Why are some atheists demanding religious institutions be taxed?

Why should churches be treated differently from any other business?

YOU work for somebody (I assume) they "donate" money to you in exchange for the benefits you provide for them (by your work)

YOU pay tax on that money

YOU donate money to the church in exchange for the benefits YOU receive from it (just as the same as you paying say a gardener)

Why should the church be exempt from paying taxes when the gardener isnt, when both have received money from you in exchange for the benefits you received from them?

>" Why should my church be taxed? I already paid tax on my money before giving it to the church. Why should my money be the subject of tax again? "<

Because that happens with every business. Your tithe is paying for a service, and the church hires & pays employees, so that makes a church a business, subject to every tax that any business pays. Besides, why should my property taxes & business taxes go up, every time a church is built in my town, especially when I have nothing to do with it? Have them pay their own damn share.

Besides, churches & religion want their voices to be heard in the government, yet they give absolutely nothing to it's upkeep. If you don't pay taxes, then you should have no say in what the government does.

Oh, so since the people who buy pizzas have already been taxed on their money, no pizza parlor should have to pay taxes. And if I paid taxes on the money I earned, I shouldn't have to pay sales tax. And if a wealthy investor already paid income taxes, he shouldn't have to pay any property tax on the $40,000,000 mansion he just bought.

Makes perfect sense. Or not.

Religions should be taxed because they make money via BUSINESS INTERESTS.

Currently they can get $500,000 donations, give $100,000 to the pastor for a porche, $50 to a blind dude to feed his dog, and spend $35,000 on real estate to rent out producing a TAXABLE income which they currently do not pay.

So yes they should be taxed. And how much donations actually reach charitable use should be made totally public. You will then see giving to a church does not help the poor. It is used to heat the tea room which is hired out to old people. Again should be TAXED.

That is why people want them taxed.

Because being a religion doesn't automatically mean it's qualified to have tax exempt status, and because government and religion shouldn't mix, which is precisely what government is doing when deciding which cult is a religion and which isn't.

Should the employees at a store not be taxed because their pay came from goods bought by you using money you already paid taxes on?

Well, I don't think atheists realize that this would lawfully make religious institutions a citizen with an entire set of benefits, which in the long run would organize religious institutions as a stately entity. This idea is foolishness to anyone who supports freedom. Theists should avoid it for its devious purpose of a state attempting to control the freedom of religion, and atheists should avoid it for the fact that the act would ultimately reduce their own freedom. It's about as dumb and selfish of an idea that I can honestly think of right now.

That's just ridiculous!

Do you a deal, you withdraw taxation on stores run by atheists and we will agree to churches not being taxed.

They want to destroy all religion. They have no problem with PETA terrorists being nontaxed but religion HAS to go. They will never win in the courts because religion is non profit. They just HATE all the money going to churches and synagogues and etc they they can't get their little liberal hands on in taxation. Taxation is their political life blood. They HAVE to pay off their constituents to get elected.