But Peter said to him, “May your silver perish with you, because you thought you could obtain the gift of God with money!”

- Acts 8.20

It is not permitted to the Church to accept alms from pagans.

- Canons Attributed to St. Patrick, Irish, 6th century

During a recent presidential campaign, you will recall, a group of pastors decided to test the IRS’s resolve by preaching sermons in which they endorsed a particular candidate for the nation's highest office. Such is not permitted to organizations which enjoy a tax-deductible status with the IRS, on pain of possibly having their tax-exempt status revoked. 

So far there have been no negative ramifications, but it may just be that the jury is still out. The situation serves to remind us how dependent churches today are on government largesse. Wouldn’t it just be easier to renounce our tax-exempt status and then preach whatever we want?

Well, no, pastors will tell you, because contributions will drop off significantly if people don’t get a tax deduction for their offering. Does that mean that not only are our churches captive to government, but individual believers as well?

Is it really true that church members would not give as much, or maybe not at all, if they weren’t going to get a tax deduction?

This situation strikes me as a kind of receiving alms from pagans. We give so that we can save some of the money the IRS might otherwise require of us. We guard our tongues in the pulpit so that IRS won’t take away our tax-exempt status, thus causing our people to reduce their giving since they won’t receive a deduction.

Is it just me, or does this whole situation smell oddly of Peter’s rebuke of Simon Magus?

It’s sad to think that Kingdom business is held captive to bottom lines held captive to government rules held captive to pagan legislators and policy-makers held captive, to perhaps too great an extent, to the father of lies.

I wonder how many other ways we allow ourselves to remain captive to the world because of some perceived benefit?

We can’t escape the world. But do we have to depend on its alms to do the work of the Kingdom?

Psalm 72.15 (Martyrdom: “Alas! And Did My Savior Bleed”)
Let Christ be praised and all the gold of Sheba be His right;
Let blessings to His Name be told, and prayers made both day and night.

Lord, teach us to love nothing here, since nothing here will last; but help us to love the things that are eternal, and to pursue these as our highest priority and calling. Adapted from Columbanus, Sermon III