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Ideally, a church should have a well managed, income-producing endowment, built up over years, like any other non-governmental public institution. Could be a problem when your priest starts in on the alterboys and the church gets sued, of course. I'm sure that these days churches are finding ways of separating and protecting those assets from opportunistic lawsuits.
Where does the endowment come from? Wealthy parishioners. Money left to the church in estates. Local businesses.
Other inoffensive ways of generating income is with explicit services and social fundraisers, such as schools, bake sales, white elephant sales, etc.
And of course, you can pass the basket, in moderation.
Anything more than that, and a church crosses the line from God's house, to the fee-for-service God show. Why not just charge admission every Sunday? Get yer tickets here! I got a pair right up front, but they'll cost ya'!
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