why do american chistian churches take money from those that have very little?

The short answer is: because they CAN.

I totally agree. Tithing (10%) is traditional and it's a good guide if you can afford it and are committed to your church, but this is looking abusive. I would say, in response to anyone who thinks you MUST tithe, 2 Corinthians 9:7 "Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver." It should be a joyful thing to give to your church because you WANT to. Any church that says you HAVE to give a certain amount is not Biblical.

I now think of the Biblical story of "the widow's mite" - a poor widow gave a tiny offering because she couldn't afford much. But Jesus said it was worth more because it was so much of what she had. And nobody forced her to give it. She just wanted to.

This is one reason why I like the big denominations that have some central organisation. The priest or pastor or minister or whatever they are called gets a set wage determined by "head office", so they can't get rich out of it. It'll be enough for the pastor to have a reasonable life as a professional person, a reasonable car to enable them to visit church members easily, but no more than that. If the church has more than it needs because it has generous members, then it can use the money in other ways - helping out the poor, giving it to good charities, supporting something worthwhile, whatever. I've known big churches with many rich members who had enough spare that they could afford to support missionaries abroad. Great that they can do it!

I used to be a Methodist (UK) and that's exactly what it does. All Methodist ministers, however long they have been ministers, are paid the same except if they have a small extra allowance because of having extra responsibilities.

That church I went to uses the envelope system that Mitch V refers to - you get a packet of 52 envelopes each year and you put your weekly offering in it and put the envelope in the collection plate or bag. The number on the envelope identifies you. Though only the person who handles the envelopes has the list of numbers and names and knows who is who. I used to do that job so I knew who gave most but it would be totally wrong of me to ever tell what I knew. A church needs someone they trust to do it. A big point of it in the UK is it enables the church to get a charity tax refund on your giving - it can't claim Gift Aid if the money is not from an identifiable person. (They take cash too - they just can't claim tax back on it!)

I mention the envelopes because what is always printed on them is 1 Corinthians 16:2 "On the first day of every week, each one of you should set aside a sum of money in keeping with your income, saving it up, so that when I come no collections will have to be made." This is St Paul talking about churches outside Israel making a money collection to help churches there that he would collect on his next visit. "In keeping with your income" - yes, and if you don't earn much, you can't afford to give much.

So "I've got Bible" (in the words of the late unlamented Fred Phelps!) to say that giving should never be forced. A fixed percentage just isn't right.

What kind of church does this guy go to? If it's totally independent, then of course it does what it likes and maybe he should find a better one.

I think this depend on what branch of Christianity, the pastor, and the wealth of the church.

When I was a kid, the church we went to had a very good minister and good practices as far as how it spent money brought in by donations. It was the churches policy that the minister lived in the parsonage which was owned by the church and he was given an allowance for personal expenses, this included transportation. He was able to afford a respectable car but nothing flashy, fancy, or very expensive. The church did well financially so when the need for expansions came up, money was available to cover them as well as all regular expenses like maintenance. If it had more than what was need for future expansions and such then this overage would go towards charitable causes outside the church. Though tithing was expected it was not mandatory nor was it pressured. People would simply put it in sealed envelopes so nobody would know how much you gave except for the person that handed the churches finance but they never paid attention to who paid what much less compared it to their income.

Tithing is not required from anyone in Church. But if one can afford to, Tis a Good idea to do so. Tithing if ENOUGH, Pays the phone,Electric, Heat /Ac, Insurance. That is enough to croak the average citizen.

Also there are Charities to donate to. If enough a Pastor's Salary. ETC!

Large Churches build Hospitals, Schools, Homes fur da Poor. Feed the Homeless Shelter the Homeless,ETC!

God says ten percent of our wages. When you give to God even when you feel you can't afford it, He will bless you abundantly. As for pastors with fancy cars, I don't agree with that either.

Numbers 18:26 Thus speak unto the Levites, and say unto them, When ye take of the children of Israel the tithes which I have given you from them for your inheritance, then ye shall offer up an heave offering of it for the LORD, even a tenth part of the tithe.

Your friend can donate his time to the church by maybe mowing the church yard lawn or maintenance in exchange for money tithes. the church near me has the mowers and the cleaning ladies do their jobs for free because they are caring for the Lord's house. I used to clean the church house and I did it for free. Tithing can come in acts of charity towards the church if there is no money to be given to the offering basket.

The bible does mention thithes and that we should give away at least 10% of our income. It also teaches that church leaders should not make things into a burden. Now if your friend has problems making with making his rent payments or buying his next meal then he should stop giving money and look at his time instead.

Now if his pastor is using the money to live an opulent life style and not help any one else then he should leave that church or at least raise a fuss.

Consider what Jehovah goes on to say through Malachi in chapter 3, verse 10. There you will find this warm invitation: “‘Bring all the tenth parts into the storehouse, that there may come to be food in my house; and test me out, please, in this respect,’ Jehovah of armies has said, ‘whether I shall not open to you people the floodgates of the heavens and actually empty out upon you a blessing until there is no more want.’” That offer is extended to God’s people as a whole. Do you feel that it is also a personal invitation to you?

9 How can you give “the tenth parts” to Jehovah? Of course, you are not obliged to present literal offerings and tithes, such as prescribed under the Law. Offerings of a spiritual kind are what God now expects. Paul described your witnessing work as an offering. (Hosea 14:2) The apostle then mentioned another type of sacrifice, writing: “Do not forget the doing of good and the sharing of [material] things with others, for with such sacrifices God is well pleased.” (Hebrews 13:15, 16) It is thus obvious that “the tenth parts” mentioned at Malachi 3:10 represent spiritual and material offerings. As a baptized Christian, you are fully dedicated to Jehovah, but your tithe represents the portion of what is yours that you are able to bring to Jehovah, or use in his service. It includes the time, energy, resources, and material contributions that you make available for use in Jehovah’s service.

How appropriate it is that you offer such symbolic tithes to Jehovah with feelings of devotion and love! A sense of urgency is also involved. You realize that the great day of Jehovah is fast approaching and that it is “very fear-inspiring.”

It sounds to me like your friend is a member of a church that is viewed by many to be a cult (a religion with a lot of truth, and enough falsehood to detour away from what the Bible really says). A true, Bible-teaching church does not force or demand people to give money. Don't lump all "American" churches together, please. There are a lot of good churches out there, and there are even more churches that don't bother to teach truth.

I give 10% of my income to my church and missionaries, but that is because I want to do so. No one tells me to give. The Bible does suggest that giving leads to blessing (I don't mean, give money to God and he will give money to you - that's another false teaching). I make very little money, but I find that when I give to the Lord's work, God is faithful - not necessarily to give me more money - but to provide what I need. Also, I really do believe that everythink I have and own comes from God - it's his anyway. It is a joy for me to give.

I agree with Holy Shroud on this one. Your friend is in a cult of some kind. No regular christian/catholic church gets even close to 10% from its users and membership drops quickly if a pastor pushes people to give more. Whats more, most Christian/Catholic churches do not pay the pastor directly from the collection plate.

Your friend needs to get out before this pastor pulls out the cyanide laced punch.

Sounds like he is in a cult. My Catholc Church gets about $4000/weekend but that is spread over 300 families. Which equates to about a $12 donation by each family every week. Nowhere near 10%. Tell him to get out of a cult and into a church

This is a question for you to ask that pastor.

A fool and his money are soon parted is something you may like to say to your gullible friend.