Tithing 10% of your income good or bad ?

[clem456]

Originally Posted by Chuck1

Thanks for responses guys but aside from all that is it right to tithe and what does god say ? What does the verse mean in my op ? Some say that it is a misreading of the Bible, a practice created by man, not God. They say they should be free to donate whatever amount they choose . Should you be obligated to give a tithe at all what are the pros and cons ?

Charity is not simply giving money according to the formula, but a committal and gift of the whole heart.
Charity is not an option for a Christian, it is the call.
Charity is not the world's definition of charity, where we throw a bone to others and satisfy a requirment. it requires we get our hands dirty.
Charity should hurt, according to Mother Theresa, who should know.
Charity is a giving not only of treasure but time and talent, which does not excuse neglect in any area (my favorite excuse is that I give a lot of time, so the cash is optional for me. I'm still working on that one).
I have friends who tell me to give and God will provide what we need. But I still want a formula, so I can satisfy it, and avoid making that radical committment Christ requires of us.

[Nicea325]

Originally Posted by Chuck1

I came across this a want to know what you think ?
Churches sometimes engage in questionable practices.* To attend a Church participants are frequently being encouraged to become members by attending “membership classes”.* In these classes you are frequently asked (although usually not obligated) at the end to sign a covenant to the church and/or to God.* This covenant usually includes a number of provisions and usually a commitment to tithe.* The bible teaches that if you bind yourself to such a commitment you will be held to it by God.* Therefore do not enter into such agreements.* Jesus said, "Again, you have heard that it was said to the people long ago, 'Do not break your oath, but keep the oaths you have made to the Lord.' But I tell you, Do not swear at all: either by heaven, for it is God's throne; or by the earth, for it is his footstool; or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the Great King. And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make even one hair white or black. Simply let your 'Yes' be 'Yes,' and your 'No,' 'No'; anything beyond this comes from the evil one.” * Matthew 5:33-37.* * Learn to take the good and leave the bad or is it a good or bad practice ? What I you don't want to thithe or can't afford it however I mean if the moneys helps the poor and stuff it might be good for 10% of your income to help other ? What do you think ?

I believe one should support their local parish with an amount they can afford. Remember time and talents also counts.

[johndoe100]

My wife and I Tithe, but it goes to the Protestsnt Church where she has been employed for the past 16 years. I think that we should payoff our credit cards first and then tithe, but Protestants believe that we should give 10% off the top before taxes. I give $20 per week to my Parish out of my Social Security which is about 4%

[Lochias]

Originally Posted by Jaypeeto4

Hi Lochias,
your post was terrific, too.
Yes, there are other ways to tithe/give to the Lord and others, other than financial gifts.
You have to feed your family with your money. God knows that (( and it is perfectly lawful and good for you to pray to Him and beg Him for financial help and blessings so that you can do even more, for them and for the church. Believe me, and you know this just by looking around, that there are many people who ARE financially-blessed with abundance, who are living high on the hog, and not doing one darned thing for the Lord, his church, the prolife movement, the pro-family movement, for the poor and needy, or for anyone, frankly, but themselves, but want it widely known, for example, if (though they are well off) they give $100 in any given year to "save the rainforest" or something, but even that they don't miss (( if they are well off and give a big gift, that's nice, but proportionately, it's usually about as sacrificial and missed-by-them, as it would be for you if you dropped a quarter out of your pocket once or twice a month. We're talking
PROPORTIONALITY here. God expects us to give sacrificially, proportionate to our income and ability. If a person making $35,000 a year or less, gives $1000 to the parish church annually, while a person making $250,000 a year gives $2000 annually to the parish church, he is giving twice as many dollars as the poorer person, but proportionately, is giving fifteen times LESS than the person making $35,000 a year, and please, though the President of the USA does plan to significantly raise their income taxes (if congress lets him get away with it), even that would not justify giving ten to fifteen times less, to the church and to the needy, than the person making only $35,000 a year or less. Remember the principle Jesus enunciated, and he meant it, every word
of it: From him to whom much has been given, MUCH will be REQUIRED (not asked for as a voluntary, "if-I-feel-like-voluntarily-giving-it" thing, but a requirement).

Now, some will object, that Saint Paul said not to give under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. True enough!! But some take that to mean that if they are a tightwad and don't like giving and want to have an enormous bank account and portfolio way beyond what they and their heirs truly need to live basically nicely (as distinct from living high on the hog in great and excessive luxury), that that is just fine with God. That is not true.
God cannot stand tightwads. Tightwads are stingy. God is not stingy. Again, look for a while at a REALISTIC, bloody, sickeningly horrifying crucifix to begin to understand just how GENEROUS God, the Holy Trinity, actually IS. I cannot pretend for a MOMENT that I would willingly allow myself to be brutally murdered like Jesus the Godman was, like that, and tortured first to boot, to save the lives and souls of billions of often very nasty people. Yet Jesus did that not only to pay for the faults of the good-by-comparison people, but for the bad sinners like me and even the evil-to-the-core sinners like King Manasseh was, or like Bernie Madoff, like even Ted Bundy and Jeffery Dahmer and even, had he repented, monsters like Adolf Hitler and Joseph Stalin and even - perish the thought!!! - Pol Pot. God is Generous. Jesus the Godman's horrific torture, beating, crowning with thorns and death on the cross in the most brutal manner imaginable, when he was INNOCENT, had no moral obligation to do it for us (owes us nothing), and in fact had the moral right to not forgive one single sin or crime ever committed on this earth, as he is God and INFINITELY above us in majesty, glory and dignity, and he submitted to THAT horror, on purpose, deliberately, for US. And we (and many of us sometimes do) gripe about being asked to donate to the church? to the poor? to give more to help the needy? to pay our employees a decent wage, even if it means we earn 1,000,000 dollars less in profit, earning 10,000,000 instead of 11,000,000? It's still PROFIT.
yes, this economy is really bad right now, but many, many, in fact most, Americans are STILL living quite well, and many are living very luxuriously, and giving the church
less than a buck a week, and next to nothing to support the needy and righteous social causes (( the average gift, when you break it down, to the National Right To Life Committee, from the average proLifer, and there are over 60,000,000 American Christians who profess to be proLife )) is less than 3 cents a YEAR. If each of the sixty million each sent annually a BUCK, one measly BUCK, to the NRLC, it would take in nearly 3 TIMES what it takes in now, and could blow the proAbortion forces out of the water in each and every election without exception.

But back to tithing to the church. For those of us who can't tithe financially, and I can't right now, give what you can (even if it hurts a little, that having it hurt a little has merit before God, united to Christ) and then support the church and the poor non-financially as well, as you, friend, are doing. You can give financially OR give "in kind" , or give BOTH ways if our financial resources are lacking. And ALWAYS ask God for the financial means to do MORE. Because, as I noted, tens of millions do have the means that you DON'T have, and they aren't using them at all for the Lord's work and for the needy and good causes. You, and I, and many thousands of others, WILL.
God love you.
Jaypeeto4
+JMJ+

Amen, and thank you. One of the things that I find is a huge blessing and weight off of my heart is knowing that God gave me a talent that I could use for the betterment of His Church, as well as the funds needed to help my family. I feel like I'm doing something of substance for all involved, and it's humbling and peaceful at the same time.

[SeekNFind]

I just received envelopes from my parish so I can start tithing. Although I never officially tithed before (as an unbaptized Christian who never officially was a member of any church) I always gave money when I had it because I believe in it. Miracles have happened in my life when I didn't have much money but decided to give part of it back to God. My mother also lives her life by this principle and has also benefited greatly. I plan to start tithing although I may not give the whole 10% to my parish. I belong ot various community service organizations and will probably start counting that towards my 10%.

[bearer]

I don't see the point in signing any agreement such as those mentioned in the OP. I recommend registering with your parish, but that's enough.

As for tithing, I think, and the Church teaches, that you should give as much as you can. Some have money to burn while others are barely holding their heads above water financially. Ten percent is a good standard, but the exact percentage may vary wildly depending on the person/family in question.

[johndoe100]

Originally Posted by SeekNFind

I just received envelopes from my parish so I can start tithing. Although I never officially tithed before (as an unbaptized Christian who never officially was a member of any church) I always gave money when I had it because I believe in it. Miracles have happened in my life when I didn't have much money but decided to give part of it back to God. My mother also lives her life by this principle and has also benefited greatly. I plan to start tithing although I may not give the whole 10% to my parish. I belong ot various community service organizations and will probably start counting that towards my 10%.

I agree with the Protestant practice of Tithing, and expect Miracles. I have found that there are many parallels between praying the Rosary and Tithing. The two work together.

[gerard1984]

[quote=johndoe100;9302615]My wife and I Tithe, but it goes to the Protestsnt Church where she has been employed for the past 16 years. I think that we should payoff our credit cards first and then tithe, but Protestants believe that we should give 10% off the top before taxes. I give $20 per week to my Parish out of my Social Security which is about 4%[/QUOT

If i may add something here. I think tithing is totally misunderstood by most protestant churches today. I did a lot of studying on tithing because the Church i used to attend preached on it a lot. Most Churches today totally misrepresent what tithing is and why it was instituted by God. The reason why, is that they are afraid that people won't give enough to pay for all the extras they think that they need, and if you ever question why they preach on tithing they think you don't want to give. If they want to tithe according to the Old Testament then they need to give about 23%, or more, because there were 3 different tithes.

Gerard

[Shannon46]

My question is, how can a person be expected to tithe 10% of their income when they don't have any income to start with ??

[Filii Dei]

Originally Posted by Shannon46

My question is, how can a person be expected to tithe 10% of their income when they don't have any income to start with ??

That's a moot question. It is more important to ensure that they can cope with day-to-day expenses. Nobody is forced nor coerced into tithing in the Catholic Church, though I cannot speak for other Protestant churches.

[Lochias]

Originally Posted by Filii Dei

That's a moot question. It is more important to ensure that they can cope with day-to-day expenses. Nobody is forced nor coerced into tithing in the Catholic Church, though I cannot speak for other Protestant churches.

Indeed. We have time and talent that we can give too, even if that's not all the time, for not much. The ushers who handle the baskets during Mass are contributing to a need that's just as important as the lectors, or the choir, or money.

[triumphguy]

I have made career and life choices (based on my Catholic faith) that have cost me money (ie., lowered my income - prison chaplaincy, teaching) , and which mean I do not have as much money to contribute to the Church now. However, I have given a great deal of time, talent and effort to the Church.

This is just as valuable.