Earlier quoted context omitted.
> It seems wrong that faith-funded organizations are allowed to discriminate based on religious belief. Not that I think it's morally acceptable for faith-funded charities to turn away some people based on their lack of faith, but: a) Individuals acting on their own founded and run the organization. It would be a violation of several important rights (theirs) for a government to regulate how they choose to run their…
> It would be a violation of several important rights (theirs) for a government to regulate how they choose to run their charity, They formed a charity to get the tax relief from that same government. With that relaxation on taxation comes a restriction on activity.
Not at all. They formed a charity because they wanted to make a positive difference in the world.
That US law originally recognizes charities, churches, and other non-profits as tax-exempt is a a recognition of the solid, positive contribution to society that such organizations make. Their tax-exempt status was originally granted as such, and not with any idea of using it to stipulate how they should do things.
So I strongly disagree that tax-exempt status somehow grants the government authority over an organization's affairs. It would be better to revoke all organizational tax exemptions than to begin to use it as such leverage.