Wouldn't your tithe and collection plate offerings be better spent making the world a better place?

Question

ie. Donating directly to research for curing certain (ANY) diseases or disorders, donating to centers to help fight worldwide hunger or look after refugees, etc...

Seems to me that if Jesus is what people claim he is, he would rather you help needy people or fund the help of needy people if you have the time or money to fund
( http://www.gocitykids.com/browse/attraction.jsp?id=168024 ) new full-sized gymnasium basketball courts
( http://www.churchmarketingsucks.com/archives/2006/02/community_swimm.html ) swimming pools
( http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,110240,00.html ) multi-billion dollar megachurches
( http://www.bygodsmiracle.com/d.cgi/rr1005/home.html ) or billion-dollar raffles.
Certainly, I would personally like to see this type of money better spent. If you want to go to a basketball court there are plenty. Make a sacrifice (like Jesus?) and go across town. But this religious spending is ridiculous and not in the name of any God.

I'm sorry Hey, Ray but I doubt any Christian gives 10% to the church and 90% to charity.
Also realize that your money is not going "to God." It's going to the church, who is free to use it as they wish. If the money was going "to God" then it would be sacrificed in the same manner as everything else is, through a burnt offering of some sort.

Now, for those of you whose churches use ALL their money to help the needy, I applaud that (although I DOUBT all the money goes to help). But why not just rule out the middle man and give straight to charity?

frndofzion, thank you for making wild assumptions about me. Don't you think the reason I might be raising this point is BECAUSE I support various causes... WITHOUT the church? And maybe because after looking at a few churches in my communities getting facelifts (like many others...) I got a little sick of it all?

Of course not all churches are megachurches and of course they help the "community" but realize that that money... which is a crapload... could be spent in SO MANY better ways. In fact, why need a church anyway? Have your sermons at the park, or at a school gymnasium if they allow you, but spending all that money on these monstrous buildings is a waste. Jesus came a sermon on a mount, so a mount should be good enough for you.

Let the community and taxpayer dollars worry about the commuinty and what will make it better.

ignoramus_the_great:
Actually, I think football is a waste of time and resources better spent elsewhere, especially in the case of college football. But that is not relevant to this topic, since churches claim to do good and spread the will of God, while football makes no such claim.
You've never heard of the Billion Dollar Raffle, but now you have, and it claims it is real, so ignorance (despite your name) is not an issue any longer for you.
As for the church trying to get a swimming pool.. there are multitudes wrong with that. The church is to spread the word of God and to worship, not ralley together so people can get wet. The community should worry about the community, but there are better, more IMPORTANT issue to go after than community wetness.

Answer 1

Yes, I definately believe that you have a point. I am a christian. I tithe 10% to God but not all of it goes into a church's collection plate. I believe that God does not call everyone to place all of the tithe money in the hands of the church. The bible directs us to feed the hungry, clothe the naked, confort the hurting and the poor. I believe that the money can be better used by St. Jude's or to clothe children, or feed the hungry, or help people, instead of putting new carpet in the church. Everyone has to decide where God wants their money to go. Recarpet the church? I think not.

Answer 2

All the web sights you offered are not the norm! You have no clue about church funding.

Why not ask this question of the churches? Most publish the budget sometime in January or just walk into the office and request one. Christians have nothing to hide. Having sat on Financial Boards on more than a few occasions and as an observer to the passing scene from within a couple of churches in three states, I found their funding priorities run something like this: Funding the Church's general budget that takes up the majority of giving and tithing; next, special endowments for the needy; next is scholarships for youth who will advance to representing the church at schools of religious teaching aiming at degrees in Divinity (must maintain at least a
B-); supporting missionaries in the field of soul-saving and bringing Christianity to the Godless and none-believers.

Churches need the space to grow. Megachurchs. What you seem to believe is something of oppulence is actually the result of GROWTH! More people are coming back and joining Christians in these days of strife to better understand what is going on. And, believe it or not, these places of learning are teaching and pointing the Way and COST MONEY! The Way is only through The Son Of God, Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, an undeniable fact not accepted by the godless non-believers.

Get a clue the next time you feel you need to vent about church giving and tithing done in the Name Of God! By God and for His flock he continues to tend.

Answer 3

Basically you are venturing into an area that you prove you know nothing about. There is nothing wrong with a church getting involved with a community center. If the community can not get a swimming pool, as in your example, there is nothing wrong with the church trying. You talk about megachurchs, defined as church that have attendance of 2,000 or more on a Sunday, but you probably have no problem with 50,000 looking at a football game. Your billion dollar raffle makes no sense, and I have never heard of it.

I suppose you have no examples of churches, even the ones you accuse, spending money on the mission fields. It figures you wouldn't.

Answer 4

What you fail to recognize is how much good the items you listed actually are for communities. Most churches allow people from the community to use their facilities, even if they aren't members of the church. These facilities provide safe places for children to participate in healthy activities. What you also did not list are all the OTHER ways tithe offerings are used for the good of all people. You didn't list actual church budgets, you just found a few biased articles to suit your viewpoint. I think you'd be surprised to learn that these offerings are spent on a number of things for the community. Most churches have ministries in prisons, nursing homes, hospitals, soup kitchens, etc. They take up additional donations for mission trips around the world that DO provide tangible necessities for those in need. Many people feel better knowing their money will be delegated by the leaders of their church rather than by a non faith-based CEO making hundreds of thousands of dollars a year.
For you to say that the money is not being spent in the name of God is a pretty darn bold statement. Don't get me wrong, there are ALWAYS exceptions to the rule, but please do not assume that the money people tithe to their churches is being spent frivolously.

Answer 5

My little Catholic church (about 75 people, tops) raised over ten thousand dollars to help the victims of Hurricane Katrina. This is in addition to the $20,000 they send for food, medical supplies, educational materials, etc., to our sister church in Calavera, El Salvador each year. And nobody's rich in this parish, by any stretch of the imagination.

The church also supports the local homeless shelter, the soup kitchen, and other community needs. And each Lent, we do Operation:Ricebowl, which provides food for third world countries through sacrificial giving.

I'm not sure how much more one church could be expected to do for other people with the money that's put in the collection plate each week.

Answer 6

God comands us to give 10% back to God. For example, the money I have was given to me by God, and all He asks for is 10% as my tithe. I can always give more as an offering. What I do know is that my Church is accountable to the congregation to where any money goes. I would be saddend to know if churches spent their money building up the church, and not reaching out to the community and world. I know that my church uses the money for reaching teh world in supporting missionaries, and it reaches the community through many wonderful activities.

Answer 7

I can only speak for my church. I am a Catholic and the two priests that minister to our church (like all other Catholic priests) have taken a vow of poverty. They own nothing. It is up to church members to pay the bills of the church, electricity, water, taxes…etc….

We also give to support the school that is on the church grounds so that young people today can get an education that includes God.

We also give to many charities and to people that have suffered disasters. Just last week we took up a collection for the tornado victims in Kansas.

We also give to our Diocese. There are so many retired priests that we need to help them out in their "golden years".

We do give to many good causes, perhaps if you joined a church in your area, you could see for yourself where all the money goes.
.

Answer 8

We give because we believe in the ministries that our churches have. Churches do a lot for the communities around them and this makes the world a better place. Churches help people who are and aren't members of their church or even of Christianity.

This doesn't mean that all churches are good or do what they're supposed to - it's humans that run them you know - but this is where personal responsibility comes in and you have to know what your church is doing.

Answer 9

Those who do not want to pay tithes and fast offerings to their church can always find a reason to do so. The question remains: Is that reason in conformity to the Lord's command to tithe?

Churches need their tithes to help defray building maintenance and repair expenses, utilities to stay operational, to help the needy in the community, and where there is paid ministry, to pay the pastor.

Answer 10

my church does give to charities and we hold many events at our church to help. We have a program called Christ-net that invites homeless people into our church for the night for a week. We feed them hot meals, wash clothes and give them a warm place to sleep. We give our money to poorer families in the church for Christmas or to pay bills. We gather to help members when they need help in anything.. moving, illness, cooking, cleaning., We do more close to home and we know EXACTLY where our money goes and how it is spent.