| Subject: Re: How to start a church? |
Author:
steve
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Date Posted: 09:21:05 03/08/07 Thu
In reply to:
Rev. Darwin
's message, "Re: How to start a church?" on 17:05:37 03/03/07 Sat
OK. You're already preaching. You're already running prayer groups. You're already recognized by some people as their spiritual guide -- pastor -- and you're looking for some worldly seal of approval to validate the ministry that the Lord has already placed in your lap. Make sure you're ready by having at least 2 other people you trust implicitly join you in responsibility for the ministry, both for mutual help and for mutual accountability. (And please realize that this message is condensed so it will fit in a message box.)
Step #1:
Pick a name for your ministry & register it as a "fictitious name" in your state (meaning that it is not your given name -- this does not imply dishonesty on your part). I will check on California's rules & get back to you. Here in Florida it costs 50 bucks for 5 years. This gives you the legal authority to operate your ministry as other than a "sole proprietorship" (in your own name only). It does not give you automatic trademark protection but is evidence of your honesty and intents in the event of any trademark infringement claims.
Step #2:
Create your "organization" on paper. You will need to come up with "Articles of Association" that include
(a) Name of your ministry (from the fictitious name filing)
(b) Purpose and scope of your ministries
(c) Statement of beliefs and practices (anything you deem necessary)
(d) Preliminary membership & rules (include founders)
(e) Preliminary powers & responsibilities (include financial)
(f) Authorization of Articles of Association amendments, by-laws, organizational records, & asset management
(g) If you are planning on incorporating, a notice of a plan of disposition of ministry assets to another specific non-profit organization upon dissolution of this ministry.
Step #3:
Decide in the Spirit how your ministry will operate, that is, will your ministry be compromised by the world for the sake of money (tax benefits for your contributors), or will you "pay unto Caesar" and forego the tax benefits, maintaining your freedom of action?
If you choose to maintain your integrity, you're ready to go. Just keep tabs on your ministry income and expenses, keep a regular journal of what you do, and get a good bookkeeper to keep your taxes paid.
*********************************************************
If, on the other hand, you are willing to sell your birthright for the proverbial bowl of gruel, that is, to sell out your freedom for the sake of some tax-benefitted donations, then this becomes the proverbial sticky wicket.
Step #4:
Setup relationships with business professionals -- put a lawyer on retainer, get a tax adviser, and contract with a CPA or other independent outside auditor. These people will be worth their weight in gold for the next steps.
Step #5:
Incorporate in your state as a not-for-profit corporation. This may be required by the bank in order to open an account in the name of your ministry. Use your Articles of Association as your incorporation papers. There are dozens of companies online who will help you for a fee. Note that if you incorporate, the organization is now an "artificial person", created by an act of the state. That makes the government your partner in everything you do from here on out, and makes your ministry subject to its control. Note also, if you get help to incorporate, they may incorporate you in a different state, in which case you will have to pay for someone called a "registered agent", both in the state where you are incorporated as well as in your own state. If you incorporate in your own state, just designate one of the founding members as the "registered agent". (The registered agent is the one person in the organization who has the responsibility of receiving any legal papers from the government.)
Step#6:
File with the IRS for an Employer Identification Number (EIN). This is a 9-digit number (like a social security number) used by organizations to be identified by the federal government. The forms should be available at the local library or online.
Step #7:
Determine if you are operating a "church" or a "religious organization" (ministry). The IRS makes a distinction between the two.
If you are a "church", under constitutional law you are *automatically* eligible to accept tax-benefitted contributions, but there are some catch-22's in this. You must run your ministry substantially according to "Kurtz's 14 Rules" (cooked up by the IRS back in the '80's), which sound like an outline of how to run a catholic church. To whit, a church must have:
(a) A distinct legal existence
(b) A recognized creed & form of worship
(c) A definite, distinct church government
(d) A formal code of doctrine & discipline
(e) A definited, defined religious history
(f) A membership distinct from other churches & denominations
(g) An organization of ordained ministers
(h) Ordination offered only after some sort of discipleship or training program
(i) Its own literature
(j) An established place of worship
(k) A regular congregation
(l) Regular, periodic services
(m) A Sunday school (or the like) for discipling the young and those new to the faith
(n) A school for discipling or training new ministers
You also have to file a Form 1023 with $500 to get the IRS to recognize your church. There is no guarantee they will recognize it, but they'll keep your $500 anyway. But then you can try again and again till you succeed, and once you *are* recognized, it is relatively permanent (as much as you can expect from a government agency). Your church name is then published by the IRS in Publication 78 as being a legit non-profit church, which anyone can contribute to, a get a tax deduction for. Your tax advisor can tell you what further benefits come from that.
If you are a "religious organization" (ministry), you are not necessarily bound by the 14 rules, but you have to file Form 1024 every 2 years to get and maintain your tax-benefitted status. It has been suggested that any new ministry seek the 1024 status 1st, and only go after 1023 status with Pub.78 listing after the ministry becomes established.
For more details go to
http://www.themonastery.org/?destination=mTrainDiscourseStarting
I hope these points have helped you.
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