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Does LPRWW Meet "Approved" Guidelines...

As A fREE Church ?

Neither the Tax Code nor Regulations provide a definition of what constitutes a church. There have been several court cases and Rev. Rul. 59-129 that list factors to be considered. (Rev. Rul. 59-129 was published in a digest format and thus, does not specifically list the following criteria.) To be classified as a church and thus exempt from taxation, a U.S. organization should meet most of the following criteria:
(does Light Path Resources meet this?)

  • a distinct legal existence, yes - on line.
  • a recognized creed and form of worship, yes - ref. "Beliefs & Philosophies."
  • a definite and distinct ecclesiastical government, yes.
  • a formal code of doctrine and discipline, yes - again, ref. "Beliefs & Philosophies"
  • a distinct religious history, yes - ref. "Ordination Trail."
  • a membership not associated with any other church or denomination, yes.
  • a complete organization of ordained ministers ministering to their congregations and selected after completing prescribed courses of study, yes - again, ref. "Ordination Trail."
  • a literature of its own, yes - the whole web site, but primarily under "Background Pages" and "The Library."
  • established places of worship, yes - anywhere, everywhere, at any time.
  • regular congregations, yes - as documented in the number of web pages/month.
  • regular religious services, yes, see "established places of worship," above.
  • Sunday schools (discrimination?) for the religious instruction of the young and no, We advocate universally provided spiritual information (as opposed to "religious instruction" for everyone, young and old, so that each individual can accept/reject whatever comcepts to which they expose themselves.
  • "schools" for the preparation of its ministers. yes - but more based on personal evaluation. To date (Aug 2011), LPR has ordained two at-large ministers.
  • Churches and Political Activity: Churches and religious organizations may engage in limited political activity. Yes, in our case VERY limited, since we come from a Unity Consciousness viewpoint and, while personally possessing strong progressive beliefs, we see this website/church as encompassing a global, a galactic and beyond... a Universal outlook.

If an organization can show that it meets most of the items listed above, then generally it will be classified as a church and, as shown in this newspaper article, is not subject to the new non-profit up-to-$25K reporting requirement.

Note: On February 17, 2009, the IRS conducted an in-office audit of this Church's founder for the express purpose of attempting to "rend the veil" of the Church's automatic non-profit status in the 2006 tax year. We informed that office that we would tape record the full session, which forced the IRS auditor to then do the same for their records. A detailed set of written questions were answered in preparation for the audit (here) and it was obvious that they were looking for private inurement since the Church originator was the only contributor, yet the auditor tried additional questions concerning the Church finances. She rapidly backed off when it was stated that we had provided far more than required and her questions were illegal. She said a resolution letter would be sent out within about two weeks, but we didn't receive it until about three months later. They could find nothing to access us for or to follow up on and they never questioned our claim that Light Path Resources was an on-line church!

Some references concerning on-line churches as a new societal development:

  • Zaleski, The Soul of Cyberspace: How New Technology Is Changing Our Spiritual Lives, Harper Collins, NY, NY, 1997
  • Hojsgaard and Warburg, Religion and Cyberspace, Routledge, NY, NY, 2005
  • Campbell, Exploring Religions Community Online, Peter Lang Publishing, NY, NY, 2005

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As A Traditional Non-Profit/Public Charity ?

And a few more for non-profits/public charities, in general: (does Light Path Resources meet this?)

  • Organizational Test: All charities must be organized exclusively for charitable purposes and must be operated exclusively for charitable purposes. yes, definitely
  • Creating the Organization: The articles of incorporation (in this case, the Bylaws) must state the charitable purpose of the organization. yes, see the Bylaws
  • Dissolution of the Charity: The articles of incorporation (in this case, the Bylaws) should provide for the dissolution of the charitable organization. yes, see the Bylaws
  • Operational Test: The operational test examines the way an organization actually conducts its activities. yes
  • Private Inurement: Charities are not allowed to give direct or indirect benefits to officers, directors and other people that are closely related to the charity (except for reimbursement of legitimate expenses). yes, see the Bylaws
  • Public (in this case, international) Benefit: While the ban on private inurement prevents charities from giving benefits to people that have a close relationship to the charity, the purpose of the "public benefit" requirement is to be sure that the charity's activities actually help a broad group of people - namely, the "public." yes
  • Legislative and Political Activity: A charity generally may not devote any substantial time or activity to politics. yes... see last item on "Churches," plus, don't have the time!

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