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Blogs by Charles Keller
"The Sting" (of religion) 8/10/2016 11:46:47 AM
The movie, "The Sting," reminds me of the illusions created and used by religion to gain monetary benefit. One of the scenes in the movie has the following dialog:
Gondorf: It's not like playing winos. You can't outrun Lonnegan.
Hooker: I don't play for winos.
Gondorf: You've got to keep his con after you take his money. He can't know you took him.
Profound logic.
When they ask you to "tithe" who gets the money?
Do these "megachurches" and their corporate execs live lives of poverty and good deeds?
I wrote a poem years ago when Jimmy Swaggart was caught in his little episode with prostitutes. The title was "Leap of Faith." It asked a similar question.
The answer is often, no. They live in mansions with servants, gardeners, gold faucets and elaborate dog houses.
Maybe there is something wrong with the system... Do you give to your favorite church? Do you tithe the requested 10% or more to seek the favor of GOD or whatever entity it is supposed to serve?
Think about this: Religion in the United States exists tax free. They pay no property taxes, income taxes, corporate business taxes or any other taxes which benefit the American economy.
If you look at median US income on Wikipedia you will find this statistic:
Household income is measured in various ways. One key measure is the real median level, meaning half of households have income above that level and half below, adjusted for inflation. According to the Federal Reserve, this measure was $51,939 in 2013, below the 1999 peak of around $57,000.[1] The Census Bureau estimated real median household income at $53,657 for 2014 and $54,462 in 2015. Household income varies by race, with Asians the highest in 2014 at over $74,000 and African Americans the lowest around $35,000.
According to the Tax Foundation the following is true for the average American:
The Average U.S. Worker Pays over $16,000 in Income and Payroll Taxes
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June 23, 2014
By
Andrew Lundeen
The average U.S. worker faces a tax burden of 31.3 percent. This includes both income taxes and payrolls taxes. Between these two types of taxes, the average U.S. workers pays over $16,000 in taxes on their labor.
The tax burden is a combination of income taxes at the federal, state, and local levels as well as the employee and the employer payroll taxes. Of the 31.3 percent tax burden, 15.4 percent is due to income taxes and 15.9 percent is due to payroll taxes, over half of which is paid by the employer on the employee’s behalf. (Workers pay the cost of the employer-side payroll taxes through lower wages.)
In total, the average worker pays $8,196 in income taxes and $8,462 in payroll taxes, which are meant to fund programs such as Social Security and Medicare.
In the absence of the $16,658 in taxes and any benefits they provide, the average worker would take home $53,223 in income, as opposed to the current after-tax income of $36,564 for the average worker.
Add to this property taxes, sales taxes, fuel taxes and all the rest and it's a heavy burden for an average person or family.
Now, think about the churches. Lets not focus on the "megachurches." that would involve astronomical numbers. Lets assume you attend a small, local church with 100 members. If every member averages $30,000 income (below the average in our country) and "tithes" 10%, that's $300,000 tax free. Multiply that by thousands and you have the TV evangelists and "megachurches."
Does anyone else see a problem with this system? Wouldn't taxing the religious organizations give more help to the hungry, homeless and poverty stricken in our society? It would add billions to the country's programs for the poor. And isn't that what most of these religious folks say when they shamelessly ask you to "tithe?"
I expect a little heat for this blog. After all, there are thirteen or fourteen million people in this country who think Donald Trump should be president.
But there are more of us I think who see the "Wizard" behind the curtain. Too many movie references? Then I'll say it like I did in my "Leap of Faith" poem. There are charlatans and con men in religion today as there always have been. They say "send the money to Jesus but make the check out to me."
