Catholic Church Could Lose Tax-Exempt Status if it Denies Pro-Choice Politicians Communion, Democrat Warns

Milton Quintanilla | Contributor for ChristianHeadlines.com | Updated: Jun 23, 2021
Catholic Church Could Lose Tax-Exempt Status if it Denies Pro-Choice Politicians Communion, Democrat Warns

Catholic Church Could Lose Tax-Exempt Status if it Denies Pro-Choice Politicians Communion, Democrat Warns

One Democrat warned the Catholic Church that it could lose its tax-exempt status after the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops announced their plan to draft a document preventing pro-abortion Catholic politicians, such as President Joe Biden, from receiving holy communion.

“If they’re going to politically weaponize religion by ‘rebuking’ Democrats who support women’s reproductive choice, then a ‘rebuke’ of their tax-exempt status may be in order,” Rep. Jared Huffman (D-CA) wrote on Twitter last Friday.

On that same day, members of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) voted to draft a document on communion during their general assembly meeting.

In response, nearly 60 Catholic House Democrats released a “statement of principles” to “solemnly urge” the Church not to “move forward and deny this most holy of all sacraments, the source and the summit of the whole work of the gospel over one issue.”

“… We seek the Church’s guidance and assistance but believe also in the primacy of conscience,” the statement reads. “In recognizing the Church’s role in providing moral leadership, we acknowledge and accept the tension that comes with being in disagreement with the Church in some areas.”

The statement continues, “We recognize that no political party is perfectly in accord with all aspects of Church doctrine. This fact speaks to the secular nature of American democracy, not the devotion of our democratically elected leaders. Yet we believe we can speak to the fundamental issues that unite us as Catholics and lend our voices to changing the political debate — a debate that often fails to reflect and encompass the depth and complexity of these issues.”

The Democrats continued the statement by citing the separation of church and state, which “allows for our faith to inform our public duties and best serve our constituents.”

“The Sacrament of Holy Communion is central to the life of practicing Catholics, and the weaponization of the Eucharist to Democratic lawmakers for their support of a woman’s safe and legal access to abortion is contradictory," that statement concluded.

Related:

After Politically Charged Debate, Bishops Vote to Draft Controversial Communion Document

Photo courtesy: wideonet


Milton Quintanilla is a freelance writer and content creator. He is a contributing writer for Christian Headlines and the host of the For Your Soul Podcast, a podcast devoted to sound doctrine and biblical truth. He holds a Masters of Divinity from Alliance Theological Seminary.



Catholic Church Could Lose Tax-Exempt Status if it Denies Pro-Choice Politicians Communion, Democrat Warns