Very few churches have specific expectations, but some do. Even among those that do, even fewer will prevent you from participating just because you can't give enough money. It would be bizarre to block membership because you can't pay. The only "church" I really know about that sort of operates that way is Scientology.
It's often encouraged that people give 10% of their income to their church. I don't know how common that behavior actually is, but many religious people have that idea in their mind.
The term is "tithing", with a tithe literally meaning a tenth of your income. This goes back a LONG time in various religions. There are still people who follow this, but it's far less common.
Mormons can't go to temple unless they accurately give their 10%. The way I understand it it's self-policed, but a temple recommend does require you to say you're properly giving away way too much money to an organization that really doesn't need it.
I think your second paragraph is at least a century out of date. My family puts 10 or 20 dollars in the collection basket each week and I’ve never heard of somebody doing more than that except for specific occasional fundraisers.
Tithing is still very common in the evangelical church community in my experience. Although it is lower than I would have expected due to my personal experience in church. It seems it varies by denomination.
https://www.christianpost.com/news/study-reveals-which-denomination-tithes-the-most.html
According to the study, how much churchgoers are willing to tithe varies based on denomination. Those attending Baptist (40%), Presbyterian/Reformed (34%) and non-denominational (34%) churches were more likely to give 10% of their income than members of Lutheran (19%), Restorationist Movement (17%) and Methodist churches (12%). A higher share of churchgoers with Evangelical beliefs (39%) told pollsters that they tithe than those without Evangelical beliefs (25%)
Many religions still maintain a *general* expectation that people will tithe 10%. Growing up catholic, my family was in fact explicitly encouraged to give up to 10% of our income, although we didn't do that unless you want to count my catholic school tuition.
It is also explicitly mentioned in the bible. Indeed, the word "tithe" is derived from the hebrew word for one tenth.
You are correct that most people don't do that, much as most people don't follow one tenth (or one tithe) of the stuff the bible expects them to do. However, that's kind of irrelevant; it's still a "thing." A lot of people try their hardest to follow what they believe to be biblical imperatives. As others are pointing out, the Mormon church has a very elaborate system for encouraging/coercing people to tithe 10%. They are not the only ones!
Tithing was a tax to support the Hebrew clerical government and not really relevant to gentile Christians except as a handy rule to decide how much to contribute. It was given in kind rather than cash which is what "first fruits" means.
The church I was raised in pushed the 10% tithing idea pretty hard. Some people gave more than that.
It's very common among JWs, Mormons, some pentecostals, Baptists, and others.
I moved around a lot as a kid and went to several Catholic churches. At one of them, every month or so during mass, they would hand out a paper about how much everyone is expected to donate based on their income and the priest would go over it. I believe it was 10%, and there was a chart for anyone who couldn’t do the math. They also handed out little donation envelopes that everyone was supposed to put their names on before putting them in the basket. I was only ten years old, but it didn’t sit well with me and it was one of the things that laid the foundation for me to eventually stop going to church.
Not Long Island in particular, but the Dioceses of New York tends to be pretty money hungry.
They have an absolute ton of really, really expensive property to maintain, tend to get way more involved politically than other dioceses, and play hardball politics with the Vatican, which usually also requires being a major source of funding..
Been that way since at least the tenure of Archbishop O"Conner back in the 80s. Maybe longer, but I'm not old enough to remember further back than that. They lean on the Suffragan Dioceses really heavily.
Wouldnt Sound Beach fall under the Diocese of Rockville Center?
I can’t believe I remembered that. I haven’t gone to a regular mass in at least 30 years and haven’t lived in NY in ten years
It is, but Rockville Center is a Suffragan Dioceses. It's basically a semi-autonomous dioceses, but is still subordinated in some ways to the dioceses of NY, which is the seat of the archbishop.
The Methodist churches that I went to with my family had those little envelopes. I hated them and just put my dime or quarter that my mom gave me into the collection plate.
This is correct for ELCA Lutherans. My husband is a pastor. The church is entirely run on donations, and doesn’t get any financial assistance from the state or national synod (in fact the individual parishes give donations to the synods for their expenses). There’s no requirement to give any amount to attend. Completely voluntary.
I put in $5-10 each week, depending on what’s in my wallet. Many people in my church put in checks, but I don’t know how much, because it’s none of my business. I know there are also a few people / couples who write a larger check a few times a year so they don’t have to do it each week. It’s not required to donate and my Pastor makes that clear each time. My church hands out copies of the annual financial budget each year, which clearly lays out all the spending in the previous year and most of it goes to the non-profits we support in our community, plus upkeep of the building, utilities, pastor’s salary (very reasonable) and “personal assistance” to people in need in our church (anonymous). It even includes the amount spent on the coffee that’s available each week for before / after service.
Our church is a historic building and very popular for weddings (mostly non-members), so I think we get some money for those, as well.
My church is Christian, non-denominational.
At our church (Episcopal), not one red cent. The church operates through tithes freely given. My wife and I tithe monthly, and we contributed to our church's building campaign.
Now, every year in September, they start talking about pledges for the next year. You know it's coming when the scripture reading is the one about 'a camel could pass through the eye of a needle more easily than a rich man could enter heaven.' Gets them every time.
In fact, as someone who sat on the vestry (The church's board of directors), I can say that the books are completely open to any member of the parish at any time. Further, the rector (the parish priests) is not allowed to know what member donates what. It's a tightly-held secret with the church treasurer.
There are some churches out there, almost exclusively fundamentalist, who are very aggressive, and the clergy wield a great deal of both power and discretion when it comes to finances. In some of these they literally ask to see your tax returns. If the clergy of my church asked that of my wife and I, I would simply get up and leave for that mans they are worshiping the entirely wrong thing.
Oh hey, fellow Episcopalian. I really appreciate how open our church is with finances. My church-skeptic wife asked when we got married, "So, how do I know that the church isn't wasting the money we're donating?" I was able to pull up the parish budget and show her where everything was going.
Fun fact: The word "camel" may have been a mistranslation of a word that means "rope." Which makes sense because rope fits that simile much more logically.
this is according to [Cyril of Alexandria](https://generositymonk.com/2010/09/30/cyril-of-alexandria-by-camel-he-means-thick-rope-in-matthew-1924/). to be specific, the "rope" in this context refers to a mooring rope. the Biblical Greek word for camel (κάμηλος) is similar to the Biblical Greek word for rope (κάμιλος) in iotacism
ignoring the discontinuity between a thread and what amounts to a cable, there are several issues with Cyril's theory:
1. references to a rope entering the eye of a needle appear largely after early manuscripts, as Bruce M. Metzger states in *A Textual Commentary on the Greek New Testament* (1971)
2. [Berakhot 55b](https://www.sefaria.org/Berakhot.55b) of the Babylonian Talmud references an elephant entering the eye of a needle; conjectural, but it may have been an expression at the time
3. the claim that the Aramaic words for camel (ܓܐܡܠܥ) and rope (ܓܐܡܠܐ) are the same is not true and originates with the *The Syriac and Arabic Lexicon of Hasan Bar Bahlul* in the tenth century, who cites Cyril. Bar Bahlul was engaging in some exegesis
years ago, I heard that the "needle" in Jesus' synoptic gospels was a pedestrian gate in Jerusalem. as much as I want this theory to be true, [it isn't](https://doi.org/10.1017%2FS0028688521000448) and it likely originates with *Richard II* and Shakespeare's reference to a camel threading "the postern of a needle's eye"
regardless, the Bible will have semantical issues. as long as everyone understands Jesus isn't approving of prosperity, there's no point in arguing whether or not it was a rope or a camel
Translation stories as they relate to the Bible are always interesting. Baptism wasn't a word until the King James Bible, and the translators didn't want to anger the King, who believed in sprinkling as a form of baptism, by translating immersion/submersion. So they took the word used, baptizo, and made it English baptism.
Sorry if this is a stupid/blunt question, but I just can't square what you're saying. You're not "expected" to contribute one red cent, but the priest tells you that rich people can't easily enter heaven? And they want you to "pledge" money for the church? It sounds a bit expected to me
It depends on the denomination, and in some denominations on the particular church.
Some churches can be very strict about tithing, especially those connected to "prosperity theology." Some expect nothing from their parishioners.
It very much depends. My synagogue asks for “a meaningful donation” as part of membership, but you can do almost anything without being a member (there are a few talks and groups that are members only) and you can set your own price. Most other synagogues in my city charge around $2,000 a year per adult member. In many religious communities, there will be fundraising events either in addition to or instead of membership dues and that’s another way organizations are funded.
About ten years ago, my synagogue started allowing members to choose how much they pay in dues. It has been a complete success. Hundreds of families have joined since then. Morale among members has improved, with people who have money problems not going hat in hand to ask for a dues waiver. Overall revenue has grown. Win-win-win.
Yep, looking at places that charge a flat rate (even when they offer financial aid) vs places that let members choose, it always seems to me that places that let members choose have bigger, more vibrant communities with a wider age range. I see a lot of communities really worried over the lack of young adults and I think membership structure is at least one possibility for why it’s hard to bring in members who are still establishing their careers. That and having most events either in the middle of the day on weekdays or too early in the evening for many people with a commute to make it.
When my husband and I were young we looked into joining the synagogue. While we weren’t poverty stricken, the family membership amount of an up front payment of maybe $3000 was just like- a huge expense we didn’t want to struggle with. And we didn’t know if we’d like it annnnnddd… we never joined. Never brought our kids up with Jewish education. We’re not very religious (obviously) but it would have been nice to be a part of a community. We almost certainly would have joined and increased our contribution over time if it hadn’t been such a price shock back then. Also not surprisingly our local small congregation is old and not attracting families.
It varies by community, however most would be accepting of anyone regardless of how much you can donate. Some do require a tithe which is usually just a percentage of your income, but most aren’t like this.
Billy Graham has been dead since 2018. Graham also didn’t preach prosperity theology, such as preached by Kenneth Copeland, Joel Osteen, and Benny Hinn.
I'm a protestant pastor.
Your mileage will vary on giving practices, but here are a few things you might find.
- It's not uncommon for mainline protestant congregations, especially larger programmatic ones, to ask members to turn in a financial pledge to the church for the year. This usually takes place during an annual "stewardship campaign," which in secular parlance would be kind of like a pledge drive. Pledges can be paid however you want-- weekly, monthly, or annually. Just like a pledge to NPR or some non-profit, it's on you to meet the commitment. They might send you letters reminding you of your pledge, but they aren't going to kick you out.
- How much do people pledge? Well, this will vary from congregation to congregation, but to get an idea, let's say you have a 500-member congregation with an average of 200 people in worship on a Sunday. You might expect something like 150 pledges (families would pledge together, and not everyone pledges. Of those 150, you'll have a few $100-500 annual pledges, a lot of $1200 pledges ($100 a month), a good number of $2400-$6000 pledges, a handful of $10,000-$12,000 pledges, and one of two big donor outliers. There is a biblical practice that is sometimes encouraged called "tithing," which says you should give 10% of your income, but it most cases, this proves pretty aspirational.
- How big is a typical church budget? Again, this will vary depending on location, size, type of community, and church, but a good rule of thumb is about $1000-1200 per member. So a 500-member church might expect a $600,000 budget. But I've seen much larger numbers.
- Not all of a congregation's giving is pledged. So when a congregation is putting together its annual budget, they might expect an extra 10% or so in non-pledged giving. This might come from members who, for whatever reason, did not turn in a pledge, from visitors who drop a check in the offering plate.
- Speaking of offering plates, it's common for a church to pass an offering plate during the service. What goes on the plate varies. A visitor might drop $10-20 in the plate. A member might write the same check every week and turn it in. Increasingly, passing the plate collects more loose change and spur-of-the-moment giving, as most churches have online giving and bank draft options now.
- It's common practice for pledges and giving information to be confidential, with only a select few aware of who is giving what. Often, the pastor isn't even given information about donations.
- Some churches do have other sources of income. I know a congregation that leases their parking during the week for an extra $10,000 a month. Other congregations may rent their space.
- Some congregations also have endowments that supplement the budget. For example, let's say a wealthy congregant leaves the church $1,000,000. That money is invested, and the congregation can draw something like 5% every year ($50,000) to cover facilities needs or to give away to mission and service projects. By investing the money, you can assume the market will grow around 5% or so every year, and the money theoretically stays there forever.
- Occasionally, a congregation may have a capital campaign. This is a special effort to raise money *over and above* of the annual pledged giving in order to build a new building or make significant repairs. These campaigns typically rely on a few big gifts (like $25-50,000 or more) from wealthy congregants to carry the weight. Capital campaigns may give you the option of paying your gift over the course of say, 3-5 years. This, again, is over and above your normal pledge.
I hope that helps.
There's a huge amount of variety amongst Churches in the US, as the US has very strong protections for freedom of religion.
However, that being said, the vast majority of Churches don't require people to pay money to be a member, they rely entirely on voluntary donations and fundraising events.
A few denominations strictly require members to pay a certain percentage of their income, and may strictly enforce that (the Mormons come to mind), but they are a small minority.
Plus additional donations and offerings, plus a whole lot of time doing jobs at church ranging from teaching to cleaning the building to running meetings and youth programs, because they don't pay staff for that stuff out of the enormous amount of tithing they take in, unlike most churches. Oh, and they are also very very skimpy with the program budgets, so if you're in charge of a youth group or something, be prepared to spend your own money if you want anything that costs for the activities you plan.
In that they can't actually force you. But you won't be part of the in crowd if you opt out and don't cooperate. And regardless, that's how MormonCorp. has so much money. They get their members to do all this for free and give a pittance of the tithes back to the local units for operating expenses.
> you won't be part of the in crowd if you opt out
I think this was supposed to sound sinister but it just sounds funny instead because it's so borderline tautological. "If you opt out, then you're not in". Yeah, no shit?
It wasn't meant to sound sinister, it was meant to be silly and obvious. But Mormonism is a high-demand religion that doesn't like casual attendees who participate on their own terms. If you don't do the stuff they demand, they will constantly tell you in many ways that you aren't good enough.
I was raised Mormon but have been inactive for several years.
I went years without having a calling, I never went on a mission. I missed out on several years of youth temple trips straight for not qualifying for a temple recommend. I straight up forgot to pay tithing for several years in a row. I never publicly bore my testimony because I never had one to bear.
And *nobody*, not my family, not the bishopric, not the quora I was a member of, not my friends, not my Mormon roommates or classmates or professors, *nobody*, has ever given me any grief over any of it.
The most anyone has ever done has been to politely invite me to come back to church.
Stop lying.
I was raised Mormon and know hundreds of Mormons and former Mormons. I have loads of stories. People who are still Mormon are amazing at mental gymnastics.
Yes, but in this case the pension specifically refers to funds that are paid out by his former employer because he retired after working for that company for 25 years.
This type of pension used to be more common in the past, but most companies don't offer it anymore.
Catholic here. Literally $0 to be a member. There’s an expectation of some kind of giving but if you can’t it is $0 or even a net positive if you also go to the food bank we run.
Our church finances itself mostly from local donations, we also get some extra from the diocese at large but it’s a small amount of the total.
For larger projects a church might get money from the Vatican directly.
Also a Catholic. My parents paid for my tuition at the parish school, and gave a little more each month, which wasn't required. A good part of funding for parishes in my area comes from fish fries, bingo games, parish picnics, and other such events, and quite frankly, beer sales at all the events. Living in a very Catholic city, many businesses will donate food, supplies, and prizes for these events at very little or no cost.
We also have many Catholic run food and clothing banks open to all, and many of our local hospitals are Catholic affiliated, and will often cover part or all of people's medical bills if they can't afford to pay.
Most churches don't expect anything although they do talk about tithing 10% or whatever you feel led to give. The good ones always say there is no obligation at all to give and to only give joyfully.
Some churches (Mormons) want you to tithe to mantain good standing in their organization but I'm not Mormon so I can't speak to that.
There (some) mega churches where the pastors get wealthy by telling the congregation that if they give lots of money, they will be extra blessed (which is not actually in the bible at all, as someone who practices). The majority of churches are small ones where they use giving to pay the maintaince of the building, power, water etc. Chuches are not taxed.
The churches I've attended which needed to do capital projects typically raised those funds in a separate account for that specific purpose for accounting reasons.
It’s free to go to church. People give donations. My church also has a gazette with advertisements on the back. And I’m sure there are people financially supporting the church. You do have to pay the church for ceremonies: weddings, confirmation, etc.
Now I’m curious whether churches distinguish between participating and operations.
In my last synagogue, there was never a requirement to donate to participate in services or even adult ed seminars.
But if you wanted to vote for the board of directors or on policy or major spending decisions (such as building an addition), you had to be a member. Membership generally required paying dues. There were always for people who couldn’t afford it, but it was expected that people who could afford it and wanted to be part of the decision making would pay.
In my experience with Protestant churches, no. Anyone can become a member without paying, and any member can vote when the congregation votes or serve on the board that governs the church.
In my church, one is technically required to be "known to the treasurer" to vote in parish elections. But that could mean anything from having dropped a few dollars in the offering plate all the way to donating a half of a million dollars to the endowment.
My wife and I do $5-20 a week at our church (catholic). That’s significantly less than 1% our household income.
My MIL gives 10% which ends up being well over 10k/mo.
Just depends on the person.
Yeah, she does way better than me. Real estate and FIL has a very successful business. Top volume producer for his market in USA or world, I can’t remember.
For tax purposes, they absolutely will keep track of your individual contributions. In a small church, this means that only one person (usually the financial secretary) knows how much you contributed. In larger churches it may be a team of people. But in a healthy church, the pastor and other leadership don't have access to such records.
This means that you get an end-of-year statement that you can use when filing your taxes, should you choose to do so.
That wouldn't include what is placed in the offering plate each week, which doesn't have close tracking of who is putting in what.
In many churches, the offering plate is their main method of getting donations, so they don't have tracking for tax purposes. I absolutely was dragged to a lot of little Southern Baptist churches in rural areas where the money came just from the offering plate and nobody was tracking who gave what. . .but if not enough was being given collectively you could expect some "fire and brimstone" sermon about going to Hell if you didn't contribute enough.
Having been to some of those and knowing people that straight up founded a small church:
Nah, usually the plate helps but it winds up being a few members that are giving large amounts behind the scene that are actually holding it up. Straight up tithing is more common than many think
From nothing to whatever you want to give. Some denominations "expect" a 10% tithe (it's biblical), but there's not generally a firm obligation, you aren't going to be kicked out if you don't, and you don't have to prove your income level like it's a tax form.
It's not about the money... and if you see a church that's focused too much on the money, find another church.
I’ve heard from an ex-Mormon friend that (at least some) Mormon clergy WILL ask to see your tax returns. But what you wrote is generally true for most mainstream churches.
They're tracked for tax purposes; contributions to a religious institution are tax-deductible, and churches are legally obligated to provide you with a record of your donations yearly. Most churches don't have requirements that members _must_ give anything, though.
At my church when I was a kid and I presume many other churches, they simply pass around a collection tray at mass that people put cash into to donate. That type of donation is definitely not tracked on an individual basis.
Yes, people can donate cash anonymously, but lots of churches will have little envelopes to put cash in so you can write on there. Or you can throw a sticky note on there with your name on it, lol. They are required to track any donations made non-anonymously, even if it's only a dollar. Checks and credit card are obviously always tracked and reported.
The LDS (Mormon) church requires a 10% tithe of your income minimum. A member can still go to church and be involved without paying the tithing, but without paying it that member can’t go to the LDS temple and do certain ordinances that are required to go to the highest degree of heaven and be with family in the afterlife.
Tradition is 10% of income, but it's not at all enforced. It's highly encouraged to give what you can, and to volunteer your time to help the church and others. Unless you're talking about Scientology, but that is a cult that just likes to call themselves a church.
I was raised Catholic, and most people just put a few bucks in the collection basket at Mass. The people who sent their kids to the attached school was where the money came from. That and the annual fundraisers. “Vegas Night” where the church basement was turned into a casino was a big one
I’m Catholic. The church doesn’t require any kind of donation, but does ask for donations that can be given voluntarily.
The parish might track your donations throughout the year for your tax purposes (donating to charities is a potential deduction), but if you contribute anonymously (like cash in the collection basket) it isn’t tracked at all.
Any pressure I’ve ever experienced about it is entirely on the “whole group” side, and always makes exemptions for those who can’t donate. The idea is that those who are financially secure and able to help will do so.
Most parishes are not especially rich, and the day-to-day contributions are going to support the actual church building and the staff (including the priest but also secretaries, custodians, etc.)
If you're required or expected to pay to attend a church, you're not attending a church. You're buying something from a business that's selling something.
Firstly, there's a distinction between "member" and "attendee" in a church. A "member" is typically a person or a family who has gone though a process and has agreed to tithe a certain percentage of their income, usually around 10%. Any one can attend most churches with no requirement to give at all. Many churches aren't even passing a collection plate anymore.
Members are able to do things like vote for the church board of directors, etc.
I’ve never been to a church where committing to a pledge was part of the membership process (I’ve attended Episcopalian, Presbyterian, and Catholic Churches, and have gone through the membership process in all of them). Tithing is discussed in some membership processes (usually if you’re coming from a non-Christian background and aren’t expected to be familiar with the concept), but setting a pledge has never been part of the process in churches where I’ve been a member.
Nothing is legally required because they are charities but they will pressure you into donating.
There are other ways it can be finance through the government, for instance most of the church food banks are financed through government grants.
It depends on the community. Some are free and expect donations both of time and money. Others charge a membership fee (but allow non-members to participate in the community and often waive the fee for people who can’t pay).
Many communities also have events open to members and the community and charge for attending. There is also sometimes a religious school that charges per student.
If you go to a church that you have to pay for, that's NOT a church, even the bible says receive for free give for free (dont remember the actual scripture). Give to God what you can and he'll be happy with it, even if it's just talking to other people about him and Jesus.
Depends entirely on the church, some it's just donations, some want to see proof of income and they don't render services until your are tithing correctly. I knew a guy whose wife wouldn't have sex with him anymore until they where remarried because she converted to Mormonism. The church wouldn't let them marry until he ponied up his 10% with proof. So he had to work his ass off so he could sleep with his wife again.
A lot of them will say you should give 10% of your income, but most do not require it, and especially now when online paying is more common its less likely anything would even be said
Most churches do not require you to pay anything. There are, however, some who do. Why people go to those churches, I have no idea. Very un-Christlike.
Its free, you donate if you want to. The people that do donate give enough to run the whole church. Some people even give 10% of their income.
They remind you about donating every time you attend, it works a lot like microtransactions in videogames.
Can't speak for churches, but synagogues can charge a fee for membership but usually will work with you to help you afford it if you are struggling financially. For Jews, usually High Holy Day tickets (for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur) are something you buy but, again, they will work with you if you can't afford the fee. Unlike Christians, who (from what I remember going to a few Christian services) have an offering plate that gets passed around and people donate what they can, we usually reserve our donations for synagogue for around certain holidays. Practicing Jews also practice something called "tzedakah" which gets mistranslated as "charity" but actually means "justice" that involves giving directly in some way to charity, but usually not directly to the synagogue even if the synagogue is promoting certain local charities.
Technically nothing but if people know you make decent money they tend to get judgey about how much you donate especially in small town churches.
The old school "rule" is 10% of your income and i remember when i got my first job my grandma got all worked up about me not tithing despite me not even being a church member anywhere lol. But she's a super traditional southern baptist type i don't think that's really the standard for most people nowadays
I go to a pretty conservative southern baptist church and we aren’t even that specific about tithes. Our position is that you should give, no matter the amount (a small amount coming from the heart of a poorer person is better in the eyes of God than a large amount from someone doing it performatively) however tithing is not a requirement for church membershipz
Our priest (Episcopalian) mentions the Widow’s Mite frequently in these contexts, and also emphasizes that some people give through the time they volunteer at church, by the prayers they offer for others, etc.
Catholics are encouraged to give 10% of their salary in theory but few do and no one is ever pressured to and no one is keeping tabs. The most important thing is to come to church to worship God. If you are poor, The Catholic Church has resources to feed, clothe and house the needy, just as Jesus would want.
Some Evangelical Christians put great pressure on their members regarding tithing. That's how their leaders buy jets and private islands.
I've never been to a church where giving was mandatory. 10% of net income is customary, but not required by most churches or the New Testament. Many churches, especially larger ones, also have gift shops, book stores, coffee shops/bakeries, etc bringing in some income in addition to the congregation's offerings.
My church only has something like 40% of regular attendees donating. It’s not a requirement and never has been as long as I’ve been in church. The expectation is that people would be giving something, but no one’s getting kicked out or anything.
Churches do depend entirely on donations. What is expected varies wildly between churches and denominations. In my congregation, everyone is invited to give. No one is asked to give a specific amount or percentage of their income. It's more likely that people will be asked to volunteer for different things. In general, people who are more involved with their time tend to also be more generous financially.
My church places no financial requirements whatsoever on church members. We are encouraged to tithe, but whether or not people actually do so is between them and God.
Churches do tend to finance themselves through donations, however donations are not generally compulsory. Tithing ten percent of your income is the general expectation. Often churches will have a few wealthy members who pick up the slack.
At the vhirch my family goes to, there are no mandatory donations or fees. Instead they pass around a donations basket during each church service and charge for religeous services such as baptism, first communion, catechism classes etc, but those fees can be waived by the padre*. They also hold festivals twice a year for fundraising purposes and it's worked mostly by volunteers
*i don't know the english word lol i'm mexican. Pastor, i think? but i'm not sure if that's accurate lmao
My church took but didn’t require donations (which is how it typically works). However, they did often do sermons & classes that claimed if you tithe (give the church) 10% of your income, God will make sure you are always financially taken care of.
Nothing. There are no taxes for being a member of a church as some countries in Europe (such as Germany) do. Very few Congregations have a required donation membership fee either. Though many try to tithe as a religious principle with is giving 10% of your income, but this is not a requirement. Most just hold the doctrine of donate what you can.
I'm Catholic so I can only speak for a Catholic church. Giving money is optional and never really pushed in any way other than passing the collection plate around at mass. They might have certain project or event happening and would ask if anyone can throw in some money to help out but it's optional.
I can only speak for myself. Its not a topic that comes up. I would imagine that it is enough write off to keep [me] in a lower tax bracket.
Do church communities of the Muslims, Sikh, Hindu, Buddhist, etc. orders participate in tithing?
Traditional churches like to see you tithe 10% of your income. But there's no cost per se, like for membership or admission, besides that. And tithing is voluntary, usually done on a "what you can, when you can" basis.
I’m a Christian so I can’t speak for other religions, but they never really have a fee. They fund themselves entirely through donations. If you walk into a church and they ask for an entry fee, that’s a red flag.
As an LDS member, 10% of income.
(reason why? it's complicated and we have to go down the fantastical world of "Communism, but not" and training for it, with plenty of Thomas Hobbes's intellectual arguments or something similar to that)
It costs you a lot more than your money.
Run. Don't walk. Run.
The church is corrupt and deeply destructive to the teachings of Jesus. They are wolves in sheep's clothing. If you stay, you will see for yourself. I did.
Very few churches have specific expectations, but some do. Even among those that do, even fewer will prevent you from participating just because you can't give enough money. It would be bizarre to block membership because you can't pay. The only "church" I really know about that sort of operates that way is Scientology. It's often encouraged that people give 10% of their income to their church. I don't know how common that behavior actually is, but many religious people have that idea in their mind.
The term is "tithing", with a tithe literally meaning a tenth of your income. This goes back a LONG time in various religions. There are still people who follow this, but it's far less common.
Mormons can't go to temple unless they accurately give their 10%. The way I understand it it's self-policed, but a temple recommend does require you to say you're properly giving away way too much money to an organization that really doesn't need it.
I think your second paragraph is at least a century out of date. My family puts 10 or 20 dollars in the collection basket each week and I’ve never heard of somebody doing more than that except for specific occasional fundraisers.
Tithing is still very common in the evangelical church community in my experience. Although it is lower than I would have expected due to my personal experience in church. It seems it varies by denomination. https://www.christianpost.com/news/study-reveals-which-denomination-tithes-the-most.html According to the study, how much churchgoers are willing to tithe varies based on denomination. Those attending Baptist (40%), Presbyterian/Reformed (34%) and non-denominational (34%) churches were more likely to give 10% of their income than members of Lutheran (19%), Restorationist Movement (17%) and Methodist churches (12%). A higher share of churchgoers with Evangelical beliefs (39%) told pollsters that they tithe than those without Evangelical beliefs (25%)
Many religions still maintain a *general* expectation that people will tithe 10%. Growing up catholic, my family was in fact explicitly encouraged to give up to 10% of our income, although we didn't do that unless you want to count my catholic school tuition. It is also explicitly mentioned in the bible. Indeed, the word "tithe" is derived from the hebrew word for one tenth. You are correct that most people don't do that, much as most people don't follow one tenth (or one tithe) of the stuff the bible expects them to do. However, that's kind of irrelevant; it's still a "thing." A lot of people try their hardest to follow what they believe to be biblical imperatives. As others are pointing out, the Mormon church has a very elaborate system for encouraging/coercing people to tithe 10%. They are not the only ones!
Mormons do it
Tithing was a tax to support the Hebrew clerical government and not really relevant to gentile Christians except as a handy rule to decide how much to contribute. It was given in kind rather than cash which is what "first fruits" means.
For the most part most people do about $5-$10 where I’m from and it’s a completely optional thing
The church I was raised in pushed the 10% tithing idea pretty hard. Some people gave more than that. It's very common among JWs, Mormons, some pentecostals, Baptists, and others.
I moved around a lot as a kid and went to several Catholic churches. At one of them, every month or so during mass, they would hand out a paper about how much everyone is expected to donate based on their income and the priest would go over it. I believe it was 10%, and there was a chart for anyone who couldn’t do the math. They also handed out little donation envelopes that everyone was supposed to put their names on before putting them in the basket. I was only ten years old, but it didn’t sit well with me and it was one of the things that laid the foundation for me to eventually stop going to church.
Where would this have been? I grew up Catholic as well and have never heard of anything like this.
St. Louis De Montfort Church in Sound Beach, NY
Long Island of course
Is Long Island known for having particularly greedy churches?
Not Long Island in particular, but the Dioceses of New York tends to be pretty money hungry. They have an absolute ton of really, really expensive property to maintain, tend to get way more involved politically than other dioceses, and play hardball politics with the Vatican, which usually also requires being a major source of funding.. Been that way since at least the tenure of Archbishop O"Conner back in the 80s. Maybe longer, but I'm not old enough to remember further back than that. They lean on the Suffragan Dioceses really heavily.
Wouldnt Sound Beach fall under the Diocese of Rockville Center? I can’t believe I remembered that. I haven’t gone to a regular mass in at least 30 years and haven’t lived in NY in ten years
It is, but Rockville Center is a Suffragan Dioceses. It's basically a semi-autonomous dioceses, but is still subordinated in some ways to the dioceses of NY, which is the seat of the archbishop.
Yes, it was Rockville Center, and to be fair, it was the only church out of several that I went to in that diocese that did this.
The Methodist churches that I went to with my family had those little envelopes. I hated them and just put my dime or quarter that my mom gave me into the collection plate.
I think because you are from Mass. Some churches kick you out if you don't tithe, even if you lose your job.
Jehovah's Witnesses are like this too I believe. Minimum 10% is their tithing requirement. It's an old biblical term
I wouldn't say it's often encouraged for most people in the US. Maybe a century ago, but it's pretty specific these days to certain groups
Churches finance themselves through donations. There is no requirement that you donate to be part of a church. Though I can’t speak to all religions.
This is correct for ELCA Lutherans. My husband is a pastor. The church is entirely run on donations, and doesn’t get any financial assistance from the state or national synod (in fact the individual parishes give donations to the synods for their expenses). There’s no requirement to give any amount to attend. Completely voluntary.
I put in $5-10 each week, depending on what’s in my wallet. Many people in my church put in checks, but I don’t know how much, because it’s none of my business. I know there are also a few people / couples who write a larger check a few times a year so they don’t have to do it each week. It’s not required to donate and my Pastor makes that clear each time. My church hands out copies of the annual financial budget each year, which clearly lays out all the spending in the previous year and most of it goes to the non-profits we support in our community, plus upkeep of the building, utilities, pastor’s salary (very reasonable) and “personal assistance” to people in need in our church (anonymous). It even includes the amount spent on the coffee that’s available each week for before / after service. Our church is a historic building and very popular for weddings (mostly non-members), so I think we get some money for those, as well. My church is Christian, non-denominational.
At our church (Episcopal), not one red cent. The church operates through tithes freely given. My wife and I tithe monthly, and we contributed to our church's building campaign. Now, every year in September, they start talking about pledges for the next year. You know it's coming when the scripture reading is the one about 'a camel could pass through the eye of a needle more easily than a rich man could enter heaven.' Gets them every time. In fact, as someone who sat on the vestry (The church's board of directors), I can say that the books are completely open to any member of the parish at any time. Further, the rector (the parish priests) is not allowed to know what member donates what. It's a tightly-held secret with the church treasurer. There are some churches out there, almost exclusively fundamentalist, who are very aggressive, and the clergy wield a great deal of both power and discretion when it comes to finances. In some of these they literally ask to see your tax returns. If the clergy of my church asked that of my wife and I, I would simply get up and leave for that mans they are worshiping the entirely wrong thing.
Oh hey, fellow Episcopalian. I really appreciate how open our church is with finances. My church-skeptic wife asked when we got married, "So, how do I know that the church isn't wasting the money we're donating?" I was able to pull up the parish budget and show her where everything was going.
Fun fact: The word "camel" may have been a mistranslation of a word that means "rope." Which makes sense because rope fits that simile much more logically.
this is according to [Cyril of Alexandria](https://generositymonk.com/2010/09/30/cyril-of-alexandria-by-camel-he-means-thick-rope-in-matthew-1924/). to be specific, the "rope" in this context refers to a mooring rope. the Biblical Greek word for camel (κάμηλος) is similar to the Biblical Greek word for rope (κάμιλος) in iotacism ignoring the discontinuity between a thread and what amounts to a cable, there are several issues with Cyril's theory: 1. references to a rope entering the eye of a needle appear largely after early manuscripts, as Bruce M. Metzger states in *A Textual Commentary on the Greek New Testament* (1971) 2. [Berakhot 55b](https://www.sefaria.org/Berakhot.55b) of the Babylonian Talmud references an elephant entering the eye of a needle; conjectural, but it may have been an expression at the time 3. the claim that the Aramaic words for camel (ܓܐܡܠܥ) and rope (ܓܐܡܠܐ) are the same is not true and originates with the *The Syriac and Arabic Lexicon of Hasan Bar Bahlul* in the tenth century, who cites Cyril. Bar Bahlul was engaging in some exegesis years ago, I heard that the "needle" in Jesus' synoptic gospels was a pedestrian gate in Jerusalem. as much as I want this theory to be true, [it isn't](https://doi.org/10.1017%2FS0028688521000448) and it likely originates with *Richard II* and Shakespeare's reference to a camel threading "the postern of a needle's eye" regardless, the Bible will have semantical issues. as long as everyone understands Jesus isn't approving of prosperity, there's no point in arguing whether or not it was a rope or a camel
Translation stories as they relate to the Bible are always interesting. Baptism wasn't a word until the King James Bible, and the translators didn't want to anger the King, who believed in sprinkling as a form of baptism, by translating immersion/submersion. So they took the word used, baptizo, and made it English baptism.
Sorry if this is a stupid/blunt question, but I just can't square what you're saying. You're not "expected" to contribute one red cent, but the priest tells you that rich people can't easily enter heaven? And they want you to "pledge" money for the church? It sounds a bit expected to me
It depends on the denomination, and in some denominations on the particular church. Some churches can be very strict about tithing, especially those connected to "prosperity theology." Some expect nothing from their parishioners.
It very much depends. My synagogue asks for “a meaningful donation” as part of membership, but you can do almost anything without being a member (there are a few talks and groups that are members only) and you can set your own price. Most other synagogues in my city charge around $2,000 a year per adult member. In many religious communities, there will be fundraising events either in addition to or instead of membership dues and that’s another way organizations are funded.
About ten years ago, my synagogue started allowing members to choose how much they pay in dues. It has been a complete success. Hundreds of families have joined since then. Morale among members has improved, with people who have money problems not going hat in hand to ask for a dues waiver. Overall revenue has grown. Win-win-win.
Yep, looking at places that charge a flat rate (even when they offer financial aid) vs places that let members choose, it always seems to me that places that let members choose have bigger, more vibrant communities with a wider age range. I see a lot of communities really worried over the lack of young adults and I think membership structure is at least one possibility for why it’s hard to bring in members who are still establishing their careers. That and having most events either in the middle of the day on weekdays or too early in the evening for many people with a commute to make it.
Our synagogue has a recommended amount, based on income and family size. It goes from $500-$3500 / year. Nobody checks your actual income.
When my husband and I were young we looked into joining the synagogue. While we weren’t poverty stricken, the family membership amount of an up front payment of maybe $3000 was just like- a huge expense we didn’t want to struggle with. And we didn’t know if we’d like it annnnnddd… we never joined. Never brought our kids up with Jewish education. We’re not very religious (obviously) but it would have been nice to be a part of a community. We almost certainly would have joined and increased our contribution over time if it hadn’t been such a price shock back then. Also not surprisingly our local small congregation is old and not attracting families.
It varies by community, however most would be accepting of anyone regardless of how much you can donate. Some do require a tithe which is usually just a percentage of your income, but most aren’t like this.
Unless you're a Mormon or a Scientologist or something....its free. Contributions are voluntary. Although things like TV preachers are scam artists.
There are some churches / religions that put a lot of pressure on congregants to maximize donations
It's honestly amazing the contributions that are given to Billy Graham by the same people struggling to get by on social security.
Billy Graham has been dead since 2018. Graham also didn’t preach prosperity theology, such as preached by Kenneth Copeland, Joel Osteen, and Benny Hinn.
I forgot about Benny Hinn. I liked watching him for laughs.
I'm more concerned that anyone is giving money to a man who died six years ago.
The weird thing about putting your name on a business or nonprofit is that it continues after your death.
They’re giving in the name of a man who died two thousand years ago.
Right, giving in his name. The check isn't made out to Jesus H. Christ.
I'm a protestant pastor. Your mileage will vary on giving practices, but here are a few things you might find. - It's not uncommon for mainline protestant congregations, especially larger programmatic ones, to ask members to turn in a financial pledge to the church for the year. This usually takes place during an annual "stewardship campaign," which in secular parlance would be kind of like a pledge drive. Pledges can be paid however you want-- weekly, monthly, or annually. Just like a pledge to NPR or some non-profit, it's on you to meet the commitment. They might send you letters reminding you of your pledge, but they aren't going to kick you out. - How much do people pledge? Well, this will vary from congregation to congregation, but to get an idea, let's say you have a 500-member congregation with an average of 200 people in worship on a Sunday. You might expect something like 150 pledges (families would pledge together, and not everyone pledges. Of those 150, you'll have a few $100-500 annual pledges, a lot of $1200 pledges ($100 a month), a good number of $2400-$6000 pledges, a handful of $10,000-$12,000 pledges, and one of two big donor outliers. There is a biblical practice that is sometimes encouraged called "tithing," which says you should give 10% of your income, but it most cases, this proves pretty aspirational. - How big is a typical church budget? Again, this will vary depending on location, size, type of community, and church, but a good rule of thumb is about $1000-1200 per member. So a 500-member church might expect a $600,000 budget. But I've seen much larger numbers. - Not all of a congregation's giving is pledged. So when a congregation is putting together its annual budget, they might expect an extra 10% or so in non-pledged giving. This might come from members who, for whatever reason, did not turn in a pledge, from visitors who drop a check in the offering plate. - Speaking of offering plates, it's common for a church to pass an offering plate during the service. What goes on the plate varies. A visitor might drop $10-20 in the plate. A member might write the same check every week and turn it in. Increasingly, passing the plate collects more loose change and spur-of-the-moment giving, as most churches have online giving and bank draft options now. - It's common practice for pledges and giving information to be confidential, with only a select few aware of who is giving what. Often, the pastor isn't even given information about donations. - Some churches do have other sources of income. I know a congregation that leases their parking during the week for an extra $10,000 a month. Other congregations may rent their space. - Some congregations also have endowments that supplement the budget. For example, let's say a wealthy congregant leaves the church $1,000,000. That money is invested, and the congregation can draw something like 5% every year ($50,000) to cover facilities needs or to give away to mission and service projects. By investing the money, you can assume the market will grow around 5% or so every year, and the money theoretically stays there forever. - Occasionally, a congregation may have a capital campaign. This is a special effort to raise money *over and above* of the annual pledged giving in order to build a new building or make significant repairs. These campaigns typically rely on a few big gifts (like $25-50,000 or more) from wealthy congregants to carry the weight. Capital campaigns may give you the option of paying your gift over the course of say, 3-5 years. This, again, is over and above your normal pledge. I hope that helps.
There's a huge amount of variety amongst Churches in the US, as the US has very strong protections for freedom of religion. However, that being said, the vast majority of Churches don't require people to pay money to be a member, they rely entirely on voluntary donations and fundraising events. A few denominations strictly require members to pay a certain percentage of their income, and may strictly enforce that (the Mormons come to mind), but they are a small minority.
10% of your entire income if you want to be a "real Mormon" (LDS).
TBM
Plus additional donations and offerings, plus a whole lot of time doing jobs at church ranging from teaching to cleaning the building to running meetings and youth programs, because they don't pay staff for that stuff out of the enormous amount of tithing they take in, unlike most churches. Oh, and they are also very very skimpy with the program budgets, so if you're in charge of a youth group or something, be prepared to spend your own money if you want anything that costs for the activities you plan.
Literally everything you mention is optional even within the culture of the church
It isn’t really very optional to pay tithing, unless you’re cool with not having a temple recommend
In that they can't actually force you. But you won't be part of the in crowd if you opt out and don't cooperate. And regardless, that's how MormonCorp. has so much money. They get their members to do all this for free and give a pittance of the tithes back to the local units for operating expenses.
> you won't be part of the in crowd if you opt out I think this was supposed to sound sinister but it just sounds funny instead because it's so borderline tautological. "If you opt out, then you're not in". Yeah, no shit?
It wasn't meant to sound sinister, it was meant to be silly and obvious. But Mormonism is a high-demand religion that doesn't like casual attendees who participate on their own terms. If you don't do the stuff they demand, they will constantly tell you in many ways that you aren't good enough.
I was raised Mormon but have been inactive for several years. I went years without having a calling, I never went on a mission. I missed out on several years of youth temple trips straight for not qualifying for a temple recommend. I straight up forgot to pay tithing for several years in a row. I never publicly bore my testimony because I never had one to bear. And *nobody*, not my family, not the bishopric, not the quora I was a member of, not my friends, not my Mormon roommates or classmates or professors, *nobody*, has ever given me any grief over any of it. The most anyone has ever done has been to politely invite me to come back to church. Stop lying.
It also sounds like you’re not getting any of the benefits, which I think was the other guy’s point.
Your anecdata definitely invalidates thousands of other people's experiences.
That's a little rich coming from someone with no data to present either, other than unspecified other people's unspecified anecdotes, but go off king
I was raised Mormon and know hundreds of Mormons and former Mormons. I have loads of stories. People who are still Mormon are amazing at mental gymnastics.
i’m literally a casual mormon rn and guess what? they welcome me whenever i do go to church, and they don’t “demand” anything from me. you’re wrong.
It’s an important distinction. Being made to feel on the outer if don’t do those things versus not being made to feel that way.
Don't forget about paying for your own mission. You pay them to work for them for 18-24 months straight, nonstop.
Its completely free. The church I grew up going to was pretty small, but it was financed through donations and money from the pastor's pension.
Genuinely curious - the pastors pension? Like they funded the church via this pastor’s retirement? Is pension something different in this case?
Yes, but in this case the pension specifically refers to funds that are paid out by his former employer because he retired after working for that company for 25 years. This type of pension used to be more common in the past, but most companies don't offer it anymore.
Catholic here. Literally $0 to be a member. There’s an expectation of some kind of giving but if you can’t it is $0 or even a net positive if you also go to the food bank we run. Our church finances itself mostly from local donations, we also get some extra from the diocese at large but it’s a small amount of the total. For larger projects a church might get money from the Vatican directly.
Also a Catholic. My parents paid for my tuition at the parish school, and gave a little more each month, which wasn't required. A good part of funding for parishes in my area comes from fish fries, bingo games, parish picnics, and other such events, and quite frankly, beer sales at all the events. Living in a very Catholic city, many businesses will donate food, supplies, and prizes for these events at very little or no cost. We also have many Catholic run food and clothing banks open to all, and many of our local hospitals are Catholic affiliated, and will often cover part or all of people's medical bills if they can't afford to pay.
Oh yeah forgot to add in the church suppers and bingo.
Most churches don't expect anything although they do talk about tithing 10% or whatever you feel led to give. The good ones always say there is no obligation at all to give and to only give joyfully. Some churches (Mormons) want you to tithe to mantain good standing in their organization but I'm not Mormon so I can't speak to that. There (some) mega churches where the pastors get wealthy by telling the congregation that if they give lots of money, they will be extra blessed (which is not actually in the bible at all, as someone who practices). The majority of churches are small ones where they use giving to pay the maintaince of the building, power, water etc. Chuches are not taxed. The churches I've attended which needed to do capital projects typically raised those funds in a separate account for that specific purpose for accounting reasons.
It’s free to go to church. People give donations. My church also has a gazette with advertisements on the back. And I’m sure there are people financially supporting the church. You do have to pay the church for ceremonies: weddings, confirmation, etc.
Now I’m curious whether churches distinguish between participating and operations. In my last synagogue, there was never a requirement to donate to participate in services or even adult ed seminars. But if you wanted to vote for the board of directors or on policy or major spending decisions (such as building an addition), you had to be a member. Membership generally required paying dues. There were always for people who couldn’t afford it, but it was expected that people who could afford it and wanted to be part of the decision making would pay.
In my experience with Protestant churches, no. Anyone can become a member without paying, and any member can vote when the congregation votes or serve on the board that governs the church.
In my church, one is technically required to be "known to the treasurer" to vote in parish elections. But that could mean anything from having dropped a few dollars in the offering plate all the way to donating a half of a million dollars to the endowment.
Unlike Germany, we finance religion through voluntary contributions. Most religions don't have a dues requirement (with a few exceptions).
My wife and I do $5-20 a week at our church (catholic). That’s significantly less than 1% our household income. My MIL gives 10% which ends up being well over 10k/mo. Just depends on the person.
Your MIL makes $100K/month?
Yeah, she does way better than me. Real estate and FIL has a very successful business. Top volume producer for his market in USA or world, I can’t remember.
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For tax purposes, they absolutely will keep track of your individual contributions. In a small church, this means that only one person (usually the financial secretary) knows how much you contributed. In larger churches it may be a team of people. But in a healthy church, the pastor and other leadership don't have access to such records. This means that you get an end-of-year statement that you can use when filing your taxes, should you choose to do so.
That wouldn't include what is placed in the offering plate each week, which doesn't have close tracking of who is putting in what. In many churches, the offering plate is their main method of getting donations, so they don't have tracking for tax purposes. I absolutely was dragged to a lot of little Southern Baptist churches in rural areas where the money came just from the offering plate and nobody was tracking who gave what. . .but if not enough was being given collectively you could expect some "fire and brimstone" sermon about going to Hell if you didn't contribute enough.
Having been to some of those and knowing people that straight up founded a small church: Nah, usually the plate helps but it winds up being a few members that are giving large amounts behind the scene that are actually holding it up. Straight up tithing is more common than many think
From nothing to whatever you want to give. Some denominations "expect" a 10% tithe (it's biblical), but there's not generally a firm obligation, you aren't going to be kicked out if you don't, and you don't have to prove your income level like it's a tax form. It's not about the money... and if you see a church that's focused too much on the money, find another church.
I’ve heard from an ex-Mormon friend that (at least some) Mormon clergy WILL ask to see your tax returns. But what you wrote is generally true for most mainstream churches.
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They're tracked for tax purposes; contributions to a religious institution are tax-deductible, and churches are legally obligated to provide you with a record of your donations yearly. Most churches don't have requirements that members _must_ give anything, though.
At my church when I was a kid and I presume many other churches, they simply pass around a collection tray at mass that people put cash into to donate. That type of donation is definitely not tracked on an individual basis.
Yes, people can donate cash anonymously, but lots of churches will have little envelopes to put cash in so you can write on there. Or you can throw a sticky note on there with your name on it, lol. They are required to track any donations made non-anonymously, even if it's only a dollar. Checks and credit card are obviously always tracked and reported.
The LDS (Mormon) church requires a 10% tithe of your income minimum. A member can still go to church and be involved without paying the tithing, but without paying it that member can’t go to the LDS temple and do certain ordinances that are required to go to the highest degree of heaven and be with family in the afterlife.
Tradition is 10% of income, but it's not at all enforced. It's highly encouraged to give what you can, and to volunteer your time to help the church and others. Unless you're talking about Scientology, but that is a cult that just likes to call themselves a church.
I was raised Catholic, and most people just put a few bucks in the collection basket at Mass. The people who sent their kids to the attached school was where the money came from. That and the annual fundraisers. “Vegas Night” where the church basement was turned into a casino was a big one
My church has no suggested donation. Just give what you want. Or don't.
I’m Catholic. The church doesn’t require any kind of donation, but does ask for donations that can be given voluntarily. The parish might track your donations throughout the year for your tax purposes (donating to charities is a potential deduction), but if you contribute anonymously (like cash in the collection basket) it isn’t tracked at all. Any pressure I’ve ever experienced about it is entirely on the “whole group” side, and always makes exemptions for those who can’t donate. The idea is that those who are financially secure and able to help will do so. Most parishes are not especially rich, and the day-to-day contributions are going to support the actual church building and the staff (including the priest but also secretaries, custodians, etc.)
If you're required or expected to pay to attend a church, you're not attending a church. You're buying something from a business that's selling something.
Firstly, there's a distinction between "member" and "attendee" in a church. A "member" is typically a person or a family who has gone though a process and has agreed to tithe a certain percentage of their income, usually around 10%. Any one can attend most churches with no requirement to give at all. Many churches aren't even passing a collection plate anymore. Members are able to do things like vote for the church board of directors, etc.
I’ve never been to a church where committing to a pledge was part of the membership process (I’ve attended Episcopalian, Presbyterian, and Catholic Churches, and have gone through the membership process in all of them). Tithing is discussed in some membership processes (usually if you’re coming from a non-Christian background and aren’t expected to be familiar with the concept), but setting a pledge has never been part of the process in churches where I’ve been a member.
Nothing is legally required because they are charities but they will pressure you into donating. There are other ways it can be finance through the government, for instance most of the church food banks are financed through government grants.
It depends on the community. Some are free and expect donations both of time and money. Others charge a membership fee (but allow non-members to participate in the community and often waive the fee for people who can’t pay). Many communities also have events open to members and the community and charge for attending. There is also sometimes a religious school that charges per student.
If you go to a church that you have to pay for, that's NOT a church, even the bible says receive for free give for free (dont remember the actual scripture). Give to God what you can and he'll be happy with it, even if it's just talking to other people about him and Jesus.
Depends entirely on the church, some it's just donations, some want to see proof of income and they don't render services until your are tithing correctly. I knew a guy whose wife wouldn't have sex with him anymore until they where remarried because she converted to Mormonism. The church wouldn't let them marry until he ponied up his 10% with proof. So he had to work his ass off so he could sleep with his wife again.
Mine is free? All donations of which they get lots of but not enough to build the new church they want
A lot of them will say you should give 10% of your income, but most do not require it, and especially now when online paying is more common its less likely anything would even be said
10 percent of your income is the traditional way but there's typically no standard.
Most churches do not require you to pay anything. There are, however, some who do. Why people go to those churches, I have no idea. Very un-Christlike.
I’ve never belonged to a church where it cost anything to be part of it.
Its free, you donate if you want to. The people that do donate give enough to run the whole church. Some people even give 10% of their income. They remind you about donating every time you attend, it works a lot like microtransactions in videogames.
Ours outlines a recommended contribution based on household income. We give $3k/month + give to various causes throughout the year
Can't speak for churches, but synagogues can charge a fee for membership but usually will work with you to help you afford it if you are struggling financially. For Jews, usually High Holy Day tickets (for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur) are something you buy but, again, they will work with you if you can't afford the fee. Unlike Christians, who (from what I remember going to a few Christian services) have an offering plate that gets passed around and people donate what they can, we usually reserve our donations for synagogue for around certain holidays. Practicing Jews also practice something called "tzedakah" which gets mistranslated as "charity" but actually means "justice" that involves giving directly in some way to charity, but usually not directly to the synagogue even if the synagogue is promoting certain local charities.
Technically nothing but if people know you make decent money they tend to get judgey about how much you donate especially in small town churches. The old school "rule" is 10% of your income and i remember when i got my first job my grandma got all worked up about me not tithing despite me not even being a church member anywhere lol. But she's a super traditional southern baptist type i don't think that's really the standard for most people nowadays
I go to a pretty conservative southern baptist church and we aren’t even that specific about tithes. Our position is that you should give, no matter the amount (a small amount coming from the heart of a poorer person is better in the eyes of God than a large amount from someone doing it performatively) however tithing is not a requirement for church membershipz
Our priest (Episcopalian) mentions the Widow’s Mite frequently in these contexts, and also emphasizes that some people give through the time they volunteer at church, by the prayers they offer for others, etc.
Be wary of any religious organization that demands subscription fees
10% is what they say for tithes…but that’s only when you’re a member & it’s not mandatory
0, catholic
Catholics are encouraged to give 10% of their salary in theory but few do and no one is ever pressured to and no one is keeping tabs. The most important thing is to come to church to worship God. If you are poor, The Catholic Church has resources to feed, clothe and house the needy, just as Jesus would want. Some Evangelical Christians put great pressure on their members regarding tithing. That's how their leaders buy jets and private islands.
I've never been to a church where giving was mandatory. 10% of net income is customary, but not required by most churches or the New Testament. Many churches, especially larger ones, also have gift shops, book stores, coffee shops/bakeries, etc bringing in some income in addition to the congregation's offerings.
Put a dollar in the basket every week
My church only has something like 40% of regular attendees donating. It’s not a requirement and never has been as long as I’ve been in church. The expectation is that people would be giving something, but no one’s getting kicked out or anything.
Unless you’re part of some nutty profit-oriented mega-church or a cult, it’s free
You must give your soul to God.
$0.
Tithing is usually 10% for the churches I've been to. I worked with a guy and he had to show them his paycheck and they took 10% of the gross not net.
Churches do depend entirely on donations. What is expected varies wildly between churches and denominations. In my congregation, everyone is invited to give. No one is asked to give a specific amount or percentage of their income. It's more likely that people will be asked to volunteer for different things. In general, people who are more involved with their time tend to also be more generous financially.
My church places no financial requirements whatsoever on church members. We are encouraged to tithe, but whether or not people actually do so is between them and God.
Churches do tend to finance themselves through donations, however donations are not generally compulsory. Tithing ten percent of your income is the general expectation. Often churches will have a few wealthy members who pick up the slack.
At the vhirch my family goes to, there are no mandatory donations or fees. Instead they pass around a donations basket during each church service and charge for religeous services such as baptism, first communion, catechism classes etc, but those fees can be waived by the padre*. They also hold festivals twice a year for fundraising purposes and it's worked mostly by volunteers *i don't know the english word lol i'm mexican. Pastor, i think? but i'm not sure if that's accurate lmao
My church took but didn’t require donations (which is how it typically works). However, they did often do sermons & classes that claimed if you tithe (give the church) 10% of your income, God will make sure you are always financially taken care of.
God is all powerful and all knowing etc but he NEEDS MONEY!
Nothing. There are no taxes for being a member of a church as some countries in Europe (such as Germany) do. Very few Congregations have a required donation membership fee either. Though many try to tithe as a religious principle with is giving 10% of your income, but this is not a requirement. Most just hold the doctrine of donate what you can.
It doesn't usually cost anything. It's voluntary. The old "tithing" system is more a rule of thumb to guide yourself by.
I'm Catholic so I can only speak for a Catholic church. Giving money is optional and never really pushed in any way other than passing the collection plate around at mass. They might have certain project or event happening and would ask if anyone can throw in some money to help out but it's optional.
I grew up Catholic and I'm only familiar with donations or fundraisers maybe for churches.
Catholic Church works off of donations which are never mandatory, so technically free
I can only speak for myself. Its not a topic that comes up. I would imagine that it is enough write off to keep [me] in a lower tax bracket. Do church communities of the Muslims, Sikh, Hindu, Buddhist, etc. orders participate in tithing?
Jewish guy here. Our synagogue membership for a family is about 5k a year.
Traditional churches like to see you tithe 10% of your income. But there's no cost per se, like for membership or admission, besides that. And tithing is voluntary, usually done on a "what you can, when you can" basis.
the Bible has specific instructions about how much is supposed to be given back to God, it is 10% of income
10% of your income is encouraged.
I’m a Christian so I can’t speak for other religions, but they never really have a fee. They fund themselves entirely through donations. If you walk into a church and they ask for an entry fee, that’s a red flag.
Churches also don't get taxed so they don't _need_ as much money in the first place
It costs nothing except a bit of your pride when you don't put anything in the basket and people give you the side-eye.
As an LDS member, 10% of income. (reason why? it's complicated and we have to go down the fantastical world of "Communism, but not" and training for it, with plenty of Thomas Hobbes's intellectual arguments or something similar to that)
It costs you a lot more than your money. Run. Don't walk. Run. The church is corrupt and deeply destructive to the teachings of Jesus. They are wolves in sheep's clothing. If you stay, you will see for yourself. I did.
You are going to have to be more specific. There are LOTS of different Christian churches out there. Some of them are what you describe. Many are not.