The universal impulse in mankind to worship God (or gods), divinely instilled according to St. Paul, seems to be accompanied by a like elemental conviction that a tithe (literally a tenth) should be set aside for God (or the gods). Surprisingly this tithing practice was not only an Old Testament emphasis, but is evident in ancient pagan civilizations as we!!.¹

Old Testament references to tithing point up the interesting fact that a faithful Israelite actually fulfilled a triple tithing requirement: (1) the Lord's tithe for the Levites, (2) a tithe for religious festivals (to be used by the believer and his family), (3) a tithe every third year for taking care of the poor.² In addition an Israelite was expected not to reap the corners of his fields, to release debtors from their obligations every seventh year, and to bring first fruits and free will offerings to theTemple.³ The fulfillment of these requirements all told could amount to some 40% or more of his total income.

Strange as it may seem, tithing as such is not a prominent subject in the New Testament. Nevertheless, in the view of Henry Lansdell, tithing was no doubt a generally accepted practice by pious Jews in Jesus' time. His inference is that since the Pharisees were sticklers on the subject, they surely would have called to task any who violated this law, whether the Sadducees, or St. Paul, or even the Lord Himself.⁴ We know from the New Testament account, of course, that Jesus condemned the legalistic pride of the Pharisees about their strict tithing practices, but there is no evidence that tithing itself is condemned.⁵ Christ was concerned that the scribes and Pharisees had omitted the weightier matters of the law such as judgment, mercy and faith. Yes, you should tithe, he said, but you should not have left these other matters undone.

The main thrust of the New Testament account, however is a radical extension of the whole principle of stewardship ranging far beyond the concept of tithing in a legal sense. Jesus noted the poor widow who cast into the treasury all that she had, and he told the rich young ruler to go sell whatever he had and give to the poor.⁶ Following Pentecost many believers gave their possessions to the Church in an overflowing exhibition of love and gratitude to almighty God.⁷

This enlarged emphasis on giving was illustrated especially by the early churches in Macedonia who gave to overflowing much more than they could afford, because they wanted to (using the phrases of the Living Bible), and this along with a dedication of themselves to the Lord, demonstrating a love which extended beyond mere words.⁸

In the following century or two, the Christian church continued to accent this voluntary liberality. The Jews tithe as a duty, wrote Irenaeus, but Christians with praise and thanksgiving give joyfully and freely. In succeeding centuries, however, this high commitment and enthusiasm in many cases waned, and the ecclesiastical fathers tended to revert to earlier tithing practices to counter increasing laxities in Christian stewardship. Abbott Thomas in the fifth century concluded that the legal tithe should be re-emphasized to encourage weak brethren while not interfering with the 'perfect who live under grace." St. Augustine. facing up to the fact of Christian non-giving in his day, suggested that for practical purposes the tithe should be emphasized as a guide, for to give less than the Pharisees was indeed a meager standard for the believer. And from his day to ours the matter of Christian charity is a major issue for the Church, and the subject of the tithe seems always a central consideration for coming to grips with the issue.

Based on this brief survey, a few generalizations seem in order. First, it is evident that some ordered form of giving is a significant aspect of the religious life of man from the earliest times forward, but it is equally obvious that there is a perennial tendency to distort or to neglect this facet of religious commitment.

Second, it is also clear that both Old and New Testament teachings about tithing (or stewardship in a broader sense) accent not some kind of legal calculation but a giving which issues out of reverence and thanksgiving.

The third chapter of Malachi passage, for example, when taken in context is concerned that the people present their tithe to God 'in righteousness."⁹ Malachi was concerned about an unrighteous practice of holding back part of the tithe while pretending to be fully meeting this obligation. The practice of 'robbing God" in a material way was serious because it symbolized the deeper spiritual sin of showing irreverence and contempt for Almighty God.¹⁰

Some scholars go way back to the Cain and Abel account and suggest that their offerings may have been tithes of some sort, and the reason the Lord had respect for one and not the other had to do with the spirit in which they were presented. In any event we know from the Old Testament that in the sight of the Lord obedience and not sacrifice has the first priority.¹¹ This theme of course is emphasized even more explicitly in the New Testament references to giving.¹²

As a third observation it seems important to take note of the perennial issue of legalism as distinguished from the elements of discipline and duty associated with the accent on tithes and offerings. The dangers of legalistic tithing practices as demonstrated by the Pharisees issuing in pride and self justification ought not to cancel out the factors of duty and discipline which are not necessarily motivated by pride and self justification.

The New Testament emphases on spiritual outpourings undergirded by love and joy are accompanied, at least in St. Paul's letters, by some realistic footnotes about practices of Christian giving. On the first day of the week, St. Paul wrote, lay by in store as God has prospered you. Carry out your projects to completion and make your deeds as good as your doctrine, and don't try to make a collection all at once when I come. Let your enthusiasm, he said, end in realistic action.¹³ St. Paul knew first hand about initial enthusiasms which simmer down to a whimper of sentimentalism with little show of practical outcomesTo emphasize discipline and duty along with love and enthusiasm is seemingly to be involved in a paradox, especially when it is to be observed, in the fourth place, that both Old and New Testaments strongly emphasize the voluntary nature of giving. Again from St. Paul we read that a Christian should not be forced to give more than he wants to give, and that there should be no nagging about giving,¹⁴ I do not order you, wrote the Apostle, for gifts should not be offered under pressure.

How then can the paradox be resolved regarding these elements of duty, discipline, freedom, love, enthusiasm, voluntarism, and so on, in the church's emphasis on giving?

A partial answer can be found in the overall disciplined and ordered ministry of the Church in the whole life of the congregation. Here we speak not of an outer discipline of force but an inner discipline reflected especially in the leadership of the Church by a steady nurturing of the membership in the "whole counsel of God" in the way the gospel is preached, in the spiritual education of the young, and in the manifold exercises of charity as a response of the congregation to the community. A renewal in the basics provides the groundwork for the voluntary overflow with cheerfulness and thanksgiving.

Some of these themes are admirably summarized in E. B. Stewart's definition of tithing in the broad sense of the term: "Giving is a cheerful, willing, liberal, intelligible, quiet, regular, prayerful exercise of a God-given grace. . . . It comes with the asking and stays with the using."¹⁵