What is titheing?

Answer 1

In the days before the welfare state it was the practice of churchgoers to donate one tenth (a 'tithe') of their disposable income to the Church which would then use the money to distribute to the poor and needy. In the UK in farming communities the tithe was often given in goods rather than in money - for example, wheat. Therefore in many villages the Church built tithe barns in which to keep the grain for distribution to the poor or to be sold and the money given to the poor. The accounts of where the money or goods went were strictly controlled to prevent any form of swindling by those handling the tithes. In the UK many ancient churches still have their tithe records that date back hundreds of years, and many tithe barns still survive, and are now (except historical ones which are preserved) usually converted into de luxe homes, village halls or similar buildings. When the welfare state became common, paid for through taxation, titheing went out of fashion. However, in many churches nowadays, titheing is becoming commonplace again, where church members voluntarily donate a tenth (or an appropriate percentage) of their disposable income after tax, for church use, or for charity. In my last church, as an example, many congregation members gave a tithe of which a percentage of the tithe went to charities of their own choice and the rest to church. The church itself also tithed its own income from church members. It gave half of the tithe to local charities, and the other half to charities working in the developing countries, especially to Zambia with which we had a link. The principle of tithing is Biblical as it is the method laid down in The Bible that is fairest all round. It based on income and not on actual amount of money, so that a person earning a great deal is able to give a greater amount of money in his ten percent than a pensioner on a fixed low income - but because both are donating the same percentage, they are, in essence, giving the same amount.

Answer 2

an offering of ten percent of ones wages. A+ 2014