Thank you so much for the link!

You have a lot of useful information there. I'll keep visiting.

by Patricia 0rmsby (3 articles, 5 quicklinks, 1 diaries, 161 comments) on Wednesday, March 19, 2008 at 7:32:10 AM
 

You're very welcome!

This site will be growing. Kathryn Smith, another writer at OpEdNews, is a certified herbalist. She will be posting a lot of good herbal information soon.

by Barbara Peterson (46 articles, 80 quicklinks, 3 diaries, 416 comments) on Wednesday, March 19, 2008 at 10:14:57 AM
 

Excellent article

". . . have you wondered why leaders claiming to be religious Christians have no problem grabbing the wealth and appear to have no regard for the abject misery caused by their single-minded pursuit of glory on the road to Armageddon? I have, and I would now like to explore the question – what does Christianity have to do with it?"

I appreciate what you're saying about how churches are licensed, but I think that the answer to the above question is that grabbing power and wealth with disregard for the misery caused has about as much to do with true Christianity as true Islam has to do with Middle-Eastern terrorists. Religion is a hollow excuse and a cover used by the greedy and power hungry to attempt to justify their ends, and harms the reputations of good Christians and Muslims who are trying to live good lives. Charles Manson claimed to be trying to bring about Armageddon, and I suspect his rampage was just the tip of the iceberg of what those who hope to bring it about through their actions are truly capable of.

"Rather, beneficiaries of an
organization's activities must be recognized objects of
charity (such as the poor or the distressed) or the community
at large (for example, through the conduct of
religious services or the promotion of religion)."
(From pg 5 of the linked pdf document.)

I'm a spiritual person without any connection to organized religion. I don't qualify for tax exemption or deductions based on time I spend in my personal spiritual practice. I'm also occasionally bombarded with attempts to convert me to a religion. I object to anyone having tax exemption for that purpose, which annoys me and insults my choices, and makes me feel that I have to defend my freedom of religion.

Personally, I think churches should NOT be granted tax-exempt status. Religious services alone aren't a good reason to be tax-exempt. If they really are trying to help people and do good works, then why not be an equally contributing part of the tax-paying system that's supposed to support us all by way of government services? Instead members get deductions for their contributions AND the church is tax exempt. Their tax-exempt status also means they only contribute to what they as a religion choose to. Fortunately there are some churches that offer services to all in need, regardless of membership. But even that help tends to come with conditions. Many churches seem to offer benefits primarily to their own membership, and in some cases their priesthood or church-hoarded caches of wealth and property gain most of the benefit. Many exemplary church-related works are carried out by brave individuals, and the generosity of a few members who contribute to specific causes -- but not by churches as a whole -- yet the church organization gets the tax exemption.

"Man cannot create a clean slate on his own. When he tries, he leaves a lot of broken pieces around that he cannot put back together."

According to some who've had near death experiences, the only judgement that takes place is the individual judging oneself. Not a clean slate either, necessarily, but quite different from what most churches teach. And I agree that we can't fix or change other people. Even when it's done by force, it's not real, heartfelt change. They have to change themselves.

"Wiping the slate clean is a process that takes a lifetime, and cannot be done for you by a pastor, bishop, or priest."

Absolutely.

"And who owns the Federal government? The corporate elites. This is our corporate government. So, who creates the final doctrine for the Federally licensed Christian church?"

I've often thought that religious organizations provide a wonderful (translate terrible) means to control people. That must please the powers that be, to have a channel by which that control can be maintained and manipulated, by calling certain actions sins and certain groups of people evil or sinful, and by teaching people not to question authority. When the Pope came out with his new seven deadly sins, I wondered if he'd considered that overpopulation causes a lot of pollution, and his church's doctrine against birth control contributes to that, especially in poor communities where people can't afford so many children. It also contributes to continued poverty, extending to those children, often for a lifetime. So the Pope is guilty of that "deadly sin" as long as he keeps the no birth control doctrine in place. Of course I'm sure he doesn't see it that way, and of course none of his "true followers" will question it.

by SpiritBlooms (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 55 comments) on Wednesday, March 19, 2008 at 7:05:38 PM