Religion-Based Groups Protest Restrictions in Bill

More than 100 religion-based organizations are protesting a provision in pending legislation that would prohibit them from receiving federal money if they consider a job applicant’s religion when hiring.

In a letter sent Wednesday to all members of Congress, the groups contend that the provision would dilute protections they have under the 1964 Civil Rights Act and the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, as well as under the Constitution.

While many of the groups signing the letter do not get money from the agency, they say the language of the provision is so broad it will affect other, unrelated sources of federal grants. World Vision, for example, received more than $300 million in cash, goods and services from federal sources last year, while the Salvation Army received almost $400 million from federal, state and local governments

www.nytimes.com...

I am not for any of these things, abolish them all and stop giving them money.

Religious institutions being tax free and receiving grants must end NOW!

Nathan Diament, director of public policy at the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America, said that although there are few, if any, Orthodox synagogues or schools that run programs financed by the agency, “the issue for all of our institutions is the broader issue of their continued ability under the Constitution and the Civil Rights Act to be able to hire staff that are consistent with their faith and tenets.”

Fair enough but they are asking money from people of all faiths though.
That's taxpayer money, people belonging to so many differents faiths and in some cases none.

Continue with your hiring procedures, but don't ask for muslims, christians, hindus, zoroastrians, jains or atheists for money so you can only hire someone from a given religion.

Originally posted by ModernAcademia

Continue with your hiring procedures, but don't ask for muslims, christians, hindus, zoroastrians, jains or atheists for money [...]

Agreed, but I don't think the last bit of that was necessary.

Especially since there are a handful of cults passed off as religions and a bunch of religions that get deemed cults.

Either everybody's crazy belief is accepted or none are. Period.

I would love to rescind all tax breaks for all religious institutions.

reply to post by justinsweatt


Exactly!! Wonder why we have them in the first place - is it a hold over from the days when popes & kings decided who/how to tax subjects.

I believe the USA has such a high percentage of church-going people compared to other countries because everybody is taking the tax deduction. In Europe, the government adds a tax levy to fund your church if you're a registered member (a problem for the Vatican these days).

It's an abuse of public trust to support religious institutions or programs with tax proceeds.

gj

I'll support anything that takes political power away from religion.

100% no religion in government. 100% separation of church and state.

reply to post by ModernAcademia
Bush's faith based initiative was all a way of side stepping the first amendment, "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof;" by using Executive Order.

The whole point, is to take what is legitimate role of government "promote the general Welfare," and hand it over to religion. Taking tax payers money and giving it to groups that conform to certain standards, puts the government in the position of approving of some and disapproving others. Hence the concept of government staying out of religion is overthrown.

I'm with the OP on this, no tax-payer money to any religious group, whatsoever.