We would all lose if churches were taxed

It is right that they can employ staff using arrangements to make the donated dollar go further and this should not be looked at with suspicion.

The case of the Church of Scientology receiving tax free status has been the catalyst for much debate about churches' tax free status.

But the case of one religion which is not indicative should not be used to undermine a principle which has been accepted for hundreds of years in our charity law.

It is a no-brainer that tax exemptions for religion in a modern liberal democracy provides a public benefit which saves the taxpayer billions.

By not taxing churches, the state is not funding the church. If it taxed churches, the church would certainly be funding the state, which would arguably be a breach of our constitutional separation of church and state.

The idea that churches should be taxed seems to be driven more by a distaste for Christianity by a small minority than any rational debate about the good they do for their members and for the wider community.