On Giving

The financial support of the congregation rests entirely upon the giving of its members. Nonmembers are welcome to contribute to the congregation’s ministry, but are not expected to do so.

The regular offerings of members are often called tithes. Tithes are collected in several ways. Most members place their tithe in the offering plate at the entrance to the nave of the church (that is, the main seating area), usually as they enter for worship. An offering plate is not passed though the pews during the service, however, and therefore some forgetful members might not place their tithe into the offering plate until after worship, which is just fine! Some members mail their offering to the church, others drop it off during the week in person, still others make their tithe online.

The main things members should keep in mind regarding their tithes, are:

Tithes should be consistently given, preferably either weekly or monthly. It is not necessary to make an offering at every service attended, however an offering which would have been given, except that the member missed worship, ought to be given anyway, mailed in, or doubled up with the next Sunday’s offering. Tithes are not a fee for services attended and should never be treated that way!
For those who are very poor, their tithes will be very small, but they should be just as regular and conscientious in making them!
Tithes should be prayerfully determined in advance of services, rather than haphazardly, according to whatever one happens to have on hand on a Sunday morning, and prepared in advance as well. As to the amount of their tithe Members are encouraged to make a commitment to their Lord, say for one year, and then, unless unexpected hardship intervenes, to stick to that commitment.
A member’s tithe should be motivated by the desire to support the ministry and proportional to the ability of the member to give.
Again, a tithe is not a fee for services; there are no fees for pastoral or congregational services. Members rather should consider the congregation as an extension of their own family. Tithes support the congregation’s building, worship services, pastoral ministry, other things, and these are for the whole family, not just the ones who actually make use of them.
Tithes are voluntary only in the sense that the congregation makes no demands of its members regarding their individual tithes and does not send bills. On the other hand, a tithe is as obligatory for each and every Christian as prayer is obligatory. It is obligatory and it is a privilege.

There is no monitoring of member giving by the congregation. The financial secretary will record the giving of each member for tax purposes, but only if the member makes their tithe by check or otherwise indicates that a cash offering comes from them. No one else is privy to these records. The pastor does not know what the giving of individual members or member households is (unless you tell him!) and assumes that each member is in fact giving regularly, joyfully and in proportion to their ability.

Members from time to time may be moved to make an offering to the church over and above their tithe, in thanksgiving for some blessing from the Lord, for example, or as a result of some financial windfall. Unlike tithes, such gifts may designate a particular purpose for the money given, or may not, according to the desire of the giver. If no special purpose is indicated, then the gift will be considered, like a tithe, unrestricted.

A word about accountability. The Financial Secretary is responsible for receiving the tithes and offerings of the people, recording them and depositing them with the bank, the treasurer is responsible that the congregation’s bills are paid and that the accounts are kept in order, and the Counsel and the Voters’ Assembly (that is, the congregation) are responsible for budgeting and oversight.