Posted on 04/16/2021 6:43:18 PM PDT by marshmallow
BERLIN (CNS) — Germany’s lower house of Parliament is considering replacing state payments to the nation’s two largest churches. The Catholic and Protestant churches received combined state benefits of more than $650 million in 2020.
At a hearing in the interior affairs committee of the Bundestag, or lower house of parliament, they welcomed in principle the intention of legislation by the opposition liberal Free Democratic Party, the Greens and the Left Party and pointed out that it was in line with a constitutional mandate to abolish the payments, which date back to a 19th-century provision. By contrast, a number of legal experts said an alternative bill by the Alternative for Germany party to simply phase out the benefits was unconstitutional, reported the German Catholic news agency KNA.
The bill by the three parties aims to create the necessary framework for agreements between the federal states, which currently make the payments, and the Catholic dioceses and Protestant regional churches.
Most of the state payments date back to 1803, when German imperial princes received expropriated church property as compensation for a loss of territory. In return, the princes paid the churches money on a regular basis.
The right of the churches to levy contributions, or a church tax, from their members has nothing to do with these state benefits, KNA reported.
Since 1919, the constitution has called for these benefits to be replaced. The prerequisite for this would be agreements with the churches at the federal and state level as well as corresponding laws. However, the churches would have to receive high redemption sums for this, which is why most of the federal states have so far refrained from taking the step.
According to the new draft law, the maximum amount of the replacement payments is to be based on the so-called...........
(Excerpt) Read more at catholicsun.org ...
We visited a family in Germany around 1990. They owned a business. We were shocked to learn that Germany automatically took money from their business for the Catholic church/Vatican. I can’t remember exactly what they said. Is it because they owned a business, or is this money taken from all citizens?
I was still curious about this, and just a few months ago I tried to find information about it online, but couldn’t find anything. I’m wondering if your article is what they were talking about.
Those payments should be going to mosque.
I was in Germany in 1990, and I never heard of that happening. Catholics aren’t even a third of Germans.
The church tax, did and still exists. Each citizen pays about $1000 per year to their chosen denomination.
You can declare you don’t have a religion and not pay, but if you do the churches will block you from a church wedding or funeral. 70% of Germans currently are signed up to pay the tax.
Probably a good thing. Governments don’t do well administering and tampering with the way churches are administered.
Old Hitler law they never removed. Funny how things “change”. State sponsorship and control of religion, it is, rendering unto Ceasar’s what is God’s.
Yep. I think it’s 4 or 6 percent they take from each paycheck. You choose which church or mosque gets your tithe...or at least they used to do it that way!
Yes...when my father in law died the church wouldn;t pay for his funeral because he didn’t pay the “tax”!
That would be a good thing.
We (American military) lived in Germany for 3 1/2 years in the 1970’s. I never heard of it then, but I doubt if Germans talk about it unless you’re talking taxes and politics.
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