The stately church - financing in the Federal Republik of Germany

And now you might think, you can save the German church - taxes, if you expose your walkout from the church. In this case you have to visit a German local court respective a German register office. Then you will get a certification from the authority you have to sent to the fiscal - office. The clergyman of your hometown´s parish is not allowed to accept your decision because of the church - laws.

But there are a lot of social institutions - hospitals, kindergartens, homes for the aged -, which are depending from a churchly sponsorchip, although the churches spent only about 8 % of their income for social purposesses. The German state churches are the second largest employers in our country, especially in the social domain. If you are a doctor, a kindergartner, a nurse or something similar, you will be very often depending on the church to be your employer. The church only gives work to church members which pay church - taxes. A lot of people are forced to be church - members and to pay church - taxes because of professional or private reasons.

Indeed antidiscrmination - laws exist also in the Federal Republic of Germany, but there are exception rules for the churches. Our "democratic state" tolerates and supports religious discrimination and other infringements of the law by the churches.

But there is one urgent exception: When the churches give work to forced laborers - conscientious objectors (= people who don´t want to serve for the military) and unemployed persons - the churches havn´t to pay for, the churches are not interested in the (non) - Christian attitude of  people they can exploite.

Maundy - Thursday and Good - Friday are liable to a special protection:

In order to preserve the serious character of the Holy Week the Maundy - Thursday and Good - Friday are liable to a special protection. All dancing - events are forbidden from Maundy - Thursday 6 o´clock pm till Holy - Saturday 6 o´clock am.
From Good - Friday 5 o´clock am till Holy - Saturday 6 o´clock am are forbidden: Markets, commercial exhibitions, sport - events, circus - performances, kermisses amd other spare time events with dancing or circus performing entertainments; the opening of gambling - houses and the commercial acception of bets, music and amusing entertainments of all kind in pubs, restaurants and in next - rooms with licensed premises. Besides them all other amusing public events including dancing; all private amusing events outside from private flats; performances of movies which are not accepted to be appropriate for the performance on Good - Fridays after the opinion of the minister of culture or a institution acknowleged by him.
Also events of theater and musical performances , movie performances and discourses of all kind - also with a serious character are forbidding during the main time of service on Good - Friday from 6 o´clock am to 11 o´ clock am.
By: A press release of the city of Herne (Federal Republic of Germany) 2007

The religious service for the members of the parliament of North Rhine - Westphalia:
"The nominee of evangelic churches at parliament and government, Mr. Rolf Krebs, as well as the chef of the catholic office, Mr. Dr. Karl - Heinz Vogt, are inviting the members of the parliament North Rhine Westphalia at September, 20th 2007 to:
At 8 o´clock to a breakfast at the restaurant of the Landtag and at 9.15 o´clock to the religious service in room E3 z 03."
By: Landtag Intern 9 / 2007

The religious service belongs to the church, but not to the parliament!

The new building of the parliament (Landtag) of North Rhine - Westpalia, the greatest federal state of the Federal Republic of Germany looks very considerable... The Landtag in Duesseldorf