Massachusetts high court orders Catholic retreat center to pay taxes

Massachusetts' highest court has ruled that a popular Catholic retreat center that serves as a wildlife sanctuary and a home for battered women must pay taxes.

The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court stated in its ruling on Wednesday that parts of the National Shrine of Our Lady of La Salette campus are subject to taxation as they do not fulfill a religious role.

The 199-acre campus, located in the southeastern Massachusetts city of Attleboro includes a chapel, a retreat house and a popular exhibit of Christmas lights that attracts tens of thousands of visitors each year.

The shrine stated that the full campus is used for religious purposes, and it has not paid property taxes in decades. However, in 2013, town officials said that four parts of the campus, including a welcome center, maintenance shed, as well as the wildlife refuge and shelter, should be taxed as they were not used for religious purposes. The full value of the campus was assessed at $13 million, about $5 million of which was taxable.

The religious order paid the tax bill amounting to $92,000, but it turned to the courts to argue their case, America Magazine reported. The ruling on Wednesday was split, with the court stating that two of the four areas should be taxed.

The court stated that the town incorrectly taxed the welcome center and the maintenance shed, which the justices said were used to carry out the shrine's religious worship and educational programs. The justices also noted that areas such as parking lots and fellowship halls have been historically exempt from property taxes even though they are not used for worship.

Diane Tillotson, a lawyer representing the shrine, considered the justices' decision on that front as a victory.

"If you start looking at the activities in the church basement and saying, 'Well, you host coffee hour there and that's not really religious worship, so we're going to tax you for that portion of the building,' that could be devastating for churches throughout the commonwealth," Tillotson said.

The city's bid to tax the shrine's gift shop and cafeteria was also rejected by the court.

"The fact that money earned from the cafeteria, bistro, and gift shop may help pay for the Shrine's expenses does not remove them from the realm of religious worship and instruction. Even a church cannot live on prayer alone," the justices wrote in their decision.

The court ruled in favor of the town when it came to the wildlife refuge and shelter, noting that the two areas were eligible for taxation because they were used for charitable purposes not associated with religion.

Tillotson and Cyriac Mattathilanickal, the priest who runs the shrine's retreat center, said that they do not agree with the court's characterization of charity being distinct from religion, but they stated that the shrine would still comply with the ruling.

Local religious leaders, including Protestants, Jews, and Muslims, have filed a legal brief in support of the retreat center.