Rachel Laser, the chief executive of Americans United for the Separation of Church and State, said the situation was unprecedented and unacceptable. There is no restriction against churches – which do not pay taxes, don’t have to disclose their funding sources, and aren’t subject to all anti-discrimination laws – from receiving publicly funded forgivable PPP coronavirus relief loans. Religious leaders who have advised the Trump administration have seen their operations receive millions, as did a not-for-profit organization that supports Israeli soldiers. Among them are the ministries of wealthy televangelists accused of fraud and one “secretive sect”. The list of recipients of federal Paycheck Protection Program payments includes churches, synagogues, temples and private religious schools.
