We recently had a question about the principle of tithing that I would like to address. As always, please remember that this site is not an official site of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I’m just a Mormon sharing my perspective and trying to share information about our Church’s teachings, but for official info, you can look at lds.org or mormon.org.

Robin writes:

I have a question about tithing…I understand (as told to me by a neighbor who is LDS) that if you do not pay your tithes to the church that you will be deemed unworthy and unable to attend until you pay them current. This seems harsh to me. If you are so poor you can barely afford to live or just don’t have that 10% to give to the church it doesn’t seem right that you will be cast out. I don’t believe that God/Jesus cares about money in that way and certainly would not turn his back on you. What is the church’s reasoning for this one please?

As noted, I cannot speak for the Church officially, but I will share a few thoughts on what we are taught and what we believe about tithing.

Paying a full tithe (which is defined at 10% of your increase) is, indeed, a requirement to be able to attend the temple. Members of the Church who do not pay tithing are not “cast out” of the Church itself, however. They are just not able to attend the temple. Even this can seem harsh at the outset, but perhaps understanding the principles behind it might help.

In fact, one of the things you said in your comment reflects some of those principles. Tithing really isn’t about money. While we do live in a fallen world and tithing funds are used to help pay for the building of church buildings and temples (among other things), in truth, the principle of tithing at the individual level is about faith, trust in God, and sacrifice.

President Gordon B. Hinckley (a former prophet and president of the Church) said this about tithing:

Tithing is not so much a matter of dollars as it is a matter of faith. It becomes a privilege and an opportunity, not a burden. Our people believe in the word of God as set forth in the book of Malachi, that the Lord will open the windows of heaven and pour down blessings that there will not be room enough to receive them (Malachi 3:8-10).

Tithing is actually an ancient law given by God. We do believe God cares about us giving a tithe. It is a way for us to temporally participate in God’s work, but also a way to “prove God” and see how He will bless us for living the law. One of the greatest blessings is the opportunity and privilege to participate in temple ordinances, where truths and spiritual power can be poured out upon us and our families.

Joseph Smith said this about the law of sacrifice, which underlies the principle of tithing:

“A religion that does not require the sacrifice of all things never has power sufficient to produce the faith necessary unto life and salvation; for, from the first existence of man, the faith necessary unto the enjoyment of life and salvation never could be obtained without the sacrifice of all earthly things. It was through this sacrifice, and this only, that God has ordained that men should enjoy eternal life” (Lectures on Faith, comp. N. B. Lundwall [Salt Lake City: N. B. Lundwall, n.d.], p. 58).

The principle of tithing is one that ultimately is best understood by living it. If one is only looking at life from a temporal point of view, tithing may seem unnecessary or even unfair. But from a spiritual point of view, it’s a way for us to acknowledge that all we have really comes from God. Our time, talents, material means — all we have — is given to us to then choose to “spend” according to our desires and priorities. And yes, sometimes it may mean facing fears or temporal concerns and trusting that somehow He will care for us. Story after story from those who choose to pay tithing show how such blessings can come. But again, many of the blessings of this law really do end up being spiritual.

For more stories and perspectives and teachings on tithing, see lds.org

The story of the Widow’s Mite from the New Testament also captures some of the spirit of sacrifice that can come of being willing to give of our temporal means for the work of God.

The post Mormons and Tithing appeared first on Women in The Church of Jesus Christ.

~by Michelle

Again, Mitt Romney’s presidential run brings questions about The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints into the spotlight. Yesterday, we addressed “Mormon underwear” and today, we’ll address Mormon tithing.

A recent Washington Post article from Michael Otterson, Managing Director of Public affairs for the Church), explains the history of Mormon tithing, some of what LDS tithing monies are used for, as well as what the principle of tithing means to us.

Here, I want to focus mostly on the latter.

At the end of his article, Otterson explains:

[T]ithing and other financial offerings are less about finances and more about personal attitude and commitment. It is difficult to pay tithing and be selfish at the same time. For the millions of people who participate, there is something in the act of voluntary giving that is innately enriching to the human soul.

The law of tithing [for Mormons, that means 10 percent of our increase] ties into to the principle of sacrifice that was recently discussed in an article by Tami, a Mormon woman. We believe that in following such laws as the law of tithing, God blesses us. Blessings aren’t always temporal; in fact, often the blessings that come from living the law of tithing are spiritual.

Otterson explains:

Tithing is not unique to Mormons, of course. Many churches practice it in one form or another. Jewish observance of tithing long predates Christian communities. … At the close of the Book of Malachi, the Old Testament prophet wrote:

Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it. (Malachi 3:10).

As we pay tithing, we are reminded that all that we have comes from God, and we trust Him that in being obedient, He will bless us, in His way and in His time. And the “windows of heaven” that can be opened on our behalf manifest themselves in many ways. Tami talked about one of the most important blessings of being willing to be committed to our faith — having God’s Spirit with us. That Spirit is a vehicle of peace, power, and personal revelation — directly from God — in our lives. Other blessings can come as well, including the blessings that flow from being able to attend the temple and from the places of worship we have to meet in. It’s also a small way to try to humble ourselves and put God first in our lives. Money is a necessary medium to survive in life, but sometimes it can be a very jealous master. Paying tithing helps remind us who our Master really is — the Lord, Jesus Christ.

Besides the spiritual blessings that can come into our lives, many Mormons also can testify of temporal blessings they have received that they believe are tied to the blessing of paying tithing. For example, see the following posts on our site: “Testimony of Tithing,” “We Believe: Tithing” and “…How has tithing blessed your life?”

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For more information about Mormon tithing, see the following articles:

From mormon.org: Why are Mormons asked to donate 10% of their income to their church? (read several Mormons and their responses on the topic there as well)

From lds.org – index article on tithing

The post About Mormon Tithing appeared first on Women in The Church of Jesus Christ.

As members of the LDS church, we believe in paying a 10% tithing on any increase we receive. For example, if we make $10 then we give $1 to the church. The money is used for all sorts of things – the building and maintenance of temples and churches, missionary work, educating church members and more.

People often wonder why we would do something like this.

We believe that the Lord has commanded to give back part of what he has given us. In return, we are blessed in many ways. By paying our tithing we are able to show the Lord our faith, love, and devotion to Him. We are also showing our gratitude for the things that we have and we are showing Him that we trust Him to help us. In return, it seems that we are blessed to have the things that we need.

I have had experiences where I have seen blessings of paying tithing in my own life.

Money is tight in our house and my boys desperately needed a dresser. They had been using bins under their beds, but it just wasn’t working. I really wanted to go and buy a dresser but I couldn’t bring myself to spend money that we didn’t have. I collected the money that I needed to pay for tithing one Sunday morning and put it with my scriptures. I checked my email and there was a message from our Relief Society President ~ a member of my ward had a dresser that they didn’t need. I was able to get my boys a dresser for their room and I truly believe that it is because I was paying my tithing.

When we lived in our old house, I had a salon. In our current home, I have no room for a salon but I still give people haircuts for extra money. I have noticed that when I pay my tithing, I seem to have people call for a haircut more often and I am able to earn money that is needed for groceries and other things around the house. I believe that this is a way the Lord is blessing me and my family for our obedience to this law.

On the LDS church’s website you can read stories of other women from all over the world who have gained a testimony of tithing. An example of a story from that article includes the following:

Josefa Margarida dos Santos Fontes of Brazil shares, “When I was baptized in 2001, I began paying tithing every month. Then just eight months later, my husband passed away. I became a widow with two small children at home and one son on a mission. Although my financial problems were serious, I never stopped paying tithing. I have been blessed with more and more work, which has enabled me to earn more money. But even more important, because I pay my tithing I always feel at peace with the Lord.

“Today my small house seems big and comfortable. I feel calm with my two little children. I will never stop paying tithing because I know the Lord has blessed me not only with physical and spiritual health but also with wisdom and peace.”

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Read more about tithing here.

Read others’ experiences with and thoughts about tithing here.

You can read thoughts from other Mormon women about tithing in the comments on this post.

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For more We Believe posts, please click here.

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A few years ago, my four-year-old daughter proclaimed that she wanted three boats: one for going fast in, one for just driving around the delta and one you can go in the ocean with. I want zero boats. My husband told her that we don’t have enough money to buy three boats to which she said, “Ya-huh! I have tons of money in my piggy bank!” Then I said nobody needs three boats that would just be ridiculous, some kids don’t even have food to eat and even if we had enough money for three boats it would be way better for us to give that money to kids that don’t have food. My daughter was shocked, “Some kids don’t have food?!!? That is bad.”

My husband and I sat down with her in our very narrow hall and discussed how it is better to give extra money away than to have three boats. Then we broke her the BIG NEWS. Heavenly Father wants us to give Him a portion of our money every month, one coin out of ten. She looked mortified and exclaimed, “What! I’m not giving my coins to anybody, this is my collection.” We explained that when we give our one coin of ten away, temples are built and we can have a place for Primary. Hungry kids get to eat when we give even more than one coin in ten away.

To help her visualize the principle of tithing, we sat down and sorted out her coins in groups of ten. Pennies, nickels, dimes and quarters were sorted and put into sets of ten. Elizabeth counted to ten and then gave 1 coin of each set to Heavenly Father. Each time we said, “Now look at how many you get to keep!” And she would smile and say, “Whoa, that is tons!” And her tiny money grubbing hands engulfed the nine and placed them back into the piggy bank.

My thought was this as I saw the nine we get to keep: Can you believe we get to keep even that much? It is tons. The Lord gives us all that we have, and to teach us how to love and be obedient only takes one coin out of ten.

The post First Person: One Coin in Ten appeared first on Women in The Church of Jesus Christ.

The post Ask a Mormon Woman: How has tithing blessed your life? appeared first on Women in The Church of Jesus Christ.