The debate over the German Catholic Church’s Kirchensteuer, or church tax, was reignited by a bishop’s recent comments over departing Catholics being denied Eucharist.
During his sermon in Cologne’s cathedral, Bishop Ansgar Puff asked whether the Church is doing enough to accompany baptised Catholics who leave the Church to avoid paying the mandatory church tax.
“Is it right to no longer invite them to our table?” Puff asked.
“Have they lost their faith? Mostly not. And if the Eucharist, as Pope Francis once said, is the medicine for the weary and weak, would Jesus then say: ‘Yes, but not you. You have gone, after all’?
“I ask myself these questions very seriously.”
The German bishops’ Conference has set a policy that classifies Catholics who ask to be removed from the rolls as having defected.
Thus they cannot receive Communion, marry in the Church, or serve in parish or diocesan offices.
According to German law, anyone who declares a Catholic identity on an official registration form pays an 8-9% surcharge on top of their income tax liability, depending on their region of residence.
The church tax is collected directly from employees’ pay checks by the state on the Church’s behalf.
If baptised Catholics wish to opt out of the system, they must go to a local registry office or court, provide official documents, and pay a fee of around $35.
In return, they receive a certificate confirming they are no longer registered and, therefore, not liable for the church tax.
Bishop Puff’s concerns are related to the fact that the Church informs those who choose to leave that they are no longer entitled to receive the sacraments.
He believes the Church should do more to accompany those who leave, especially since they are not necessarily losing their faith.
Vatican discomforted by German approach
The Church tax system is unique to Germany and is a significant source of income for the Catholic Church in the country.
In 2019, it amounted to over €6.76 billion ($7.7 billion) in revenue, making it one of the Church’s largest sources of income globally.
Critics of the Church tax system argue that it is outdated and discriminatory.
They believe that it violates the principle of religious freedom by forcing individuals to pay for a religious institution they may not support.
However, defenders of the system point out that it enables the Church to maintain its infrastructure and continue its social and charitable work.
The German approach to departing Catholics has caused discomfort at the Vatican for some time.
In 1983, the Code of Canon Law introduced the conditions for a formal act of defection from the Catholic Church.
However, Rome was concerned that “defection” would automatically be equated to a declaration of withdrawal from the church tax system.
In 2006, the Vatican’s Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts issued a letter clarifying that abandoning the Church does not necessarily constitute a formal act of defection.
The German bishops’ Conference responded by vigorously defending their practice of considering withdrawal from the Church “for whatever reason,” as resulting in the loss of membership rights.
Benedict XVI later eliminated the term “formal act of defection” from the Code in his 2009 apostolic letter Omnium in mentem.
The letter was partly a response to the issue of the ecclesial effect of statements made to taxation authorities by Catholics in certain central European countries, including Germany, who declared that they did not belong to the Catholic Church and therefore were not obligated to pay the church tax.
Sources
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