Watchtower Society of Australia letter RE: Charity

by TheApostleAK 7 Replies latest jw friends

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  TheApostleAK

  Here:

  http://www.geocities.com/xjw_adelaide/

  I don't know if this is secret or not. It's the link under the Time magazine Ray Franz article. (called Charity.doc).

  From The Apostle AK
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  ozziepost

  Thanks for the post AK,

  I found this of interest

  Donations to the Society are not tax-deductible, even when they are made for disaster relief or church building. We believe that more funds would be available if donations of reasonably large amounts “for the advancement of religion” were tax-deductible.

  {Emphasis added by me]

  Notice too how they shift the emphasis away from providing material things for the needy:

  Therefore, the “charity” of the Christian religion includes, but extends beyond, giving to the poor and needy by means of the provision of money, clothing, food, medical attention, and other material help. It encompasses a general compassion for other people, including a stranger and even an enemy. (Luke 6:27-29) This compassion prompts deliberate acts of goodwill on the part of a Christian toward another. It may, or may not, include assistance to the poor and needy by means of gifts of material possessions, but it is exercised for the good of the other person or a community of persons. It can include providing encouragement, advice, and counsel, giving hope, or showing kindness. For example, a depressed person is often better aided by words of encouragement than by a material gift, and a person in financial difficulties could be more lastingly assisted by guidance in managing their financial affairs than they would be by a temporary boost to their bank account. The person or organization who provides that guidance out of a sense of Christian love is no less a sharer in the chain of charitable actions than the one who freely gives a monetary gift.

  Vin has learned his trade well!

  In some countries, such as the United States of America and New Zealand, donors to our religious organizations are exempt from gift duty and may claim tax deductions for donations made to the church.

  I wonder how many US Witnesses claim tax relief for their donations to the Watchtower Society!

  Cheers,
  Ozzie

  "You can know the law by heart, without knowing the heart of it"
  Philip Yancey, What's So Amazing About Grace?
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  Roamingfeline

  I would hazard to say that All of them do, Ozziepost. That is one of the big differences between the American and Australian tax systems. I see no big deal in Dubs being able to take advantage of the laws that are there, in order to lessen their tax burden. They are just as entitled to it as people of other faiths.

  RCat
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  outnfree

  Yes, RCat, I would agree that almost ALL U.S. JW's take the tax deduction.

  While it is true, Ozzie, that the WTB&TS does not do much in the way of using received donations for charitable works such as feeding the hungry, sheltering battered or abused people, outright monetary gifts to those in need, building hospitals, etc., it clearly IS a legal charitable donation for US citizens. The US JW is donating his money to the Society which feeds, clothes and shelters the young men and women in its Bethel homes the world over. Remember they have all taken a vow of poverty. Yes, they now even call their workers the "Religious Order of Jehovah's Witnesses."

  outnfree
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  TheApostleAK

  Just moving this to the top...
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  ozziepost

  G'day RCat,

  I suppose this would explain the reputed large donation base enjoyed by the USA Branch.

  Cheers,
  Ozzie (junior officer of the Self-Assessment class)
• 

  MacHislopp

  Hello ApostleAK,

  thanks for the link. I've read the facts, but
  for me it was READ ONLY (???)

  In Europe no tax-deduction.

  Greetings, J.C.MacHislopp
• 

  CornerStone

  Hello A.AK,

  "It may, or may not, include assistance to the poor and needy by means of gifts of material possessions, but it is exercised for the good of the other person or a community of persons. It can include providing encouragement, advice, and counsel, giving hope, or showing kindness. For example, a depressed person is often better aided by words of encouragement than by a material gift, and a person in financial difficulties could be more lastingly assisted by guidance in managing their financial affairs than they would be by a temporary boost to their bank account. The person or ORGANIZATION who provides that guidance out of a sense of Christian love is NO LESS A SHARER in the chain of charitable actions than the one who freely gives a monetary gift."

  I can't believe those people in the 'tower. They want to liken the "advise" given in their litter-a-ture to the kind of kindness that Jesus and the disciples gave to people in the first century. How can they look at themselves in the mirror every morning and believe that they are doing what Jesus commanded them to do? I mean, how is it possible? Unless, of course, they are so completly removed from any sense of reality, that as long as the money keeps coming in an the drones keep "bowing down" to them then they don't realy have to face reality.

  It is so regrettable that they could realy help people raise their quality of life and become "better people", morally speaking, but they chose to waste their resources by "using" the Bible to "brow beat" people into selling worthless, human opinionated watchtowers, seeking after the shadows of the GB's dreams.

  CornerStone