Posted on 04/26/2019 2:16:56 PM PDT by ebb tide
April 26, 2019 (LifeSiteNews) – The U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has formally recognized the Satanic Temple as a church, according to a celebratory announcement by the organization and as confirmed by the Associated Press.
On Thursday, the Satanic Temple announced on Instagram that “for the very [first] time in history, a satanic organization has been recognized by the United States federal government as being a church.” The IRS website confirms that the Satanic Temple is now a tax-exempt organization “eligible to receive tax-deductible charitable contributions,” but gives no further details on its status beyond being a “public charity.”
The AP, however, reports that it received a copy of the notice, which classifies the Satanic Temple as a “church or a convention or association of churches.”
The IRS’s decision comes despite the Satanic Temple’s own website all-but acknowledging it isn’t a religion in the traditional sense. The group’s FAQ page explains that it doesn’t believe Satan or other supernatural concepts literally exist, but embraces Satan’s name as a “symbol of the Eternal Rebel in opposition to arbitrary authority.”
It claims to qualify as a religion because it has “deeply held beliefs that we actively advocate,” a “narrative structure by which we contextualize our lives and works,” and a set of symbols and practices that give a “sense of identity, culture, community, and shared values” – a definition of “religion” that could encompass any number of ideological, political, or cultural groupings not traditionally considered to be religions.
“IRS regulations draw a clear distinction between ‘churches’ and other religious organizations,” Catholic News Agency adds. “A church must have certain characteristics, according to IRS requirements, including: a recognized creed and form of worship; distinct ecclesiastical government; formal code of doctrine; ordained ministers selected after completing prescribed courses of study; established places of worship and regular religious services.”
Rolling Stone notes that the Satanic Temple itself has rejected tax-exempt status in the past, but reversed its position in 2017. Temple president Lucien Greaves made the change in protest of President Donald Trump’s moves to protect religious liberty, which Greaves claimed was turning religious groups into a “privileged class” from which Satanists should benefit as well.
“This acknowledgment will help make sure The Satanic Temple has the same access to public spaces as other religious organizations, affirm our standing in court when battling religious discrimination, and enable us to apply for faith-based government grants,” the Temple’s announcement added, meaning the new status is likely to bolster its legal claims in cases such as its placing of Satanic statues in the state capitals of Arkansas and Illinois.
The Daily Caller notes that the new status is “redundant” on the matter of grants, as there currently aren’t any federal grants exclusively available to faith-based groups, and faith-based and secular groups are equally free to compete for grants.
It will be the official Church of the Democrat Party.
Leftist, commie, socialist, anarchist, satanic-demokkkRAT bureaucrats; the gov’t is stocked with so many of them, my calculator melted trying to count one agency’s roster.
does the IRS director get adrenochrome kickback,
or just the blood of the children?
anyone fired yet for the IRS misdeeds, BTW?
anyone?
The main sacrament of Satanists is abortion
Think about that for a minute
Sadly, the IRS opened the door to all sorts fraudulent organizations that can define themselves the same way...
Why can’t you charter a “church of the millionaires “ to be exempt ???
If scientology qualifies...
I’ll bet they will be worried that like Christian churches they will be attacked bu Muslims....oh wait, birds of a feather...
The IRS already gave the Church of Scientology tax status as a church. The Satanists couldn’t begin to touch that bunch for being evil.
How can Satan be a god to worship, when our Nation was founded under the God of the Old and New Testaments and Satan is a deadly spirit
to be fought and avoided according to those sources?
So if I set up a Church of the Snake spirit of Eden and pay myself a big salary running it, can I get designated a charitable org too?
People can be so dumb.
They’re are no worse than Islam.
They’re no worse than Islam.
this is in keeping with the earlier ruling by SC that the Church of Satan was a recognized religion.
Don’t like it
That’s ridiculous.
I’ve read the Book. I know how it ends for satanist’ and it’s not a pretty picture. When their souls are consumed for eternity, which activist appellate judge will they call for? Where will their civil rights advocates be? What about human rights counsels? Or will they also be their eternal neighbors?
In the process of starting a Registered Fundraiser biz. Raise money for charities. To keep from having to register and pay a bond in almost every state we had to find a 501 c 3 to work with. Partner. I’m thinking after a year or so we’ll start our own 501 c 3 so we can work under it. Why not? If it’s good enough for Satan........
A Wise Old Sage once told me that when you enter into a 501 c 3 contract with the government you give up any dissension with the government that you are in contract with. In effect those churches become ineffective.
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