Taxes and the Church’s Silence
I’d like to offer some comments on “The Ethics of Claiming the Clergy Housing Exemption” by the Rev. Timothy Safford (March 31).
I believe the origins of this tax benefit go back to the beginnings of the Social Security Act in the 1930s. In those days many clergy lived in a parsonage or rectory, the value of which was considered part of their compensation. For tax purposes, how does one treat equally the cleric who does not live in a rectory and therefore receives a larger cash stipend? Add into this mix the strict stand adopted by our Baptist brothers on the separation of church and state. How dare you apply Social Security tax on God’s money?
What has helped to preserve this tax benefit for clergy is the simple fact that the exact same tax benefit is offered to those who serve in our armed forces, many of whom live in government-owned housing. One cannot easily exclude the clergy without also including our military personnel.
Fr. Safford cites the significant financial benefit in the year when a home is purchased. In reality, regardless of the size of the mortgage payment, over the longer time frame it is the fair rental value of the home plus utilities that can be deducted from one’s church pension payment.
I note that there are other tax breaks for which I do not qualify, such as the carried interest loophole that allows investment-fund managers to pay the lower 23.8 percent capital gains tax rate on income received as compensation, rather than the ordinary income tax rates of up to 40.8 percent that they would pay for the same amount of wage income.
All of this points to a larger ethical question about which William Stringfellow was deeply concerned: has the United States government in effect bought the silence of the Church? The Episcopal Church was never able to condemn the Vietnam War as the pointless and moral outrage it was. In return, all of our clergy and seminarians automatically received a 4-D draft classification exempting them from serving—no questions asked. Of course, the exceptions were those of us who refused to apply for the 4-D classification on moral grounds.
And why should the church’s property be tax-exempt? Why are donations to the church not taxed? Perhaps the Baptists had it exactly right.
The Rev. Nathaniel Pierce
Trappe, Maryland
Honoring God and Country
In sanctuaries across America, the U.S. flag has long stood near the pulpit—not to overshadow the cross, but to reflect the sacred freedom we enjoy to worship beneath it. Yet in recent years, some have questioned whether this national symbol belongs in a house of worship at all.
Let me be clear: it does.
The American flag represents more than just a government or a geographic boundary. It represents the hard-won freedom that allows citizens of all faiths to gather in peace. The First Amendment—the cornerstone of our liberty—guarantees the free exercise of religion. This is not the norm in many parts of the world. In America, our churches are not underground or hidden. They are beacons of community life, open and protected.
The flag also serves as a call to action. It reminds us to pray for our country, our leaders, our soldiers, and our neighbors. It asks us to take our faith into the public square and to live out the values of justice, compassion, and moral courage.
As Christians, we can honor both God and country. And in doing so, we honor the legacy of those who made that freedom possible.
Rhonda Drackett Williams
Federal Point, Florida
