Meanwhile I've checked the tax office's list on 1% offerings - taypayers can donate 1% of their personal income tax to a charity, and another 1% to a church, or alternatively, to a secular cause offered by the state (for 2009 that was eradication of ambrosia, a highly allergen plant, and a programme to support especially talented kids).
This list includes of course taxpayers only (i.e. people who have a legal income and pay at least minimal taxes), so it does not include for example retired people who have no other income than their retirement benefits. But it still gives a clue about how many adherents churches have.
At present, one needs 100 members to found a church, and though the "statues" (main teachings etc.) have to be handed at registration, the state has no right to check them in any way.
The tax office lists 185 churches for 2009, the biggest one being the catholics, with 534 thousand people offering their 1% (45% of onepercents dedicated), and on the second place, lagging far behind, the reformed church with 186 thousand (20%). The third 'big traditional' church, the Lutherans has 49 thousand taxpaying members (4%). Another 3 make it over the 10000 adherents limit that Szászfalvi has suggested should be introduced: the baptists (1.3%), the Krishnas (1.1%) and a pentecostal church called Hit Gyülekezete (the Faith Church, 1.6%).
Of course as probably not only the taxpayers would count, some more churches will meet the criterion, such as the biggest Jewish and buddhist groups, as well as Jehovah's Witnesses. Overall, there are 25 churches that got more than 1000 donations, and only 15 of them have over 2000 income tax paying members who are devoted enough to fill out two lines on a form. Of these 25, 13 are Christian, 5 Buddhist, and 2 Jewish. Among the remaining, there are the Scientologists, the Jains (who are basically supporting an animal shelter called Noah's Ark), the Krishnas, an esoteric church and another with the aim to reestablish giving birth as spiritual act (supposedly related to the fact that anyone who would like to give birth at home is considered crazy by the medical establishment). Of course some more churches can count on retaining their status as 'established', nemaly those who have been present 'traditionally'. I can only guess about them, but I suppose Jewish and Christian orthodox groups (e.g. the Greek and Serb churches) will be among them, and the muslims will prbably argue that they are traditionally present in Hungary (after all, we had 150 years of Turkish rule, hadn't we...).
The list also contains the total amount of 1%-s donated to the curches, so one can count the avarage personal income (or rather, about the income tax) of the members of one particlar church. Among the over 1000 sized churches, the biggest taxpayers are (reinforcing stereotypes) the Jews (the avarage 1% of the income tax is 5900 forint per taxpayer, while Jews' 1% was 12509 forint for the biggest Jewish group and 10321 forint for the 'Status quo ante' group - the two groups separated in the 19th century over an argument on the relationship with the state).
The by faaar richest church members are Christians, however: the 84 members of the Korean Christians' 1% amounted to 58385 forint per person, which is ten times the avarage income (no typo, the amount was similar last year).
Before I forget: 25% of taxpayers donating their 1% gave it to the secular causes. Their avarage income avarages the general avarage.
But: most taxpayers just don't care. There are about 3.6 million taxpayers, of whom 24.8% are close enough to their church to donate it ca. 2 minutes to fill out the form (for the big denominations: 14.8% catholics, 5% protestant, 1.4% Lutherans, with the rest under 1%), and another 8.3% are dedicated enough to a quite impersonal secular cause (getting no media coverage) to offer their 1%. (Data corrected on 23/10/2010 23:32, after I've found the exact number of persons paying actually more than 0 forint taxes.)
The list: http://www.apeh.hu/szja1_1/kimutat/2010_rend_egyh_kiem.html
Secular Hungary
Showing posts with label funding. Show all posts
Showing posts with label funding. Show all posts
Saturday, 23 October 2010
Saturday, 19 June 2010
How to hand over state schools to churches easily
The Hungarian Teachers' Union wrote a letter to the constitutional court protesting against a new bill (No. LI of 2010) modifíng the law on public education. According to the bill, local authorities may hand over their schools to a church institution on the spot, without delay. According to the union, this step violates teachers' and pupils' religious freedom, as this would mean that anyone may suddenly find themselves in a religious institution, and in some places, there may not be any secular alternative.
Though schools are mainly state financed, they are maintained by the local government, and as the state subsidies are not enough, the schools budget is usually supplemented from the (also rather tight) local budget. Church schools, on the contrary, receive an avarage of the supplements provided by the local government in addition to the regular state subsidies. Therefore handing over a local school to a church is financially rewarding for local goverments,
Though schools are mainly state financed, they are maintained by the local government, and as the state subsidies are not enough, the schools budget is usually supplemented from the (also rather tight) local budget. Church schools, on the contrary, receive an avarage of the supplements provided by the local government in addition to the regular state subsidies. Therefore handing over a local school to a church is financially rewarding for local goverments,
Címkék:
catholicism,
creationism-id-pseudo_science,
education,
fidesz,
funding,
jobbik,
kdnp
Sunday, 11 April 2010
Estates
Last year, a reformed bishop suggested that the churches receive back not only their buildings, but also the arable land that was taken away from them after WWII (the catholic church used to be one of the biggest land owners until them). The question is being discussed (not too vividly, however) in the intellectual weekly 'És' ('And'--its real name is 'Élet és irodalom', i.e. 'Life and Literature', but I have not once heard its whole name and it's referred to even in writing as 'És').
Csaba Fazekas and György Gábor argue that the churches did not own their estates but received them for use only by the kings, who paid them for their services to society through providing them with a revenue from these estates. I.e. they did not receive any property rights but only the rights to the net revenue drawn from the estates. Accodring to them, one of course could argue that the churches get back their land, but this would mean that all state funding would have to cease completely.
http://www.es.hu/index.php?view=doc;24710
Csaba Fazekas and György Gábor argue that the churches did not own their estates but received them for use only by the kings, who paid them for their services to society through providing them with a revenue from these estates. I.e. they did not receive any property rights but only the rights to the net revenue drawn from the estates. Accodring to them, one of course could argue that the churches get back their land, but this would mean that all state funding would have to cease completely.
http://www.es.hu/index.php?view=doc;24710
Címkék:
catholicism,
funding,
reformed
Tuesday, 1 December 2009
What does the church use your donations for?
To pay for abuse victims. At least this is what is going to happen with the buildings erected by the Hungarian community in Cleveland, USA. The bishop has already sold 24 churches, two of them built by Hungarian emigrants, and a third is to follow. 600 locals are fighting to keep the 150 year old church, they even turned to the head of the catholic church in Hungary, Péter Erdő, and to the Vatican, but without any results.
http://nepszava.hu/default.asp?cCenter=OnlineCikk.asp&ArticleID=1269503
Címkék:
catholicism,
funding,
USA
Monday, 30 November 2009
Church recycling
Though the Vatican is very well informed, the head of Hungarian Catholics, Péter Erdő cardinal had to correct a statement by cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi, according to whom in Hungary churches have been turned into brothels.
However, we do have more churches than necessary. In the village of Medgyesegyháza, the reformed church is selling one of its places of worship, since of the 200 inhabitants who declared themselves calvinist, only 1 or 2 attend the services held at the church once or twice a month. However, they plan to keep the churchbell, which was given to them by communist dictator Mátyás Rákosi in 1951.
http://www.nepszava.hu/articles/article.php?id=223049
http://index.hu/belfold/2009/11/17/elado_egy_reformatus_templom/
However, we do have more churches than necessary. In the village of Medgyesegyháza, the reformed church is selling one of its places of worship, since of the 200 inhabitants who declared themselves calvinist, only 1 or 2 attend the services held at the church once or twice a month. However, they plan to keep the churchbell, which was given to them by communist dictator Mátyás Rákosi in 1951.
http://www.nepszava.hu/articles/article.php?id=223049
http://index.hu/belfold/2009/11/17/elado_egy_reformatus_templom/
Címkék:
buildings,
catholicism,
communism,
funding,
reformed
Tuesday, 15 September 2009
No common fate
The Hungarian state budget will decrease by an average of 10% for the year 2010 due to the financial crisis. The minister of education and culture Mr István Hiller confirmed that budget cus will probably also affect the funds received by the churches from the state for their spiritual activities (social and educational services are funded separately), but he promised that these will be kept below the average rate. The churches are furious. -- It seems they are not ready to take their share...
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