Now it's no news to those who have been following the progress of the EuroZone, that Spain has accepted €100 million in bailout monies..
But what might be of interest, especially to those States gasping for breath as their economies implode, is that the Spanish may consider taxing Church properties.. Although they have rented it out to a restaurant for the past five years, the owners of one building in Aspe have never paid property tax. Nor have they ever paid tax on the apartments that house two of their employees. . Last week, the city’s government voted to partially rescind the exemption that these have enjoyed, with the landlord of those three properties and another eight more in town, has long enjoyed since a 1979 treaty with the Vatican.. Of course said landlord is the Church of Rome..
The same provision holds for other recognized religions and non-profit organizations like the Red Cross, yet because Catholicism is the dominant religion in Spain, and because the Church’s holdings there are so vast .. Laica, a pro-secularism group, estimates that were it not for the exemption, the church would annually owe 2.5 to 3 billion euros in property taxes.. critics have long argued that the arrangement is part of the preferential treatment granted the Catholic Church..
It's an option that could well be studied by such as Greece, and Italy, and even France..
Certainly it's not too much for those who exist on faith, to contribute to the continuing existence of those who hold to these particular faiths..
Charity begins.. they say.. at home..