do you tithe?

[Anonymous]

new to church as an adult and wondering how much people actually give their church. Michelle Singletary (for one) says she tithes and advocates this approach. Maybe on an anonymous forum people would share what they put in the collection plate. TIA.

[Anonymous]

We do give to our church. However, we do not tithe. I also think it's important to remember that you can give to your church in ways other than financial. Giving of your time and talent is important as well.

[Anonymous]

Give $25 a week, plus a lot of time to various ministries and committees. Definitely can't afford to tithe with young children.

[Anonymous]

I don't tithe, but I do give $230 a month. Also serve on the Youth Ministry where I'm very active (am even considered the "Leader" although I'm not the Youth Pastor). I think giving of your individual talents is more important than just giving monetarily.

[Anonymous]

My parents do and have for as long as I can remember. We don't attend church.

[Anonymous]

We give 5% of our income to tax deductible charities (and probably a little more to things which are not tax deductible). We don't currently belong to a church, but give about 1500 per year to the church we often attend. A lot of the rest of the money goes to Christian charities, but we also give to secular charities.

I want to raise our giving to 10%, but so far haven't done it.

I think tithing is important, because it emphasizes a percent of your income. Those who have a lot give more, but that may be much less painful than the proverbial widow giving a few coins.

I'm actually Eastern Orthodox - in that tradition, churches often don't encourage tithing, but rather have a yearly fee (usually pretty nominal); people are encouraged to give more than the fee and are sometimes publicly recognized for doing so. Some churches now are encouraging tithing which I think is more Biblical and a better way to do it.

[Anonymous]

I am Catholic. Our parish talks about tithing but gives us guidelines that are closer to 2 or 3% of income, and the pastor also says to consider all of your charitable giving together when you think about whether you are tithing. I think we tithed, or came pretty close, the last couple years because my husband and I both had less work but didn't reduce our charitable giving.

[Anonymous]

Hello NO....no church is wroth it.

[Anonymous]

Yeah, we *try* to tithe regularly, we have missed a few times here and there when times are tough, but we try to give our ten percent pretty regularly. I also give a lot of my time, I started and now lead an orchestra ministry, and I also volunteer in the Nursery, my husband does a lot of "handyman" type work for the church when he has the time also.

In the bible, (I'm not sure of the exact verse, but I do know it's in the book of Corinthians, and mentioned in a few other places) it talks about tithing regularly, and the definition of a tithe is 10%.. I DEFINITELY and completely understand the stress behind giving such a large amount (as I said before, when we can't swing it, we don't..) So I totally don't want anyone to think that I am being judgemental because I'm really not.. and if me bringing that up is taken that way (which I'm sure it will be portrayed that way by someone), I'm just really explaining why we do it the way that we do. (I was raised a catholic and am not baptist, so I wasn't even remotely aware of tithing before joining my current church) But after hearing the pastor talking about it, I did my own research in the bible, and in the dictionary:
"tithe? ?/ta?ð/ Show Spelled
[tahyth] Show IPA
,noun, verb, tithed, tith·ing.
–noun
1. Sometimes, tithes. the tenth part of agricultural produce or personal income set apart as an offering to god or for works of mercy, or the same amount regarded as an obligation or tax for the support of the church, priesthood, or the like.
2. any tax, levy, or the like, especially of one-tenth.
3. a tenth part or any indefinitely small part of anything.
–verb (used with object)
4. to give or pay a tithe or tenth of (produce, money, etc.).
5. to give or pay tithes on (crops, income, etc.).
6. to exact a tithe from (a person, community, parish, etc.).
7. to levy a tithe on (crops, income, etc.).
–verb (used without object)
8. to give or pay a tithe. "

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Hello NO....no church is wroth it.

You are aware that you could have just said no, and that a snarky response really wasn't necessary.

[Anonymous]

Yes, I tithe to the church of Huggies.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yeah, we *try* to tithe regularly, we have missed a few times here and there when times are tough, but we try to give our ten percent pretty regularly. I also give a lot of my time, I started and now lead an orchestra ministry, and I also volunteer in the Nursery, my husband does a lot of "handyman" type work for the church when he has the time also.

In the bible, (I'm not sure of the exact verse, but I do know it's in the book of Corinthians, and mentioned in a few other places) it talks about tithing regularly, and the definition of a tithe is 10%.. I DEFINITELY and completely understand the stress behind giving such a large amount (as I said before, when we can't swing it, we don't..) So I totally don't want anyone to think that I am being judgemental because I'm really not.. and if me bringing that up is taken that way (which I'm sure it will be portrayed that way by someone), I'm just really explaining why we do it the way that we do. (I was raised a catholic and am not baptist, so I wasn't even remotely aware of tithing before joining my current church) But after hearing the pastor talking about it, I did my own research in the bible, and in the dictionary:
"tithe? ?/ta?ð/ Show Spelled
[tahyth] Show IPA
,noun, verb, tithed, tith·ing.
–noun
1. Sometimes, tithes. the tenth part of agricultural produce or personal income set apart as an offering to god or for works of mercy, or the same amount regarded as an obligation or tax for the support of the church, priesthood, or the like.
2. any tax, levy, or the like, especially of one-tenth.
3. a tenth part or any indefinitely small part of anything.
–verb (used with object)
4. to give or pay a tithe or tenth of (produce, money, etc.).
5. to give or pay tithes on (crops, income, etc.).
6. to exact a tithe from (a person, community, parish, etc.).
7. to levy a tithe on (crops, income, etc.).
–verb (used without object)
8. to give or pay a tithe. "

Well done for looking it up in the dictionary. But you might want to spend more time in the bible:
"Away with you, you pettifogging Pharisee lawyers! You give to God a tenth of herbs, like mint, dill, and cumin, but the important duties of the Law — judgement, mercy, honesty — you have neglected."

[Anonymous]

I think tithing can be a useful way of separating money from stupid people and giving it to evil institutions instead.

[Anonymous]

I'm the Eastern Orthodox poster at 20:21 above. I definitely understand the angst at churches which some posters are expressing. Our Orthodox tradition is definitely rife with all sorts of abuses - you notice I don't belong to a church although sometimes attend one.

I think giving money to others is a separate issue from belonging to a church. I think it is a great discipline (whether one wants to view it as spiritual or not) to set aside a part of ones income for others. We give quite a bit (much more than to the Church) to development projects in various parts of the world. I sometimes agonize over how well the money is spent - does it reach the people who need it. I think it is important to worry about this and to do the best you can to insure that the money is well spent, but I also think it is important for your well being (as a Christian I would say your soul) to GIVE.

If you aren't giving now - start by giving a little.

If you give quite a bit now - stretch yourself to give more.

You'll find YOU are the one who benefits most from giving.

[Anonymous]

Yes, only $80 a month now, plus collection plate (whatever is handy in the wallet) but I have two in daycare now. Once I got out from under this mortgage payment that is daycare I'll be able to do more.