Quote:
Originally Posted by privateer
How did they get Tax exempt to start with?
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The Roman emperor Constantine was converted in the year 312. Shortly after that he made Christianity the official State religion of the Empire and exempted The Church from paying any taxes. It's been the unofficial (and sometimes official) policy of western countries ever since.
It wasn't official US policy until 1894, but the idea has always been there.
Here is a website that discusses both sides of this issue (and many others) relatively fairly.
http://churchesandtaxes.procon.org/