Generally speaking, members of the Unitarian Universalist denomination have been strong supporters of the separation of church and state. In my travels for Americans United, I often encounter UUs among AU’s membership, and I’ve spoken in some UU pulpits.

I was rather surprised, then, to read an editorial in the Gloucester, Mass., Times defending a Unitarian church that accepted $30,000 in local tax funds to pay for some work on its building.

Gloucester Unitarian Universalist Church took the money to make improvements to the church building so that it would be more accessible to people in wheelchairs and with other disabilities that make mobility difficult.

This was certainly a laudable goal. In fact, a federal law requires most businesses and government facilities to be accessible to people with disabilities. Houses of worship are exempt from this law, but most want to be accessible to everyone. The Gloucester church’s desire to be more accessible is admirable. What I don’t understand is why the church believes it is OK to make the taxpayers pay for this.

https://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/passing-the-bill-mass-taxpayers-to-subsidize-church-improvements