Tax resistance has probably existed as long as those in a position of power have imposed taxes. This page describes briefly some notable historical examples of tax resistance.
In the first century A.D., Jewish Zealots in Judaea resisted the poll tax instituted by the Roman Empire. Jesus was accused of promoting tax resistance prior to his torture and execution (“We found this fellow perverting the nation, and forbidding to give tribute to Cæsar, ...
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Tax resistance has probably existed as long as those in a position of power have imposed taxes. This page describes briefly some notable historical examples of tax resistance.
In the first century A.D., Jewish Zealots in Judaea resisted the poll tax instituted by the Roman Empire. Jesus was accused of promoting tax resistance prior to his torture and execution (“We found this fellow perverting the nation, and forbidding to give tribute to Cæsar, saying that he himself is Christ a King” — Luke 23:2).
In the 16th century, Hutterites refused to pay taxes for war or capital punishment. One wrote:
For war, killing, and bloodshed (where it is demanded especially for that) we give nothing, but not out of wickedness or arbitrariness, but out of the fear of God (1 Timothy 5) that we may not be partakers in strange sins.
Another wrote:
[When] the government requires of us what is contrary to our faith and conscience — as swearing oaths and paying hangman’s dues or taxes for war — then we do not...
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