I found this document submitted by WTBTS of Australia re: their "charitable works":
< http://www.cdi.gov.au/html/public_submissions.htm
"WTBTS":
< http://www.cdi.gov.au/submissions/357-WatchtowerBibleandTractSocietyofAustralia.doc
sKally
WTBTS Australia(document enclosed)
by sf 3 Replies latest jw friends
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Trevor Scott
Hey I found this document this afternoon too!
WT definition of charity:
Real charity is both the “purpose” and the “nature” of the activities carried out by a Christian religion if it follows the example of Christ set forth in the Bible. Perhaps the best known Scriptural principle related to charity is recorded at 1 Corinthians 13:13:
“And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.”—King James Version.
This statement was made by an apostle to the early Christian church. However, in modern times, the word “charity” has assumed a related, but more limited, meaning. The Collins English Dictionary, Fourth Australian Edition, defines “charity” as—
“1a the giving of help, money, food, etc., to those in need.… 5 love of one’s fellow men.… from Latin caritas affection, love …”
It is this first definition that is given emphasis today. So charity is usually associated with giving the “poor and needy” support in various forms such as money, food, clothing, or medical aid. It is in this limited sense, then, that “charity” can be separated from the Christian religion or can be isolated within the activities of a church
So ya see, giving to the poor and needy is only the "limited" sense of the word, and not what Christ actually had in mind. It all makes sense now...
TS,
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Prisca
Good work Scally!!
This document is very interesting. A few things I gleaned:
Vin Toole, one of the heirarchy elete of the Australian branch, has his own email: [email protected]
They believe more money would be donated if donations were tax-deductable.
We believe that more funds would be available if donations of reasonably large amounts “for the advancement of religion” were tax-deductible.
oops, they want "resonably LARGE amounts"!!!Then they quote a scripture, using a translation they constantly degrade:
“And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.”—King James Version.
In the NWT the word is traslated "love", not "charity".
Although they go on to explain that the word charity is now translated as love, again they use another translation.
Why are they scared to use their own translation? Hmmm.....
So why did they send a submission to the Australian Government? They explain thus:
Issues Regarding Definitions Used in Australia Compared to Other Countries
The Society is not an international organization having branches in other countries. However, Jehovah’s Witnesses are worldwide, and a different not-for-profit organization is registered in each country. The structures of these corporations vary according to the laws applying in each country. In some countries, such as the United States of America and New Zealand, donors to our religious organizations are exempt from gift duty and may claim tax deductions for donations made to the church.
In some countries, we are limited by the fact that funds received cannot be distributed to another country, thus preventing an international support arrangement. Although this has, at times, proven to be inconvenient, it has not unduly hampered our work.
Conclusion
It is our submission that the common law definition of charity should be retained in Australia just as it has been in most common law jurisdictions.
So it seems the WTS of Australia wants to have the same charitable status as the NSW Cancer Socity, the Royal Children's Hospital, the Royal Flying Doctor Service, Rotary International, Anglicare Australia, The Spastic Centre, St Vincent de Paul, the Guide Dog Association, and other well-known Australian charities!!
Unbelievable.
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ozziepost
G'day Prisca,
Good post. I'm VERY impressed.
Nice bit of research.I have a copy of this submission and will show it to you at the BBQ.
See ya,
Ozzie