CLERGY MAY SOON FIND TAXES SOARING AS RESULT OF AN UNDER-THE-RADAR RULING
Yeah, that’s under-the-radar if you are The Rev. Rip V. Winkle who slept for the last decade or so and just woke up.
The article is about the clergy housing allowance. Other than the screaming, vein popping headline it is one of the best summary articles I’ve read on the clergy housing allowance and recent ruling. My CPA friend Peter Reilly on Forbes is better but then the HA is never under his radar. He has had many timely articles on it. His latest,Tax free housing benefits for clergy will be safe for the present, should calm the troubled clergy soul, for now.
For 2018 clergy who get a tidy housing allowance check monthly should keep doing what they are doing. It is highly unlikely that anything will change next year. Max our Sacred Clergy Tax Break out for 2018. Be sure in doing so that you:
- Have the church officially approve an amount. Do it now. It has to be approved before the benefits paid. Most of us do it in the annual budget.
- Keep records. You need to show where you spent the HA on mortgage, taxes, utilities, insurance, improvements or the like.
- Don’t be ridiculous with the amount. It cannot be greater than the fair rental value of your house, furnished.
If you live in the church pastorium the court ruling doesn’t apply and will not apply to your situation.
Went to see Churchill, “The Darkest Hour,” yesterday. Outstanding. Reminded me that what we need in the church is less cuteness, cleverness, and pablum from the pulpit and more solid, unctuous, biblical preaching. Hey, Churchill and no less than Spurgeon had the cigar thing working for them. Maybe you should try that.
Hello William! My name is Casey Jones. I am pastor in rural Alabama. I had some questions for you about the parsonage side of the housing allowance. Would you email me?
I didn’t know that Spurgeon smoked a cigar.
But as I recall history from the first half of the 20th century at least one well known SBC pastor / leader smoked cigarettes. This was before the surgeon general put on those warning labels.
Roger
Spurgeon was famous for his cigars and in fact had a debate with Dr. Pentecost about cigars.
After Dr. Pentecost preached a sermon at the Metropolitan Tabernacle against cigar smoking Spurgeon took to the pulpit and with his typical good humor told the congregation he intended to smoke a good cigar to the glory of God that evening.
I don’t know if this conversation actually took place ….
But I’ve always heard that he was asked one time about the possibility of smoking being a sin… And he replied something to the effect of… Potentially if one is smoking two at one time.
Here’s a link to one of many the multi sourced accounts:
http://www.romans45.org/spurgeon/misc/cigars.htm
Ah skeptics. Always so unwilling to do a little research.
You realize lack of research is why so many people voted for Trump Mr. Tarheel. 😉
I’m not a skeptic about Spurgeon smoking cigars – I was relating something I’ve heard a number of times – but don’t really care enough to research it. Lol
I think it would have been funny if he said it.
I don’t think smoking cigars is, in and of itself, a sin either.
“You realize lack of research is why so many people voted for Trump Mr. Tarheel”
Ryan, I know you said this in jest, but I had to say that I don’t think it is true. I don’t think there was ever a candidate whose offences were so widely known. People just decided it didn’t matter. Remember at least one high profile Christian Trump supporter said he would still support him even if he was guilty of sexual assault. I’m sure he wasn’t alone.
Bill,
Meant it as a jest but also as a poke at those who take articles by outlets like Breitbart and other click bait sites at face value without digging into their claims.
Belief in those scare tactics is what led to many people overlooking Trump’s obvious unfitness for office.
We are well on our way to becoming one of the least critical thinking people’s on earth and it’s killing our nation.
A whole cottage industry on Spurgeon and cigars. Who knew?
I’ve read several accounts of former SBC leaders smoking, mostly in their biographies it’s mentioned only in passing. Most (all?) of those I’ve read about are from before the 1950’s. I have always read stories about “smoke filled rooms” in the Conservative Resurgence but I figured that was just an expression.
I do believe that the “smoke-filled rooms” during the CR years was metaphorical. A couple of decades prior to that, it might not have been.
It was an expression only, just as was “go for the jugular.”
If attacked by a group of mimes or clowns, the best defense is to go for the….juggler. 🙂
Boooo!!!!!