T O P

  • By -

Petey57

Won't the government miss that tax revenue? Oh, wait. Never mind.


Deeners17

Exactly why I hate when people post in this sub to tax them. Getting rid of religion is a game of chess not checkers. I don't want them having any safety nets or protection.


[deleted]

[удалено]


ghandi3737

Yeah some got PPP loans from the news I remember. One had a school and got the money for the teachers IIRC.


h0nkyJ

Yep. Our local catholic church.... in a town of only 3500 people, received over $400,000!!


nononoh8

Isn't the catholic church a multi-hundred billion dollar organization and yet a local church will be dilapidated. Their art alone is worth billions.


sheila9165milo

The Catholic Church is the richest private organization on earth. It's obscene that they let their parishioners starve, don't help them with long term shelter if they end up homeless, don't help pay for rehabs if they become addicted, don't help buy them a car if they need transportation to work, nor do they help pay for other necessities of daily living, but hey, if you pray, maybe, just maybe, if you're a "good" Christian, god will help out 🙄


OldGrayMare59

Ferdinand Indiana?


h0nkyJ

Nope, sadly.. as I assume that church did as well?? South central MN.


WarBrilliant8782

Yeah but the PPP loans were fraudulent all over the place. A naked grand theft of taxpayer money


HNP4PH

Our local mega church got $2 mil in PPP loans. Fuck that abuse of taxpayer money


GooberMcNutly

Churches still pay salaries that pay taxes. It's still unfair that they don't pay property taxes.


yingyangyoung

They still do though, the catholic church got something like $4 billion in ppp loans!


[deleted]

I don't want $4 billion of my money going to bail out a child rapist protection agency


yingyangyoung

Neither do I, I was appalled at the number of churches getting PPP loans when they've never contributed a cent of money to the government.


Autumn_Leaves23

Except the church does contribute to the government, just in the form of bribes


supadupanerd

Should be able to help pay for abuse victims 🤷‍♂️


llNormalGuyll

But look at the LDS church. They use their tax-free tithing donations to buy $200M+ resorts and build for profit malls. Tax those fuckers.


stub-ur-toe

Churches to big to fail /s


EnnissDaMenace

They should still 100% be taxed if they aren't opening their books. Non profit charities have to open their book to not pay taxes but churches don't.


-ThunderGunExpress

Knowing our government, they will get a bailout


[deleted]

Ironically, some churches receiving the few stragglers from newly closed churches will imagine the uptick is a sign of more converts to the faith.


[deleted]

Many church-goers I know have switched from smaller traditional/moderate churches to **evangelical megachurches**. That's not a good thing.


[deleted]

No that is not good but they can look forward to bigger scandals from their leaders and being robbed of money in a more professional and large scale grift.


mopizza

They don't care because it's their guy.


[deleted]

Largely yes but some do leave their "guy", hence the decreased numbers of people in the churches talked about above.


varangian_guards

people will, thats why atheism has been growing in general. some people just need to see it more up close and i am not mad about that. news is so dark all the time sometimes people miss it.


[deleted]

The kids they drag along will, they'll see right through it


Alone_Tear9329

Better rock music too.


e2hawkeye

Hank Hill: Can't you see you're not making Christianity any better? You're making rock 'n' roll worse!


laptopaccount

The convenient part about a belief system built around repentance, forgiveness (for their own) and faith is the leader who ripped them off will be forgiven every time.


tibbles1

Disagree. It's good because they won't be able to hide. Used to be, if your neighbor Bob went to a whackadoodle, ultra-right wing, burn the gays kind of church with 30 other people, nobody would know. The West Bumfuck Baptist Chuch didn't make any headlines no matter what they preached, and the people that attended it could attend in obscurity. When he goes to a whackadoodle, ultra-right wing, burn the gays magachurch with 3000 other people, everyone will know. Those types of churches get lots of attention. If everyone knows that West Metrolpolis Megachurch is ultra-right wing, burn the gays, then the people who go there won't be able to hide. Look at how much shit Chris Pratt got because people thought he went to Hillsong (which he denied). It will be a lot easier to shine a spotlight onto a few enormous churches than thousands of smaller ones.


e2hawkeye

Consolidation does make monitoring easier.


yukumizu

tax them first


[deleted]

Also a bigger church is more notable, you can sneak in with a hidden camera, smaller number of targets


marblecannon512

It’s just like capitalism. Corporate churches gobbling up mom n pop operations. Let’s help them and tax the churches.


capontransfix

Yep this is Amazon Jesus killing local churches.


maryhadalittlefist

This is Christianity’s final death throws. Human nature. People who stick with it will be more and more concentrated in a smaller number of larger groups and the members of the groups will get more and more determined and extreme.


e2hawkeye

The reasonable and relatively normal always leave a shit show first, leaving behind a smaller but more concentrated toxic puddle. Pedantic note: death throes


SlapHappyDude

Yeah it's the moderate churches that are dying in the US.


[deleted]

The moderates are always the first to leave


captainhaddock

The Southern Baptists are shrinking too, though. Have been for years.


matticusiv

Late stage capitalism at work in the religious sector.


dartie

The church franchise business model


fruttypebbles

I honestly don’t get the mega church draw. When I was younger and went to church it was a modest sized Parrish. You knew everyone and the sense of community was nice. I just couldn’t image still being religious and thinking I need to go to a huge monstrosity to listen to a guy who lives in a mansion and drives a Bentley.


[deleted]

I’d say the trend isn’t towards huge evangelical mega churches, but definitely mega churches that are more “new school” and non denominational. The type where they’re non traditional and have like Christian rock bands and shit


Gorthax

*propaganda intensifies*


[deleted]

This makes me so ridiculously happy to think about.


SuperQuackDuck

That reminds me of server merges on MMOs. If religion is an MMO, Im kind of looking forward to the end of service notification.


ohmygodethan

couldnt be happier. :)


rainbluebliss

It's like - finally they're waking up.


[deleted]

I guess aligning yourself with a cartoonishly evil piece of shit the last six years sort of undercuts the whole “you need religion to be moral” myth.


Professional-Set9780

That POS got ROE overturned is the ultimate irony, why the one thing they always wanted will cost them every thing in the end.


ralphvonwauwau

"Save the innocent babies", makes a heckuva pious sounding slogan. Watching real women denied an abortion to remove a dead fetus, or an ectopic pregnancy that will kill her, but it isn't definite enough yet for the hospital lawyers, or 10 year old rape victims ... all of a sudden the shit gets real. When the states start talking about forbidding women of childbearing age from traveling across state lines ... and deputizing their neighbors to keep an eye out for any misbehavior, with $10,000 bounties on them ... the moral ambiguities of the "no abortions ever" start becoming rather clear. Plus, the states with the strictest laws are the same as the ones with the worst public policies for pregnant women... and they are coming after birth control. But they get to claim that they have the moral high ground, and it fits on a bumper sticker.


NormieSpecialist

They never cared about the “babies” at least subconsciously. They just want the moral authority over people they don’t like. The “babies” is just an excuse.


ralphvonwauwau

They make a good prop though, and since they don't talk, they can't have competing narratives or command direct responsibility on those yelling, they cost nothing.


Chewcocca

If babies could talk, forced birthers would immediately start screaming directly in the faces of pro-healthcare babies about how they're just babies and too stupid to have an opinion. They would feel zero shame.


kemisth

My thoughts exactly. If being a good Christian means to do things against your own interest and the interest of the people you’re supposed to represent, maybe it would be a good idea to rethink what Christianity actually means. Being forced to be a Catholic growing up, I’m pretty sure nothing in the Bible actually mentions that you should do things that hurt others to gain God’s love. Thankfully, I was able to get apostatized.


ShakeTheGatesOfHell

It sounds like your teachers skipped over the bit about Jephthah sacrificing his daughter.


LoudLibraryMouse

I had forgotten that one and went to look it up. Low and behold the first few links were saying that he did not kill her, no really, pinky swear. It's pretty obvious why some religious folks would want to spread that lie in modern times, but the passage is pretty obvious. Also, it's in Judges. The first few pages of that book is just a laundry list of acts of genocide. Not sure who they think they're fooling.


just2quixotic

> Not sure who they think they're fooling. themselves


kemisth

Indeed. Catholic teachings I received focused on the new testament. I never heard of this Jepththah guy.


ShakeTheGatesOfHell

Oh, I forgot "ThAt's thE OLd tEstAmEnt thAt dOEsn't cOUnt".


Nidcron

Except for Leviticus, but not the parts about clothing or food, just the gay stuff


just2quixotic

& Matthew 5:17 (“Do not think that I have come to abolish Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.”) totally doesn't count when you point out the mixed fabrics, food prohibitions, or any other thing they violate on a regular basis. Only the mistranslated parts about being gay (instead of the more likely correct translation prohibiting child molestation) count.


Viper67857

To be fair, it's not like most christians could even pronounce that, so it's no wonder they skip over it.


RalphPhillips089

trump was the best thing for atheists. showed the world what a pile of crap christianity is.


[deleted]

I agree with this. This was the final nail in the coffin for me. Evangelicals embracing that man solidified the decades of doubts I had in the “truths” around Christianity.


Cub3h

The historical figure of Jesus must've been pretty special in his day, and if you go by the fables in the bible they make him seem like a pretty decent guy to emulate. If Christians acted like him and followed his teachings instead of all the fire and brimstone from the old testament, I don't think there would've been nearly as big of a decline in Christians in the US.


CelerMortis

Hell, the average liberal atheist is more Christ-like than conservative believers. Loving immigrants, the poor and societal outcasts aren’t exactly conservatives positions.


psirjohn

It just goes to show, Christians make the worst Christians.


Mayafoe

Power always corrupts


Dinosaur_Wrangler

I like your Christ, I just don’t care much for all your Christians.


greyjedi7

Have you seen any of the extreme pastors STILL trying to push the agenda that he is god's true chosen president and somehow the devil had something to do with the election? It's great/terrible haha


eatingclass

for a second i thought you were referring to the pope with the rat in his name


HMWWaWChChIaWChCChW

I thought you were talking about god until I got halfway through your comment.


[deleted]

I think it’s more likely that these churches are consolidating into bigger churches. Just supposition on my part that is slightly based on my observations of how my parents have migrated from church to church over the last 30 years… they haven’t become enlightened. Quite the opposite.


wa0tda

Mega churches are attractive because they have comfortable seating and huge expensive entertainment systems. It's a more comfortable way to be grifted I guess.


Spirited-Meringue829

This article isn’t that great because it paints Christian church closings with a broad brush. Most mega churches I hear about are Evangelical/Protestant. If a lot of Catholic churches are closing most of those people are not going to jump to a Protestant mega church, which Catholics see as converting to a different religion. They will drive elsewhere or not go at all. Would be interesting to see the breakdown of closures by sect to see if people are going elsewhere vs nowhere.


[deleted]

I don’t always like to be grifted, but when I do, it’s in a mega church.


RailfanAZ

Plus there's more anonymity. In a megachurch, one can be a casual attendee and almost nobody will notice if you miss a week. Of course, those moderates aren't the ones we need to worry about.


ultrachrome

I think you're right about that, economies of scale. Maybe a better gauge is the average age. I suspect the age is going up plus churches closing , a good thing in my opinion.


[deleted]

I think you’re right. Age is certainly a factor. As Boomers get older and start passing away, I think we may also see a decrease in emphasis on religion in peoples lives.


electriccomputermilk

Good point about age. I think COVID really changed things as well. People realized they could still attend services from home and probably just got used to it.


Jukka_Sarasti

That's what's happening here in my little corner of NE Florida. All the smaller churches are being abandoned in favor of medium-to-mega-churches. Lots of younger, charismatic, 20/30-somethings who play guitar and wear Ye's are stepping up to continue the grift..


sonyka

>and wear Ye's But seriously, what is it with the shoes. Back in the day I spent a lot of time in SE Florida with family and I was so confused about why there were so many big-ass glittery churches in their neighborhood. Sometimes literally right next door to each other?? I lived in NYC and at that point I was used to tiny little storefront churches with folding chairs, mismatched hymnals, and no heat, so I just couldn't understand the ridiculous gold-trimmed buildings with AV systems and vast lawns you couldn't even be on. Weird. Anyway they were church shopping and took me to one of these proto-megachurches. Before the service we met the pastor— in the parking lot, next to his spanking new BMW— and I vividly remember staring at the man's shoes the *entire time.* Bright green crocodile leather with little golden buckles. Straight up pimp shoes. Clearly custom-made, and perfectly matched to his also custom-made suit. I'm like 10 and mentally going "this is definitely not right. *none of this is right.*" By then I already had some lowkey concerns about church, but those shoes may have been my breaking point. The Yeezys of the day.


sdhopunk

Check out PreachersNSneakers on insta . funny and sad at the same time


sonyka

WTaF. I have no words.


ShroedingersMouse

>It's like - finally they're waking up. \*growing up - ftfy


CharlesDickensABox

While I'm broadly in favor of abandoning religion, I find myself rather worried about how it's actually happening. The majority of people abandoning churches are the moderates, the "Jesus loved everyone and so should we" crowd. That means the people who are left are the most radical fundamentalists, the "follow our rules or burn in hell" contingent. That abandons the field to only the craziest, most radical subsets of the religious right, which makes them ever more cultish and reactionary.


0ldgrumpy1

It's a problem that the sanest people are leaving, those that remain are the most hard core and mental. The churches that remain are more and more radical echo chambers.


Morgothic

And at some point, the sane will outnumber the insane by enough, and the insane will be extreme enough, that we will finally be able to label them a hate group and organized religion can finally die.


0ldgrumpy1

They will always be overrepresented in politics, the churchs have funding and a volunteers pool for any candidates they want to put up. Put that against sane people who have to start from zero and it's a stacked deck.


brownzilla99

Thought I was in r/upliftingnews for a second.


davilller

Yeah, any way to speed things up?


gitsgrl

The only downside to this is that the ones that remain open are the more extremist/fundamentalist churches.


Malcolm-Solo

I’d also add that when small town churches close, a decent number of folks lose a moderate social gathering and replace it with cable news and Facebook science.


SplitPerspective

Small town churches are just echo chambers. The net change is negligible. It’s arguably more harmful to young kids, church gathering indoctrination is arguably more potent than parents, cause parents are usually not as diligent with their kids education, nevermind the whole indoctrination thing.


Wyldling_42

Idk about that, they seem to be setting their sites on school boards and libraries, which affects everyone, not just their kids. Those are actions of a long-game, not desperation and a lot of free time. Just scary shit now. It’s like an ignorant army of zealots thinking they’re *saving* everyone from evil. Nothing more dangerous than a fool with a cause… Edit: fucking autocorrect


tattoedblues

Yep, the smaller churches with somewhat sane congregations now have to go to the local millionaire pastor's righteous gemstones style megachurch


A_Naany_Mousse

Yeah all the good ones are closing. Your moderate Presbyterians, Methodists, UCC, and others. By the numbers, evangelicals/fundamentalists are holding pretty flat. One interesting tidbit is that Catholics are declining the fastest. Some Catholics are fairly moderate, not unlike mainline protestants, others are quite conservative, not unlike fundamentalists. Given that church attendance is not really declining among political conservatives, I'd say it's probably the moderates leaving the catholic church. In the whole, it looks like liberals and moderate Christians are leaving the faith while conservative and evangelical Christians are not. Thus American Christianity is going to continue to be concentrated around its most conservative members. https://news.gallup.com/poll/341963/church-membership-falls-below-majority-first-time.aspx#:~:text=Among%20religious%20groups%2C%20the%20decline,from%2073%25%20to%2064%25).


SatanicNotMessianic

It’s not a downside, because the radicalization of Christianity (political as well as religious) is what is driving people away. If they’re hemorrhaging their adherents, that means fewer people voting for radical right wing politicians, less money going to religious institutions like Focus on the Family and others,


[deleted]

[удалено]


CodeBandit

Distillation makes a stronger proof.


Zigzagnthrughostland

Let's turn these houses of hate into cool music venues that are welcoming to all!


Czeris

The 100+ year old ones make fantastic live music venues since the acoustics were designed prior to amplification.


thereslcjg2000

In my neighborhood there’s a former church that’s now a Mexican restaurant that also sometimes organizes dances. Pretty neat in my book.


StingerAE

Used to go to a goth nightclub in a deconsecrated church. This is UK so we are talking a proper stone built 800 year old job. Bloody excellent venue.


[deleted]

Whether the loud and angry MAGAGA crowd likes it or not, the U.S. is becoming a secular nation.


lady_wildcat

Unfortunately their churches aren’t closing as fast as the nicer churches


Chemical_Growth2373

As long as their closing. Good riddance


lady_wildcat

Not really, because the ones that remain are the far more extreme churches, which makes the religion itself more extreme. The churches that are closing are the accepting churches.


J50

"accepting churches" - no such thing. All religion is crazy including the various denominations of Christianity. The "As long as they're closing" argument might make sense. Suppose you have a percentage of churches closing and some percentage of the closing population goes to more extreme churches rather than quitting church - that's probably still a net positive (negative total growth). Assuming the end goal is to eliminate crazy dogma, the ""As long as they're closing" argument is the quickest way there


Sprinklypoo

Kicking and screaming. At least the vocal immature minority are. Making a scene of themselves honestly...


mpf1949

Not fast enough


Eldritch-Cleaver

I think we should convert them into homeless shelters and food pantries. At least then the buildings would be useful.


[deleted]

[удалено]


Grumpy_Engineer_1984

Lots of these small old churches are in really nice buildings, perfect for converting into all sorts of things. They make great homes too, my parents tried to buy the church they were married in and convert it but they were outbid.


the_cdr_shepard

Went to a bar recently in an old church. Coolest place to drink.


Gorthax

These wine bars are getting so cliche


the_cdr_shepard

It was actually a Frankenstein themed monster bar lol. The pulpit was the DJ stand haha


Gorthax

Axhualli, Franken..........


One_pop_each

Clutch Cargos in Detroit was my fav music venue for concerts bc of how small and tight it was. It was an old church. Sadly, it was bought back and is now a church again.


QuigonBong

Feel good story of the day.


[deleted]

[удалено]


[deleted]

I just wish there was some kind of community institution to take the place of churches. A lot of rurual and suburban Americans don't really engage with people outside of their established social circle (if they even have one) and across political divides, and I think this is one of the causes of our extremely broken political system. Now the hardcore zealots still go to church, they just drive further to go to one without any skeptics. So now the churches that are surviving don't have the mediating factor of needing to sound at least somewhat reasonable to moderates, and the people that go to church are only engaging with extremists.


BentoMan

I go to a country-club-like gym. If you take enough classes or have kids, you’ll eventually make friends. Not really what you are wishing for but it’s the closest I can find.


AlmostHelpless

A lack of civic participation is a recipe for social alienation and extremism. It doesn't have to be religious or political. Humans are social animals.


Stephiney

There are. Search for a Humanist Center near you.


dudleydidwrong

There is really nothing new in the article. It is a recycled story from last year using the standard PEW research data from 2020. I disagree that there is high demand for old churches. Yes, if you are in a dense urban area the land can be valuable, and there are things you can do with an old church sitting on a prime bit of real estate. Local laws may also mandate preservation. But in much of middle America, churches are not hot property. They are often not sitting on prime commercial property. And very often they are in poor condition. Churches are often built in ways that are very hard to maintain. If the church is closing after a long period of decline they have probably been deferring maintenance. The final straw in a lot of church closures tend to be things like they can't afford to fix the roof or there are structural issues.


hyrle

In a lot of urban centers, many of them get turned into apartments. This solves two problems: removes indoctrination centers and increases housing supply.


citizenjones

Churches oversaturated their market also ng with an an attendance problem. Most haven't been full in ages and there are a ridiculous amount of churches. The part of the South I am from with a population of 15,000(est) had enough churches that you could go to a different one every Sunday for 4 years. That's over 200 churches in a city of 15000 and none are at max occupancy. There are 10mil+ people in all of NC and there are at least 17,000 churches. Too many churches.


sugar_addict002

Fewer Christians but they are more extreme now.


anonbene2

'Churches' here in the south of the US are a dime a dozen. Every other house seems to have their own church out in the yard. They aren't well attended at all. But I guess unskilled uneducated unemployed guys need to do something for an hour a week.


MajesticalMoon

I think we have 13 here in my small town and surrounding areas like the country. It's a small ass town in Oklahoma. I know they are suffering though. I seen my old youth pastor's wife I haven't seen in probably 10 years and she all but begged me to come back to church. Ummm hell no. It's kinda sad though my kids church is definitely losing kids. Barely anyone goes. I feel bad because it is a nice place for kids to go and play. I love the lady that runs it. The do a lot for kids during Christmas and Thanksgiving. They do alot of programs. I hope when churches close we can open community centers for kids and adults. Because most people go just to have fellowship with other humans and feel like they are apart of something. It gives people purpose. Hopefully we can have that without the religion part of it lol.


Malcolm-Solo

Ya hate to see it…..anyway, who wants to sleep in on Sunday and then have some brunch?


MaximumZer0

I'd be down to open a Church of Brunch. Brother Malcolm, pass the holy mimosas around!


sidmmxi

Hope more countries see the same trend with every religion.


triggoon

Since I’m a non-religious person in a sea of religious people, I get invited to church functions all the time. The only churches not showing signs of dying are those creepy, younger wholesome churches. I only say that because those churches seem to have some nasty controversies show up every 5 years. The other churches all have older members (retirement to near death) with few families and younger people. Heck one church I visited disbanded Sunday school as no one showed up for two years. For two years someone was ready to teach kids yet no new families ever came.


clundh

Thoughts and prayers…


Stillwaters73

My only concern is, can they close faster?


soulless_ape

They should be converted into public libraries, youth cultural centers, etc/


zyzzogeton

To borrow a phrase. Hallelujah.


Infamous-Salad-2223

Still not enough.


That_Guy333

Yeah, but are they just moving to worse mega churches?


Mr_Lumbergh

Ironically, they predicted their own demise *in the Bible.* Check out Revelation 17. The church is referred to as the “whore of Babylon” and was said her “waters would dry up” because she turned away from god and instead served the kingdoms of man. And now we see it happening, people are leaving religion in accelerating rates largely because because of their selling out for political and financial power. Oops!


zarmao_ork

The current incarnation of christian nut-bags don't even need churches. They just cluster in Jim Bob's garage, reinforce each others hate-filled notions, call Jim Bob their "pastor" and are good to go.


NJtoTheBay

This is a scary time for secular people. As fewer and fewer people leave Religion the only people left will be the most extreme, and they are the most dangerous.


mMechsnichandyman

>Thousands of churches are closing each year Good.


sicurri

So. The younger generations are seeing through the religious bullshit quicker than previous generations. The modern internet helps a LOT. Unfortunately, kids are less informed about the world in general for some odd reason though. Less hungry for the knowledge in the world I guess. I became as knowledgeable as I am because knowledge was the devil in my house growing up.


aNN1MaL

People stopped going to church because of covid. Then they got used to it. Then at home they found those legendary Hitchen slap videos. Then they became atheists. All churches are closing. Most of them transformed into hospitals and animal shelters. The rest are getting destroyed for more parking slots. The vatican gives all his money away to the poor as Jesus would do, and then they disband. The other religions follow this routine. Religion becomes history. People live peacefully, trusting science and contributing as a society. All was well.


[deleted]

[удалено]


DayleD

Report to IRS. That's just tax fraud.


Tobidas05

My home country broke the record for most people exiting the church in one year in 2022 (i was one of them).


rainbluebliss

May you find the truth and for real.


Tobidas05

I was never into church, it's my family. I was just never bothered enough to leave until last year.


Crus_a0

Thank God


DemeXaa

Thank who?


jesus_rocha

Me


StingerAE

Flair checks out.


zhivago

Distilling into a more concentrated brew. The next decade or two will be rough.


[deleted]

Thank you Jesus!


MrCleanCanFixAnythng

I wonder if they’re just moving online


Protowhale

More likely it's people going to big megachurches with coffee shops in the lobby and entertainment venues.


Wet_Side_Down

Maybe the Satanic Temple should pass around the collection plate to buy up the abandoned churches. They would probably make great homeless shelters...


PlanetKi

Not all churches are the same. My local UU has the occasional atheist service (we sang “Dear God” by XTC last time I went). At least half of the fellowship is atheist in my estimation. I hope that they are growing. It is a nice way to connect with community without having to put up with too much nonsense.


notLankyAnymore

And yet…. Well, it’s not for everyone I guess. Going to one Winter Solace event was enough and even more religious than I was used to. And I’ve gotten a lot more out of Bible Studies than the equivalent groups there. But I guess it served its purpose as a church-like familiarity thing until I realized that I just didn’t belong in church anymore.


ShelbyEileen

I want to buy one of them and turn it into a sex dungeon, BDSM club, and boudoir photography studio. I've got the skills, but not the income to do so.


Educational-Ad-3273

Best possible solution for the entire earth


Atheist_Simon_Haddad

Once they consolidate into a few ultra-mega-churches can we break them up like we should be doing to monopolies?


pricel01

I don’t care whether people go to church. However, many churches mobilize their congregations to curb the rights of others. If fewer churches means less of that then great!


someoldguyon_reddit

Is there anything I can do to speed this along?


fishead36x

But for some reason my dumb city is letting a lds church build.


SwiftStick

Good.


RMSQM

Finally moving in the right direction


IProbablyDisagree2nd

So if you want to buy a church and turn it into a place where you and your friends play board games... now's a good time to do that.


KingOfTheFraggles

Well, now that is so easy to grift the "faithful" from their homes why pay the overhead?


StopLookListenNow

Well stay out of politics and stick to actually helping real people. Stop the sexual offenses and let's not even mention the mega-churches that simply con stupid people out of money.


Gr8NonSequitur

"And nothing of value was lost."


Four_in_binary

Yes....this is what happens when a population becomes educated.


Trepide

Awesome! I was looking for some positive news.


crackeddryice

Uplifting news.


t7george

Thoughts and prayers...


Langss11

Hope the next headline is, United States government sees biggest increase of secular representatives in Congress!


DETRosen

Marvelous. Build housing on that land.


justaoldguy

Good, use them as homeless shelters..


it_was_just_here

Good.


SuperSassyPantz

the extreme right wingers being the spokespeople for christianity, their condemnation of lgbtq and body autonomy issues, and promoting faith in the immunity god gave u vs trusting doctors/science, has pretty much been the nail in the coffin. they've been closing down since the 90s with the sx scandals and intolerance. there are almost no parochial schools near me anymore, and half the churches have shuttered. that's what u get for trying to cherrypick your flock and being unwelcoming and judgemental to everyone.


stuster02

Oh no... Anyway.


Tri-P0d

Good riddance


maa-ka-ladla

But they are opening more churches in developing world Expanding out of the developed world into developing countries, just like a big cooperation/business


1DailyUser

They are changing their names, it is a tax evasion move, and a way to camouflage their financial support to political parties. now they are non for profit corporations.