# What is the legal definition of a religious organization in the U.S.? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 30, 2023, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-legal-definition-of-a-religious-organization-in-the-u-s/986359 "2023-06-30T16:58:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![2\_More\_Bits](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/2_more_bits/32/4148_2.png) [@2\_More\_Bits](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/2_More_Bits)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2023, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-legal-definition-of-a-religious-organization-in-the-u-s/986359/1 "2023-06-30T16:58:03Z")
And can I start my own to get all the nifty “protections?” ---
**Author:** ![BwanaBob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bwanabob/32/2985_2.png) [@BwanaBob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BwanaBob)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2023, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-legal-definition-of-a-religious-organization-in-the-u-s/986359/2 "2023-06-30T17:06:11Z")
This has always bugged me. We don’t seem to have officially defined religions; any shithead who read a Bible can claim to be a priest in their Church of Whatever. Then they can claim “oh my church doesn’t believe in civil rights, only whatever cherry pick I like in the Bible”. See, I’m protected from witches, POC, LGBTQ, etc. That’s the bs excuse they’ll hide behind. ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2023, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-legal-definition-of-a-religious-organization-in-the-u-s/986359/3 "2023-06-30T17:10:33Z")
> [@BwanaBob](#): > > This has always bugged me. We don’t seem to have officially defined religions; any shithead who read a Bible can claim to be a priest in their Church of Whatever. They don’t even need a Bible. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2023, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-legal-definition-of-a-religious-organization-in-the-u-s/986359/4 "2023-06-30T17:23:24Z")
If it helps, here is the definition of “Church” from the I.R.S. website: _Certain characteristics are generally attributed to churches. These attributes of a church have been developed by the IRS and by court decisions. They include:_ - Distinct legal existence - Recognized creed and form of worship - Definite and distinct ecclesiastical government - Formal code of doctrine and discipline - Distinct religious history - Membership not associated with any other church or denomination - Organization of ordained ministers - Ordained ministers selected after completing prescribed courses of study - Literature of its own - Established places of worship - Regular congregations - Regular religious services - Sunday schools for the religious instruction of the young - Schools for the preparation of its members _The IRS generally uses a combination of these characteristics, together with other facts and circumstances, to determine whether an organization is considered a church for federal tax purposes._ ---
**Author:** ![Banksiaman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/banksiaman/32/3334_2.png) [@Banksiaman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Banksiaman)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2023, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-legal-definition-of-a-religious-organization-in-the-u-s/986359/5 "2023-06-30T22:28:38Z")
This has been looked at by John Oliver and the shows are on Youtube. Although his focus was on how religious status could be exploited by televangelists, he founded ‘[Our Lady of Perpetual Exemption](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Our_Lady_of_Perpetual_Exemption)’ to show how easy it was to get into it and how broadly the definitions could be applied. ---
**Author:** ![Dissonance](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/85f322/32.png) [@Dissonance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dissonance)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2023, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-legal-definition-of-a-religious-organization-in-the-u-s/986359/6 "2023-06-30T23:30:32Z")
Must be a dated definition. It doesn’t include - Is able to throw lawsuits at us for 37 years - Was started by L Ron Hubbard ---
**Author:** ![md-2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9d8465/32.png) [@md-2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/md-2000)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2023, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-legal-definition-of-a-religious-organization-in-the-u-s/986359/7 "2023-07-01T00:51:58Z")
_Rowan and Martin’s Laugh-In_ addressed this problem 55 years ago. **City Tax Collector with map:** “This block is the Catholic church; this block is the Episcopalian. This one is Baptist. They are all tax exempt, so you owe the only taxes from downtown, $100,000.” **Candy Shop Owner:** “That’s a lot of Tootsie-rolls!” **Tax Collector:** “How are you going to settle your tax bill?” **Candy Shop Owner:** “Get your map off my altar!” ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2023, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-legal-definition-of-a-religious-organization-in-the-u-s/986359/8 "2023-07-01T00:57:21Z")
Isn’t that a bit… opiniony for the first response in a FQ thread? ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2023, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-legal-definition-of-a-religious-organization-in-the-u-s/986359/9 "2023-07-01T01:21:02Z")
How could the government create or enforce a legal definition of a religious organization without interfering with the First Amendment? ---
**Author:** ![Measure\_for\_Measure](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/measure_for_measure/32/557_2.png) [@Measure\_for\_Measure](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Measure_for_Measure)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2023, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-legal-definition-of-a-religious-organization-in-the-u-s/986359/10 "2023-07-01T02:56:30Z")
Can you start to get nifty protections? Maybe! The Universal Life Church has ordained millions of ministers over time, though their record with the IRS has been shall we say mixed. “The Court of Federal Claims upheld the [IRS’s] revocation on the ground that the Church had not been operated solely for tax-exempt purposes as required by I.R.C. § 501(c)(3); it gave tax advice to its ministers and failed to control the non-exempt activities of its congregations.” But that’s the national organization: things get murkier at the parish level. [Legal status of the Universal Life Church - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legal_status_of_the_Universal_Life_Church)