SHOULD NONRESISTANT CHRISTIANS
PAY WAR TAXES?
Editorial
May/June, 1985
Volume 20, Number 3
In recent years there has been a growing sentiment among certain groups
of people who are opposed to war, that they should refuse to pay taxes
which might be used for military purposes. Many Brethren have been espousing
this point of view.*
In fact, the Church of the Brethren General Board, in 1984, asked the
Annual Conference (meeting at Carbondale, IL) the same year, to appoint
a committee "to study and recommend how Brethren should respond to the
dilemma of paying for war." The rationale for such a study includes the
fact that, according to the General Board statement, "U.S.A. federal funds
spent for present and past military efforts currently total approximately
one-half of all federal expenditures" (page 724, 1984 Annual Conference
Minutes). Furthermore, in response to a query from the Michigan
District, it was decided that a study committee should prepare "a specific
recommendation regarding the General Board's payment of the Federal Telephone
Excise Tax" (which has long been known as a symbolic war tax because it
was levied to pay for past wars). A Committee of five was appointed to
study TAXATION FOR WAR and will report at the 1985 Annual Conference in
Phoenix, Arizona.
The Committee chosen to report to the 1985 Annual Conference has studied
previous documents and position papers produced byhe Brethren, and in essence
says that it does not feel the need "to write yet nother position paper
at this time." The recommendation related to General Board's paying the
Federal Telephone Tax is that the tax payment should be withheld "only
with the full and voluntary consent and support of the Board officers."
(Board officers could possibly be required to bear a legal burden for any
refusal to pay). The Committee does
encourage the thorough study
of earlier Church of the Brethren position papers on war tax issues, and
the diligent searching of related key Bible texts for new insights and
understandings. Thus we have prepared the article on "War Taxes" which
is featured in the current issue of the BRF WITNESS.
--H. S. M.
*One pamphlet distributed at Annual Conference more than
ten years ago even advocates telling an untruth about the number of our
dependents, so as to avoid paying Federal Income Tax. It says, "One more
way to deal with the problem of withholding is to claim enough dependents
(so) that no tax is owed, usually more than one is legally entitled to
claim. Some people choose not to use this method because they cannot conscientiously
provide false information even to a warring government." (The Question
of Tax Refusal/Bob Gross).
Should Nonresistant Christians
Pay War Taxes?
By Harold S. Martin
Brethren Revival Fellowship firmly adheres to the longestablished position
of the Church of the Brethren, that all war is sin, and that the Gospel
calls us to the way of peace. We believe that faithful Christians cannot
learn the art of killing nor participate in military service. Yet we believe
that those who are loyal to Christ are bound by the Biblical mandate to
respect the government of the land in which they reside, and should pay
their taxes when due. What the government does with the money is no longer
our responsibility.
Very few persons really like to pay taxes. If one earns only a small
income, it is more difficult to make ends meet after paying taxes. If one's
income is large, then the tax-bite taken out of the paycheck is much larger
too. Yet taxes are an economic and a social necessity. God has authorized
governments to collect taxes and He has commanded Christians to pay them
without complaint.
1. THE MANDATE TO PAY TAXES
When the Pharisees tried to trap Jesus with their questions, they asked
Him, "is it lawful to give tribute unto Caesar, or not?" Jesus asked to
see a coin, and responded with the words, "Render therefore unto Caesar
the things which are Caesar's, and unto God the things that are God's"
(Matthew 22:17-21).
God has given certain authority to the state, and some authority has
been withheld from government. The question, "Who determines what is Caesar's
and what is God's?" - is a difficult question to answerbut surely Jesus
was saying that tribute money to Rome was to be paid. Money is minted by
Caesar and bears Caesar's image; therefore taxation is within Caesar's
God-given prerogative. The government has the right to levy taxes and collect
them, and believers are directed to comply.
Romans 13:6 removes all doubt that Christians are to pay taxes. The
mandate of Scripture is clear: "For, for this cause pay ye tribute also;
for they are God's ministers, attending continually upon this very thing."
The Anabaptists influenced Alexander Mack and the early Brethren. Walter
Klaassen says that the "Anabaptists were prepared to pay taxes and dues
to the governments without complaint since such levies were necessary to
the governments in the exercise of their mandate" (Mennonites and
War Taxes, page 11). Historically, the Brethren were firm in believing
that the Christian should pay his taxes. The Annual Meeting Minutes
from 1864 say . and to pay the fines and taxes required of us, as the Gospel
... indeed requires (Matthew 22:21; Romans 13:7)."
In recent years, the attitude of many Brethren has changed. Before the
present decade, the Brethren did not officially by Annual Conference action,
advise the general refusal to pay taxes. The Annual Conference Minutes
of 1980, however, say, "We call on congregations to place high priority
on study and discussion of war tax resistance ... (and) ask our
members to consider the refusal to pay the portion of their federal taxes
used for militarism."
The most comprehensive statement on Taxation for War was approved by
the Annual Conference of the Church of the Brethren at Fresno, California
in 1973. It concludes that there is no specific biblical counsel directing
that taxes should be withheld. Instead, the report says, there are some
Scriptures calling for the payment of taxes even to a sinful, militaristic
government. It allows for those who withhold payment of part of their taxes
because of Christian conviction, but appeals to such persons asking them
not to consider those
who do pay their taxes as being any less dedicated
to the Prince of Peace than those who decide to withhold. Brethren
Revival Fellowship considers the 1973 Church of the Brethren decision to
be
a careful and fair study of the issue, and at the same time it is sensitive
to those who in good conscience cannot pay all their taxes.
2. TAXES USED FOR IMMORAL PURPOSES
We pay taxes because the government needs money to operate. Policemen
need to be paid; judges need to be supported; clerks and secretaries are
a necessity and must be reimbursed for their work. It costs money to build
and repair roads, to erect courthouses, to maintain public institutions,
to repair typewriters, to maintain the protection of its citizens, and
to conduct the essential business of government.
It is true that tax money is frequently used for purposes which are
sub-Christian in value, and for purposes which are clearly out of keeping
with the high standard which God expects of human beings. None of us likes
to see tax dollars wasted by government officials, or illicitly grabbed
up by dishonest companies that produce products for the state - but as
long as sinful human beings comprise society, there will be some abuse
of otherwise legitimate activity. Albert Knudson (in Principles of
Christian Ethics/Abingdon) says, "Political morality is generally
not semi-Christian, nor even relatively Christian, but wholly pagan." Thus
nearly every human government will allocate whatever funds it feels are
necessary to maintain the armed forces, and other needful programs will
suffer for a lack of funds.
Tax money was misused in Jesus' day and in Paul's time. The Roman government
of New Testament times deified Nero, ran a welfare state, and sponsored
many pagan practices. Rome was a police state; there were wars; slavery
was commonly practiced; there were foreign-imposed taxes to support occupation
troops; there were state-controlled amusements such as the gladitorial
fights - yet Jesus ignored these problems and looked at the real problem
- man's deep spiritual need.
Rome surely did not use its tax money as Christians would have desired.
Furthermore, the tax collectors of Jesus' time were not paid a salary,
but became rich by overcharging and cheating people, and thus were looked
upon with disfavor by most citizens. Zacchaeus was a "chief among the tax
collectors" (Luke 19:2), and he was one among many who needed to repent.
But even though the Roman government misused tax funds and tax collectors
were notorious for their cheating and dishonesty - still Jesus and the
Apostles spoke very clearly on the subject: The Christian is to pay his
taxes. Jesus was not an anarchist trying to overthrow Rome, nor did He
spend His time protesting the political sins of Rome.
The command to pay taxes does not mean that the Christian is to pay
more than his fair share of tax money. He may limit his income so that
his federal and state income taxes will be a minimum. He may avoid buying
expensive and luxury items and thus restrict the amount of sales
tax he must pay. The telephone is often an unnecessary nuisance and one
can well get along without a phone (as the majority of the world's
population does), and thus there is no telephone excise tax to pay. One
of the best ways to curb the amount of federal income tax one must pay,
is to give generously to religious and charitable causes. In short,
the Christian may save taxes in every legal way permissible, but all of
us must gratefully pay that which we rightfully owe. This is our Christian
duty.
3. TAXATION AND A WITNESS FOR PEACE
There has been a growing sentiment in recent years that Christians should
refuse to pay taxes used for military purposes. Many who advocate this
position are from the historic peace churches, and claim that they are
in this way making a positive witness for peace.
They often appeal
to the prophets of Old Testament times.
When the Old Testament speaks of the prophets and their burning message
to kings and to civil authorities, we must remember that (except for a
few instances), the message of the prophets was given to the Children of
Israel -the "people of God." It was God's messenger cleaning up God's people.
(The one notable exception was Jonah's message to Nineveh. He didn't take
a message of social action, welfare reform, liberation of women, or proper
representation of minorities but instead, a warning of impending judgment...
"Yet forty days and Nineveh will be overthrown").
It is strange that Brethren (who chide fundamentalists for going to
the Old Testament to prove that war is justifiable)--do the same thing
to prove that we should "witness to the state." They refer to the Old Testament
prophets, ignoring the fact that Israel was a theocracy, and that the prophets
were "witnessing" within the structure of Israel as a church-state. And
the prophets always had a hopeful note, promising that someday Israel would
prevail. Modern-day "prophets" would hardly want to say that America will
eventually come out on top!
The CHURCH is called to proclaim the Gospel to all nations the message
of God's love, of Christ's death and resurrection, and the Holy Spirit's
work in the lives of the New Covenant people. The Church must not engage
in any task that will rob her of energy and effectiveness in this area
of urgent priority. John Calvin said, "When the Gospel is preached in plenitude
and power, people will be converted, and through them the institutions
of society will be permeated with the mind, manners, and morals of Jesus."
It is becoming more and more evident that failure on the part of the church
to build in individuals a conviction against evil - is increasing
the duties and problems of the state.
The STATE, by way of contrast, is God's agent of force and vengeance
directed primarily toward an unregenerate world which rejects the message
of Christ. Our Anabaptist forebears saw correctly that these two agencies
(church and state) are basically incompatible. The ethics of the Sermon
on the Mount cannot be reconciled with the duties of the state. The Anabaptists
said that the state operates "outside the perfection of Christ" and functions
on principles of its own (John 18:36; 1 John 5:19). So then, if the state
does not operate on Christian principles, how does the Christian know what
to tell the officers of state? There is no special revelation which we
possess that gives instructions about how to solve the political, social,
and economic problems of society. The problems existing in the world today
are complex, and no simple solutions exist. It is obvious too that when
Christians attempt to speak to the state, they will not speak with a united
voice, since no one can be sure that a given method will solve a problem.
Many in the peace churches have serious reservations about disobedience
to our government - which since World War 1, has been very good to conscientious
objectors to war. We believe that it is the Christian's responsibility
to obey the state up to the point that government demands of us action
which is intrinsically evil in itself. Jesus, who is the true Prince of
Peace, lived under a government structure that was almost totally militaristic.
Yet He commanded His disciples to pay their taxes.
We are aware too that the president (or premier) of a nation often is
in possession of relevant information which modifies his decisions, and
he is not always free to share that information publicly. It is easy to
denounce the action of a government (especially in lands that have preserved
free speech and a free press), but Jesus never showed signs of withholding
funds from the state. The arrogant view of government which makes frequent
critical comments about most of its moves, is not manifesting the spirit
of Jesus.
It is interesting to observe that most "war tax evaders" are quite vocal
on the subject of military spending, but are strangely silent on
the matter of tax dollars going to fund abortions, the slaughter
of innocent infants. They say nothing about tax money which goes for the
operation of family planning clinics (which sometimes disseminate
literature to unmarried young people so that they can be sexually active
but at the same time avoid pregnancy - and often the literature is given
without even consulting parents). The tax resisters say little about paying
the taxes which subsidize tobacco farmers. Which is more evil - slaughter
on a battlefield, the murder of unwanted infants, helping to pay for that
which increases lung cancer, or the corruption of the morals of minors?
It is painful to note that many who refuse to pay lawful taxes in the
U.S.A., at the same time, volunteer to send gifts of food to Vietnam. And
none of us has any objection to such giving of food, but Vietnam has the
third largest army in the world, whereas the United States of America (with
a much larger population), has a smaller cluster of armed forces. This
is another example of the inconsistency that sometimes characterizes the
tax ref users.
Jesus was not willing to withhold money from the government (Mark 12:13-17),
though He knew that by a miscarriage of justice, the government would permit
its citizens to crucify Him on the Cross. We who are followers of Jesus
will do well to follow His example.