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Well, I bit the bullet and formed my own non-profit corporation recently. It has a mission that excites me. What is particularly interesting, is that after many years of paying 10% of my gross to the church, and not really knowing where it went, it’s refreshing to give to a cause I believe in, and have a stake in. Cases in point — started a project that got hit with some unexpected expenses — all I had to do is make a donation to cover it and it keeps the team motivated. We needed to establish a good partnership with a couple organizations, so we donated to their causes, and let them have all the credit for the results the funding generated. I’m able to enhance the experience of being a volunteer with my own donations as well.
It’s a parallel to local government — the principle of strong local government and small central government is that local “government” is easier for the common person to influence. I feel the same way with giving to a small organization, particularly one in which I have a stake and influence, as the dollars can go toward causes I truly believe in, and its completely energizing. And I know that 100% of those dollars go to good works. I feel this willingness to give that I never really felt as a tithe-payer in the LDS church.
This is not to say that others don’t benefit from tithing to the LDS church, or that my way is the best way. But it is really working for me right now. And I feel this self-respect for being a true philanthropist. I don’t think I ever considered myself a philanthropist as an LDS tithe-payer, but I feel like one now as I try to make life better for other people.
Add to this, the opportunity to practice 20 years of management theory and practice in an organization I am shaping in terms of its culture, its treatment of volunteers, it’s very therapeutic….I can work at it, and then look up and see that three hours have disappeared without a break.
Anyway, my first major project completes in December, and I am learning new things in leaps in bounds….I realize that an LDS leader would say I’m misguided, but my heart isn’t telling me that right now…
Glad to feel your excitement! Best of luck. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I understand what you are saying SD. Paying tithing does not feel charitable. It is somewhere in the range of club dues/maintenance fees/duty.
I have often thought if some of the soul expanding benefits of charitable giving can be stunted through the charitable giving of tithing. I suppose that is nothing new.
“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices–mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law–justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former.”
Jesus seems to be saying that we should do both…. I understand how that can be a tall order for many people. May you find fulfillment in helping other people. That sounds like success to me.
I really wish tithing was 5% and I could go find where I want to put 5+ (or much more) along with my efforts to help others. I certainly think I would feel more like I was contributing. Giving 10% + F/O + lots of kids + missions – does make it hard for anybody but those making quite a bit to have much left over to give to other groups. So I think many members don’t feel much more is needed: “I already gave at the office (church)”. I think I remember Jon Huntsman said that tithing was “country-club dues” and not part of his philanthropy. I was glad he said that and glad that he is good about giving some of his money around. I used to really feel “I have given enough”
Post my faith crisis I feel more compelled than ever to help others and have started giving much more and have a strong desire to do more.
Good luck, SD! I enjoy hearing about your projects. I’ll be really interested to hear how it all goes and where you settle out on tithing. Ann wrote:Good luck, SD! I enjoy hearing about your projects. I’ll be really interested to hear how it all goes and where you settle out on tithing.
Thanks Ann. This one is fun as I’m not leading the project, but coaching a talented Masters’ graduate to do what I’ve done in other contexts, while feeding her volunteers, and giving the team mentors with PhD’s and 20 years of experience in their areas of responsibility. I have to really exert discipline to be the “doer” like I normally am in other projects to date. I see myself as building a team of people in two, project related areas to start.
Regarding tithing, I settled on it two or three years ago. I have decided it’s still a good thing to “give of your substance” to others, but I no longer believe the church is only valid place to do it. I believe tithing’s primary purpose is to fund church operations, and it grew into its current state as leaders experimented with ways of motivating the membership to give enough to fund the church’s operations. The current formula works and although the church is extremely wealthy, they can’t or won’t lessen the burden.
The reasons for tithing at church are secondary to meeting organizational temporal needs. I believe there is a double standard in preaching self-reliance, yet, requiring members to pay tithing even when they don’t have enough for their needs — putting them on Church welfare. I also believe the church should see tithing in a more “reciprocal” manner by providing services and resources to members in enough quantities to serve the members well enough, such as counseling services. There is a shortage of capacity for those kinds of services,. I’m influenced by my life’s experiences through an LDS Social Services adoption, my financial challenges (and non-church help) in getting on a mission, and times when I wanted counseling to help me deal with problems spawned by my church experience that I felt needed counseling — I was spurned in very difficult ways on each of these counts. These experiences shaped my thinking.
My kind of tithing is the kind I describe in the opening post — at least for now. I leave myself open to return to the church kind of tithing at any point, as there were times it helped me feel at peace. I will say this, though, that most of my life I resented tithing, and I no longer resent this kind of giving in the new context I have created for myself.
I really do feel like a philanthropist and it is very satisfying to see my resources produce tangible and meaningful impacts on my local community….
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