must i tithe?

  • Thread starter Thread starter captainmike
  • Start date Start date
Status
Not open for further replies.
C

captainmike

Guest
for years, i’ve given ten percent of my gross income to the church and other christian charities. this year, though, i’ve reduced my giving from ten to 6 percent, with the other four percent going to saving for my kids’ college education. i’m worried that if i don’t start saving some money for their education, i won’t be able to help them with it as much as i want to do.

must i return to giving ten percent to the church/christian charities?
 
captainmike said:
for years, i’ve given ten percent of my gross income to the church and other christian charities. this year, though, i’ve reduced my giving from ten to 6 percent, with the other four percent going to saving for my kids’ college education. i’m worried that if i don’t start saving some money for their education, i won’t be able to help them with it as much as i want to do.

must i return to giving ten percent to the church/christian charities?
Click to expand...
No. The Catholic Church does not require tithing. Give what you can afford.

God Bless
 
My answer would be yes. If you consider it a “moral dilemma” whether you should tithe 10% or not, that’s an indication that you really should give 10%.

God can provide for your children’s education, and you can probably save money elsewhere, to make it possible. But even if you can’t, there are ways to go through college without seed money.

The firstfruits go to God.

(Full disclosure: I myself have had difficulty working up to giving 10%; I’m at 8% or so right now. But I consider that a failing in myself, and I know that if I gave more, I would receive a blessing – in this life and the next.)

Don’t “give” up, Mike!
 
No, Catholics are not required to tithe. We are supposed to support the church to the extent that we are able, but there is not a certain percentage that we “have” to give. Do a search on here, and you will find lots of information on this subject.

Here is one such thread, answered by Fr. Serpa.

forums.catholic-questions.org/showthread.php?t=31554
 
almsgiving in some form to some extent is required by the moral law

tithing, i.e. giving 10% and necessarily 10%, is an old testament precept that is no longer in force; it would be a material heresy to say that this or other OT precepts (other than those under the moral law or those continued by the temporal authority of the Church) are still in force.

you may give whatever percent of income you wish, or you may give without calculating the percent of income, if it happens to be 10% that’s fine. You may not hold that all Christians must give 10%.
 
Give what you can. That’s what the Church teaches. The Church no longer states a specific percentage for her children, as in the past. Just try and be as charitable as you can to the best of your ability.
 
captainmike said:
for years, i’ve given ten percent of my gross income to the church and other christian charities. this year, though, i’ve reduced my giving from ten to 6 percent, with the other four percent going to saving for my kids’ college education. i’m worried that if i don’t start saving some money for their education, i won’t be able to help them with it as much as i want to do.

must i return to giving ten percent to the church/christian charities?
Click to expand...
I would say no. In this day and age, tithing is difficult. When the idea of tithing came about, children weren’t going to college, there was no such thing as homeowners insurance, auto insurance, utility bills, cable bills, cell phone bills, HEALTH INSURANCE, medical co-pays, Catholic elementary school tuition, real estate taxes that can curl your hair…

Frankly, I can’t see how tithing is even possible in everyone’s case. Some pastors don’t even believe in it.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top