Tithing

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matt_s0688

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I’m sure this is talked about every now and then on here but I wanted my own specific topic to ask certain questions. First of all, I don’t believe my parents give 10% and my dad has always been a good spiritual leader but I think they’re afraid to give that much. I think trust in God has to be complete though and you if can’t trust him with 10% of your earnings how are you going to have complete trust in other areas of your life?

Anyways my question is if I do it this year, do I give that money to church or spread it out through charities? And it’s not supposed to be gross salary right? Just after taxes are taken out I believe.

Also any encouragement is appreciated. This will be really going out on a limb for me since I just started leasing a new car and a 13,000 dollar payment is due in 3 years if I want to keep it. As the saying goes though, you can never outgive God
 
The Catholic Church does not ask it of her people. However my brother belonged to a tithing congregation. 5% to the church plus 5% to charities of choices (God’s people). There were no more second collections since the parish itself also tithed using the same principle. 5% to the diocese and 5% to those other requests that come on a regular basis throughout the year.
I had one pastor suggest putting your hourly wage in the collection basket, which on reflection is approximately 5% leaving 5% for other charities. The Catholic Church has many trustworthy organizations to give that second 5% if you don’t want to give to a secular cause. Do watch for scams. I used to have a beautiful gift box that I kept my “tithe” and requests for donations in. During one request, I received a widow’s mite which I glued to the outside of the box.
St. Paul says do not impoverish yourself. This 10% tithe, whether given directly to the Church or to God’s people can be the first line in your monthly budget.
 
We don’t tithe. It’s something I would like to do, but I still struggle with trusting that well have more than enough. I am however generous or try to be when I can be which I know is not the way you should give but I suppose it’s better than nothing. I tend to give huge spontaneous amounts of money rather than a set amount. We do give at mass but it’s not much it’s usually whatever we have in our wallets which can vary. Anyways, my point is that I wanted to share with you that God always returns what I give. Last month I gave a generous amount of money that I absolutely did not have especially now that I’m not working and trying to pay my credit cards off. I gave some money to a family member of my husband who was struggling to pay the hospital bill for their daughter. I remember praying over this donation because I did not have the money and it was going to hurt to donate it but in the end I felt like we had our health, access to good medical care, a beautiful home and every night we eat more than our needs…so I felt compelled. Anyways I donated the money (I charged it on my credit card) and when I got the bill my heart sank a little but I still knew we did the right thing. Ok well guess what? Last week my husband won his fantasy football league and the jackpot was the exact amount we donated. God does take care of us. Deep down I knew this but I honestly didn’t expect it right a away. It was a much needed reassurance of his love that I needed. I don’t think this always works out this way in such a quick response but rest assured God will take care of you : )
 
St. Paul also spoke on the necessity of needing to support one’s Church and its officials. I’m sure God would understand if someone had four or five kids and a relatively low budget if they could not tithe. However, how often is it just made in Catholic culture to be a Protestant thing and not relevant to financial means? Or perhaps lack of volition because imagine what giving up 10% of one’s income would do to their ability to buy luxuries.

In any case, I find tithing extremely important. As I’ve been taught, if God gave us 100% who are we to deny returning 10%? But, again, of course we know our God is understanding and would probably understand if you can’t meet your ends as is. More so it annoys me when it’s a person of means who doesn’t give because they find some justification, like priests who make a big to do about “their money.”
 
I don’t believe a set amount of say 10% is what we should focus on.

2 Corinthians 9:7

7 Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.
 
matt_s0688 said:
I’m sure this is talked about every now and then on here but I wanted my own specific topic to ask certain questions. First of all, I don’t believe my parents give 10% and my dad has always been a good spiritual leader but I think they’re afraid to give that much. I think trust in God has to be complete though and you if can’t trust him with 10% of your earnings how are you going to have complete trust in other areas of your life?

Anyways my question is if I do it this year, do I give that money to church or spread it out through charities? And it’s not supposed to be gross salary right? Just after taxes are taken out I believe.

Also any encouragement is appreciated. This will be really going out on a limb for me since I just started leasing a new car and a 13,000 dollar payment is due in 3 years if I want to keep it. As the saying goes though, you can never outgive God
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Actually your tithe is calculated based on your gross earnings.

I am one who tithes, though not all of that money goes to the Church. I take that 10% and dedicate 80% to the Church and the rest to a couple of very specific and reliable charities or for the purpose of purchasing groceries or medicine for a person who might not have money for those things. Of course that opportunity does not always present itself, but the you can keep that designated money for the next month, put it in the collection plate or go ahead and give it to your charity of choice.

I have tithed when it literally meant I was going to be broke or even in the red. There was not one time that in some way or another help did not come my direction to compensate for that situation. I would get sudden refund checks in the mail say from doctors or businesses who over charged me, a gift of food or cash from friends in church who knew I was struggling (not because I told them anything), or even find the exact amount of money I needed to make up the difference.

One thing tithing does is help make you a more disciplined spender and one who follows budgets. It helps take away the wiggle room we can all look for to spend on things we don’t need. It is really a very practical spiritual exercise in so many ways.
 
HoneyBea said:
We don’t tithe. It’s something I would like to do, but I still struggle with trusting that well have more than enough. I am however generous or try to be when I can be which I know is not the way you should give but I suppose it’s better than nothing. I tend to give huge spontaneous amounts of money rather than a set amount. We do give at mass but it’s not much it’s usually whatever we have in our wallets which can vary. Anyways, my point is that I wanted to share with you that God always returns what I give. Last month I gave a generous amount of money that I absolutely did not have especially now that I’m not working and trying to pay my credit cards off. I gave some money to a family member of my husband who was struggling to pay the hospital bill for their daughter. I remember praying over this donation because I did not have the money and it was going to hurt to donate it but in the end I felt like we had our health, access to good medical care, a beautiful home and every night we eat more than our needs…so I felt compelled. Anyways I donated the money (I charged it on my credit card) and when I got the bill my heart sank a little but I still knew we did the right thing. Ok well guess what? Last week my husband won his fantasy football league and the jackpot was the exact amount we donated. God does take care of us. Deep down I knew this but I honestly didn’t expect it right a away. It was a much needed reassurance of his love that I needed. I don’t think this always works out this way in such a quick response but rest assured God will take care of you : )
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When you give in this way you are giving to God’s people, which is what I liked when my brother told me he belonged to a tithing church. I found putting my hourly salary, rounded to the nearest dollar, in the weekly envelope to be the easiest way to do this.
cguerber said:
I don’t believe a set amount of say 10% is what we should focus on.

2 Corinthians 9:7

7 Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.
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This is closer to the Church’s teaching. While some non-Catholic church focus on the OT teaching of bringing the whole tithe, this has never been the emphasis of the Catholic Church. The main teaching has come from the story of the widow who gave all she had when she gave her mite while those who gave much gave little because they gave out of their excess.
During the one week of the year that the Church talks about giving, it talks about giving of our treasure, talents, and time. Some people have more time than treasure. Others are talented carpenters and singers. Giving is not always about money. It could simply giving time for the yearly cleaning/decorating of the church for Christmas and Easter or bringing flowers from your beautiful garden to adorn the altar.
 
I’m surprised to hear it’s not a Catholic principle, when I got into an argument with an anti-Catholic girl a couple weeks ago she used how she didn’t believe in tithing against me. I always thought it was. I think I’ll just give what sounds good to me but use that 10% as a cue for about how much to give. I’m the kind of person who gives one time a year though so the church is going to get a nice big check either way

…I’m sure they’ve gotten bigger but I’m not exactly rich
 
Tithing is part of the Law of Moses. Not the Law of the New Covenant.

The new testament teaching as quoted above is to give what you can afford with a generous heat and with prayer and Thanksgiving.

The official teaching of the church is that every Catholic should support the upkeep of the local church avoiding to their means. That includes both a financial donation and the gift of volunteering what time you have to commit to both the mission of the church (charity and evangelisation) and her mainframe and upkeep.

This is very different from the concept of a fixed 10%

In the old testament. Particularly the Books of the Law The Tithe of 10% was for the priests of the tribe of Levites. This was in addition to the required seasonal sacrifices. It was all in addition to required minimum giving of alms to the poor and leaving certain crops unharvested for the widow and orphan to take.

We live in a very different society. The laws of moses were originally written for the nomadic tribes of israel in the wilderness. They were codified into their current fork by the priests during o or just after the exile in Babylon. As such they were first written and later codified and edited for so cities where there was no fixed government or taxation.
That is a world apart from modern Western civilisation.

We have a duty to support the upkeep and the mission of the church. If that means you discern that 10% of your income is appropriate then great. But are you being equally generous with your time? That may be more important!
Are u you seeking opportunity to spread the good news and being a witness for Christ?
When was the last time you invited someone to come to Mass or a prayer group?

I hope these things will provoke you to think.
 
When did Catholics start tithing? Tithing is a thing I have always associated with mormons and fundamental Protestants.
They are the people who always harped about tithing. I was raised in a fundamentalist sect and they were always preaching about tithing. A ‘money sermon’ would come at least once a month.
 
matt_s0688 said:
I’m surprised to hear it’s not a Catholic principle, when I got into an argument with an anti-Catholic girl a couple weeks ago she used how she didn’t believe in tithing against me. I always thought it was. I think I’ll just give what sounds good to me but use that 10% as a cue for about how much to give. I’m the kind of person who gives one time a year though so the church is going to get a nice big check either way

…I’m sure they’ve gotten bigger but I’m not exactly rich
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It’s not a principle, but it is a good discipline.
 
Being LDS it always made me cringe when i saw fellow members giving that familiar envelope to the congregation leadership, in all honesty i believe that giving tithing is a great thing to do for being blessed but Mormons go overboard on the subject, I believe you can make an effort to give whatever you possibly can give. I like the Catholic viewpoint on this, it just seems better… Looking forward to joining the faith.
 
CWM31 said:
Being LDS it always made me cringe when i saw fellow members giving that familiar envelope to the congregation leadership, in all honesty i believe that giving tithing is a great thing to do for being blessed but Mormons go overboard on the subject, I believe you can make an effort to give whatever you possibly can give. I like the Catholic viewpoint on this, it just seems better… Looking forward to joining the faith.
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As a convert I had always assumed that tithing was “Catholic.” In fact I have been surprised by some of the posts suggestion otherwise. I have always tithed as a result.

However, I have usually spread my “tithe” out in different ways, with some going to the Church, and the rest to a nonprofit or person in need. It just depends on what presents itself to me. If for some reason I helped someone put gas in their car, for example, I would count that as part of my giving. I think it is just a legitimate as if I put it in the collection.

I always like to remember the scripture about the “widows mite.” She gave what seemed like such a small amount, but Jesus found the worth to be greater than all the rest put together. It was the sacrificial nature of her gift that made it so worth while. I think that is what is truly important.
 
Cricket2 said:
I always like to remember the scripture about the “widows mite.” She gave what seemed like such a small amount, but Jesus found the worth to be greater than all the rest put together. It was the sacrificial nature of her gift that made it so worth while. I think that is what is truly important.
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I always think of that too. I don’t think it’s necessary to tithe but if we could just try to be more like the widow and give an amount that speaks our trust in the Lord, I think that’s what he wants. For some people that’ll be 10% always, for others it might be 1% this year and increasing every year.
 
matt_s0688 said:
I always think of that too. I don’t think it’s necessary to tithe but if we could just try to be more like the widow and give an amount that speaks our trust in the Lord, I think that’s what he wants. For some people that’ll be 10% always, for others it might be 1% this year and increasing every year.
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Yes, you are correct. People should also consider time donated by volunteering at the Parish. Volunteers save the Parish lots of money and get a lot of work done.
 
matt_s0688 said:
I’m sure this is talked about every now and then on here but I wanted my own specific topic to ask certain questions. First of all, I don’t believe my parents give 10% and my dad has always been a good spiritual leader but I think they’re afraid to give that much. I think trust in God has to be complete though and you if can’t trust him with 10% of your earnings how are you going to have complete trust in other areas of your life?

Anyways my question is if I do it this year, do I give that money to church or spread it out through charities? And it’s not supposed to be gross salary right? Just after taxes are taken out I believe.

Also any encouragement is appreciated. This will be really going out on a limb for me since I just started leasing a new car and a 13,000 dollar payment is due in 3 years if I want to keep it. As the saying goes though, you can never outgive God
Click to expand...
It is recommended that 5% of your income go to your parish and another 5% to other charities. The annual diocesan appeal would be included in the “other 5%”. I have always liked the “take a step” approach. It can be difficult for many people to start off tithing with the ideal percentage. But if you start off with a percentage that you can manage, even if it is 1%, then the next year you can take a step toward that 5% towards your parish.
 
Can giving a diocesan priest a gift of money be considered supporting the Church? I got very sick and received some gift money and though I am not working, I want to share this with my pastors in appreciation for their incredible moral and spiritual support I received when there was a possibility that I might not make it during that time. Fortunately I recovered.
 
I would think giving your priest money could be seen as supporting the Church. I am sure he will find ways to be generous with it in his own way. Who knows, he might just turn around and help another parishioner in need. Give away.
 
Tithing is not required by the Church; and as far as the comment about coming off
Gross Salary", please define gross salary, and please cite the source.

What seems to be completely overlooked is that his is only focusing on money. Money is only one of the things we can give; another is giving time. Whether that is ushering, working with a food pantry, or doing some other charitable act, all of that can be considered. Maybe the IRS doesn’t want to hear about that; but the IRS is not going to be standing next to Christ at the Judgement, either.
 
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