Separation Between Church And State

On the first of January 1802, Thomas Jefferson wrote a letter to the Danbury Baptists association that stated, “I contemplate with sovereign reverence that act of the whole American people which declared that their legislature should ‘make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof,’ thus building a wall of separation between Church & State”(...). A metaphorical wall between church and state gave much relief to skeptics of the developing American government and the control they would have, but as new issues arise in the modern culture we live in today, that wall has been threatened. In the early 1800’s the United States, more realistically the world was a very religion driven society that depended
Vincent Becker, Monsignor of the Immaculate Conception Church, stated that if his church were to be taxed, it would be detrimental to food and clothing programs that they offer, “All of a sudden, we would be hit with something we haven't had to face in the past… We base all the things that we do on the fact that we do not have to pay taxes on the buildings"(...). Most churches only source of income is donations, and a majority of donations are small bills and change. Ministers, secretaries, and other full-time help must make a living through the church as well, leaving only a portion of the budget left for community services. With taxes added to the expense report, churches would have no choice but to shut down their charitable programs, passing the social duties onto government arms. Consequently, drawing significant funds out of the government budget, further raising taxes for all. A solution that shuts down churches, taxes others, and burdens the general public is no solution at
An assumption is made that tax immunity is equivalent to an annual check in the name of the church. Although the Constitution does ban the government from subsidizing religion, tax exemption is not a form of subsidy. Chief Justice of the US Supreme Court, Warren E. Burger stated in the case of Walz vs. Tax Commission of the City of New York, “The grant of a tax exemption is not sponsorship, since the government does not transfer part of its revenue to churches, but simply abstains from demanding that the church support the state”(...). Libraries, museums, hospitals, and any other non-profit organization are all tax exempt, yet have never been considered to be supported by the government (other than when those organizations do receive a subsidy), and employees have never been considered to be on public payroll. A sort of discrimination has developed against churches that aren’t present with other organizations, but just as with any other discrimination, it is