so .. a church does not need to apply for 501(c)(3) recogni…

so .. a church does not need to apply for 501(c)(3) recognition with Form 1023 and generally does not file an annual Form 990 (the non-profit annual tax filing). But it still has to meet 501(c)(3) rules, and other federal/state filings may still apply depending on operations. Sounds like you are in early days.. so reading up is a good start.

NYCon (New York Council of NonProfits): https://www.nycon.org/resources/start-a-nonprofit

The Attorney General's office of any state you are resident in always wants annual reporting, church's get exemption there too but you probably have to file for it (not sure): https://ag.ny.gov/resources/individuals/charities-nonprofits