthians 2:9.
JOSEPH SMITH: I thought that was mistranslated.
JESUS: No; it wasn't.
JOSEPH SMITH: You SURE?
JESUS: Yes. Now I must be going: what did you say your name was again?
JOSEPH SMITH: Joseph Smith.
JESUS: Hmmmm. According to my Heavenly FAITHbook, you didn't sign in as one of my friends - sorry, I never knew you.
JOSEPH SMITH: But....
Too long. Can’t read.
COndense your humor, if that is what that was.
SURE you can!
Just try it!
Remember the skin effect: all the jokes flow on the outside of my wires.
Brevity is the soul of wit.
Much of it must be induced.
“Much of it must be induced.”
Or perhaps distilled or derived from such.
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