Must Share my friend's Facebook post re: Rick Warren

[RockaFowler]

She is a born-again Christian who has now really pissed me off. Here is her post:

Pastor Rick Warren's response to recent criticism over his tax Tweet and whether he should voice his political opinions: "I take zero salary & we feed over 2000 families a wk. But thank u Joan for the opportunity to pray God blesses your life greatly." Yeah, I think his lifestyle affords him some leverage to voice his political opinions. LOVE IT!!!


You know no-one said he couldn't post political opinions. These people are just unbelievable. I wrote back to her:

It was a stupid statement originally. Everyone pays taxes. And a person who claims that he's Christian should really think before he tweets. Oh and by the way, he does get a salary so he's lying again. Keep digging Rick Warren.

This has now gone on for a few pages. She's come to the point now where she says all Christians are judged based soley on their faith rather than the truth. What the Fudge does that mean??

I'm gonna blow a gasket. She also doesn't think he was rude to Joan Walsh (almost like she deserved it because he gives so much to the poor). Oy Vey!!

[kick-ass-bob]

1. Faith > Truth?

Sounds like a plank of the GOP.

[peace13]

2. You were right about one thing when you said..

'She also doesn't think!' You can stop right there. No making sense with her. No way, no how!

[RockaFowler]

3. I've never seen anyone do a 180 degree turn like this before

She was great in High School. Then all of a sudden she finds Jeebus and bing all reason goes out the window

[snappyturtle]

4. TRUST me, reason backed with facts does not work on people like your friend

even though they work against their best interest. They can't discern reality from their la-la-land fictional lives.

[StarsInHerHair]

13. I second that, I have several relatives-reality isnt much of their world

dont waste your time avoid religion/politics talks if you want to actually keep her as a friend

[Zebedeo]

5. I believe he contributes 90% of his personal income to charity

and that he not only takes no salary, but he actually paid his church back all the salary he had earned over the years. The dude is more charitable than most, I think it is fair to say.

That may or may not be relevant to the issue over his tweet.

[Bandit]

6. Personal income???????

What else does he do to earn a personal income if it isn't his church?

[hfojvt]

15. He wrote a book called "The Purpose driven life"

and then also sold a bunch of workbooks and probably pencils and coffee mugs and stationery, etc. The book sold about 30 million copies and it is still selling today.

[66 dmhlt]

17. And here I was sure it was "The Purpose Driven LIE"

[PeaceNikki]

10. How much is his annual "housing allowance"?

L'il Ricky is likely upset because the IRS cracked down on the allowable "housing alliance" for pastors, thus causing him to actually have to pay taxes on most of his compensation. Serves him right for publicly urging other pastors to game the IRS by urging their congregations to pay them (non-taxable at the time) "housing allowance" instead of salary.

[hfojvt]

16. churches have been paying housing allowances for a long time

Originally though, the church would often have a "manse". A house that the church owned and the pastor lived in. However, more pastors wanted to make money at real estate (and also probably live in fancier houses in better neighborhoods, etc.) so most churches sold their manses and switched to housing allowances.

Anyway, it was hardly an invention of Rick Warren.

Warren, btw, makes millions from book royalties, so a housing allowance is also kinda moot in his case. At least compared to what a typical pastor gets.

[Missy Vixen]

11. He does not pay taxes

He lives in a free dwelling, as do most pastors. His church is tax-free as well.

If he wants to spout off about politics, let him start paying taxes like the rest of us.

[hfojvt]

18. are you sure he doesn't pay taxes, and that his dwelling was free?

Most pastors just get housing allowances, which is another form of salary. They argue, like teachers, that they are not overpaid since many of them have graduate degrees. But if they own their own homes, pastors generally pay property taxes and also income taxes and state income taxes and sales taxes.

Warren makes a lot of money, and is quite rich, but he also gives away a lot of money. If you made $16 million in book royalties, would you give $14 million of it away? How much has JK Rowling given away? How much does Stephen King give away? More than 20% of their income?

[Missy Vixen]

19. You're talking to the wrong girl

I went to Bible college. I grew up in a fundamentalist church. I know that pastors do not pay income tax. I also know that churches do not, and exist via the grace and favor of other people's taxes.

Perhaps you should call JK Rowling and Stephen King, and ask for their charitable contributions amount. Evidently, you did not read the multiple verses in the New Testament that speak to those who proclaim their good works to all, instead of doing them in secret.

It's comical to see the heated defense of Warren; I believe him to be intolerant and homophobic at the least. If that is Christianity, count me out.

[Zebedeo]

21. You are misinformed

There is no "pastor exemption" from the income tax laws. Pastors pay income tax on their income, just like everybody else. Churches do not pay tax, for the same reasons that other nonprofits do not pay tax. But their employees certainly do pay income tax on their salaries. In Rick Warren's case, according to my understanding, he does not earn a salary. But he makes a lot of money off of book sales, and he pays taxes on that income just like anyone else would. So your statement that "I know that pastors do not pay income tax" is not true.

[hfojvt]

24. there may be some

in small fundamentalist churches who make so little that they do not pay taxes.

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

14. You. Are. Defending. Rick. Fucking. Warren.

Holy. Crap. :wow:

[Gormy Cuss]

23. And that's why his comment that he doesn't take a salary from his church is misleading

because he doesn't need the income and it's a good PR point.
It's the same sort of half truth as his tweet about half of the population not paying taxes.
Rick Warren is a smooth liar like the other con men who hide behind pulpits.

[ejpoeta]

7. sorry, when you preface everything you do with the christian... then i guess you will expect that

you will then be judged based on that. if you lie about being paid for what you do, then what do you expect.... if he is being paid to be a preacher, then he is being paid to be a preacher. what that has to do with posting opinions i don't know. and what being a christian has to do with posting opinions i don't know either. and being a pastor has to do with posting opinions i don't know. but claiming to be a christian who supposedly believes in a book that says not to judge and then turning around and judging people.... that's another matter.

[Bluenorthwest]

8. These silly Christians! They act as if they don't have lots of

material to draw from. Jesus, who they might have heard of, said that any act of charity that is announced to others is void of charity and is an act done for attention. The goal he set was to not let your right hand know what your left hand was doing, no less. So the going around bragging about charity thing, Jesus opinion, very clear. He also said that anything done to the 'least of those among us'-poor, sick, elderly, strangers, prisoners guilty or not- is done directly to him. The only stated standard of judgment is our treatment of others particularly those of less status than ourselves. That is the one and only Gospel standard. Jebus was very specific about this. And speaking of specifics....
That nag Jesus told his followers, such as Rick, that they had to employ very stringent use of words, never any 'spin' nor lack of exactness. "Let your yes be yes, and your no be no, for anything more comes from evil." So, when Ricks says, more than once, ZERO taxes, he is not up to that standard at all, it comes from evil, according to what's his Christ, whom they might have heard of.
I could go on like this all day. The 'least of these' passage, is from Matthew 25 and here be a link to it. A good read for the likes of your friend.
http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+25%3A31-46&version=NIV

Just wanting to put a big, gay spotlight on the hypocrisy of Ricky and his generation of vipers.

[mikeytherat]

9. "50% of people in this Country pay no taxes! And that is what is wrong with America!

And, no, my church doesn't pay any taxes either, but quit bringing that up, Philistine."

mikey_the_rat

[deaniac21]

12. The whole exercise is pointless.

[MouseFitzgerald]

20. Watch this

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AlMUJlAsYAs&feature=feedu

Its Sam Seder breaking down why Rick warren is a lying scumbag. See if your friend has any response to the simple points he makes.

[guitar man]

22. Revelation 21:8

8 But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars—they will be consigned to the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.”