• Bonsoir@lemmy.ca
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    2 天前

    Well, here and now, with the original comment asking to join them. I do have some anecdotes but they aren’t really relevant here, I guess.

    Here is the CRA rule and the IRS one
    Both state that “advancement of religion” is a requirement, which is quite close to proselytizing (promoting and manifesting religious belief).
    The thing is that both countries were funded by christian people, so their definition of religion is biased towards it, so you can’t really have an individualistic religion like satanism be recognized.
    We can also note that Canada is discriminating against non-theistic religions and asks quite explicitly to “support and maintain missions and missionaries to propagate the faith”. Canada is still a religious state, after all.

    • zarkanian@sh.itjust.works
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      2 天前

      The CRA doesn’t use the word “and”. It’s “or”.

      manifesting, promoting, sustaining, or increasing belief

      Meaning it’s optional. Also, “promoting” is quite vague. TST doesn’t qualify in any case, though, because what are they “manifesting, promoting, sustaining, or increasing belief” of?

      a religion’s three key attributes, which are: faith in a higher unseen power such as a God, Supreme Being, or Entity; worship or reverence; and a particular and comprehensive system of doctrines and observances

      So yeah. Non-theistic Satanism doesn’t apply. We have reverence, we have doctrines and observances…we do not have a Supreme anything.

      TST primarily operates in the USA, so the IRS code is much more relevant. Let’s see which part of this applies:

      advancement of religion

      That’s it? “Advancement” is even more vague than “promoting”! I can do a lot of things that “advance” my religion without trying to recruit people. Adding more programs to my congregation, for example. Hey, now we have a book club! Satanism has been advanced.

      In fact, I think that most Satanists would say that trying to recruit wouldn’t be advancement at all…it would be a big step backwards.