In defence of religious charitable trusts—when the ancient and the modern collide

Abstract

Religious charitable trusts are no strangers to public and judicial criticism for a range of reasons, and this article considers their continued place within the charity narrative from the unusual perspective of the relationship between religious charitable trusts and commercialism, and whether such a position can be justified in contemporary society. This article does so by considering key cases from Australia and New Zealand, as well as Hong Kong. In doing so, this article demonstrates that religious trusts and commercialism make unusual but justifiable bed fellows, even in contemporary times, at least from a charitable perspective. As such, this article looks to quell some of the public disquiet concerning such trusts that continues unabated, and in doing so, this article may go some way in enhancing the quality of public conversations regarding religious charitable trusts.