Lawyers and Bankers Home Page
This page is purposely made black and white because the
what is written here is exactly that. There is no ambiguity regarding clearly
written NYS Law and IRS rules.
Private Faith is a religion formed under the New York
State Religious Corporation Law. In IRS Publication 1828, Tax Guide for Churches and Religious Organizations, further
explains what it means by using the word, “church” throughout its literature.
Quoting directly from page 5, “The term church is found, but not specifically
defined, in the Internal Revenue Code (IRC). The term is not used by all
faiths; however, in an attempt to make this publication easy to read, we use it
in its generic sense as a place of worship including, for example, mosques and
synagogues.” For example, the Catholic religion is also called the Catholic
Church. On page 6 of Pub. 1828 it says, "Churches that meet the
requirements of IRC Section 501(c)(3), are automatically considered tax exempt
and are not required to apply for and obtain recognition of tax-exempt status from the IRS."
However, Private Faith intends to file with the IRS all
the necessary forms, probably by the end of 2022, even though it is not
required for us to do so. Why wait so long? Because the number of form lines to
fill in is daunting and we are too busy starting all of the things we need to
make this a success. Keep in mind that filing with the IRS is not required by
any other religion either, thereby making it completely voluntary. The catch
here is if a religion does not meet all of the requirements in 501(c)(3), it is
not tax exempt, but if it does meet those requirements, the IRS automatically
gives that status to that religion without having to file any forms. We will
use all income for the purposes of our religion and nothing else. Our
interpretation is if we say we meet those requirements, we are tax exempt and
can collect tax-exempt donations from people. That in itself says that the IRS
trusts religions to spend the monies and use the non-cash contributions solely
for the purposes in which the religion was incorporated. The IRS also says that donations to a church
can be used as a tax exemption by the donor. The catch here is, the donor must
be a person who files a Schedule A with their IRS Form 1040 at tax time. Most people who have mortgages or own a
business do file a Schedule A.
Our founder established a religion, Private Faith, and is
protected under the First Amendment from anything prohibiting the free exercise
thereof (implement, put into effect, etc.). If our right under the First
Amendment is violated, we can sue the offending local, state or federal
government. By the powerful wording of the First Amendment to the United States
Constitution, the IRS and all states tread lightly when it comes to making laws
even remotely connected to the creation of a religion. It says, “Congress shall
make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free
exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the
right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a
redress of grievances.”
It is certainly understandable that lawyers and bank
officers are not at all familiar with the laws that apply to churches since
very few religions, a.k.a. churches, are created. Researching the Internet,
you'll see only a handful of attorneys who specialize in creating churches for
their clients. Churches that are filed in
Our place of worship is on this website. The NYS
Religious Corporation Law, Article 2, § 3, states, “…if there is not, or is not
intended to be, any such office or place of worship, the certificate shall be
filed and recorded in the office of the secretary of state.” However, since
there is a "place of worship," which is this website, the Certificate
of Incorporation was filed with the
IRS
You can download Pub. 1828 by clicking here: Publication 1828, Tax Guide for Churches and Religious Organizations