I fixed the meme

Nicely done. ☝️🙏😌

Yes

this takes "all roads lead to God" to another level

god does not what your worship nor charity nor good deeds but money to go to the priest

Cat-holics in a nutshell

Tithes were always and only portions of your crops and herds—never, ever money.

Deuteronomy 14:22-29 NLT - 22 "You must set aside a tithe of your crops--one-tenth of all the crops you harvest each year.

[Mal 3:10 NKJV] Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, That there may be food in My house,"

Now, Temple Tax on the other hand (which is what is confused with Tithes nowadays) was always and only money, and even in today's standards, the amount was under $10 per year/per person.

[Neh 10:32-33 NLT] 32 "In addition, we promise to obey the command to pay the annual Temple tax of one-eighth of an ounce of silver for the care of the Temple of our God."

Since the the last Temple was destroyed, there is no more need for tithes or temple tax anymore, for YOU ARE THE TEMPLE.
Tithes and Temple taxes are no longer in effect.

We are the Temple of God, the Church of Christ, and should not be needing to support large expensive buildings that are empty 90% of the time. Imagine all the good that could be done for the "least of these" if our money was put to better use helping the poor instead of helping the rich.

I agree, but I think it's also important to keep in mind there is nothing wrong with donating to the church either, especially if those donations actually help the church serve the community, which actually *would* help the least of these.

People from my church go out all the time at night to feed and take care of the homeless, but that isn't something that can be done for free. Donations help those efforts, along with helping pay for the building (which, I should note, my church is smaller than most so definitely not as expensive as a ton of the larger buildings these days, but I digress), and I think if the donations are being used for community service too, then it would be good to donate. I suppose where the money goes to is something that concerns church leadership moreso, though.

The church these days shouldn't just be a place for Christians to meet, it should also play an active role of goodness and charity in the community, and that can be difficult to do without donations toward that. What matters behind a donation, though, is the intent and heart. Donations should not be done out of religious obligation, but out of a generous and kind heart with a desire to help. Donations may not be commanded necessarily, but they are incredibly important for church growth and service, and so it should be encouraged, and the church leadership should put the money to good use. If donation is done, it should be done for Christ, and I think that is mostly the point behind this post.

Maybe your church is the exception, but if it is empty 5 or 6 days out of the week, then youre all wasting your money on someone else's property. Churches (and all other religious buildings) should all be used to house the homeless or else why they get charitable tax write-offs is beyond me, since they are using the church as a membership-based business—more akin to a country club than a charity.
Better use your funds elsewhere.

If you understood how small of a percentage you give actually goes to charitable work, and the magnificent proportion of donations that goes to the umbrella organization, the expensive building, land, equipment, and utilities to maintain it; as well as the preacher to live a comfy easy tax-free lifestyle, travelling, haircuts, food, and clothes right down to the cost of his underpants, you wouldnt say such things.

All that matters nowadays to churches is more people/clients to keep the machine running. I have done more good going out with a few people and a few dollars helping street people or the poor from the church than ever I have seen done by giving money to the church in hopes they will use it for the good of others.

Instead, they buy oak desks and leather armchairs for their HOME offices, bouncy castles, boats, and laser tag sets used for ONE church event that then goes straight to the pastors house afterwards. I know this first hand. They even convince their congregants to spring for a cabin or an acreage they use for kids camps so the pastor and staff can take their kids there anytime they want—all tax-free at the poor naive church-goers expense. Religion is a lucrative business no doubt.

This easy-job lifestyle is provided largely by working-class congregants (most of who are struggling themselves) who give money to their church, unaware that they are not providing for the poor, but rather they are providing for the rich! smh.

The building for my church is used for a ton more than just Sunday service, but I digress. Yes, sadly this is how many megachurches work, and I do not disagree that it is horrible. I also agree that, yes, we should also give directly to the poor. Frankly, though, I think we should not paint all churches the way you describe, because the fact of the matter is that they are not all the same.

Are these churches popular? Yes, and they are popular for the reasons you describe. But that does not mean it is the entirety of what the church is like. In fact, I will argue that the churches whose foundation are built on greed and wealth rather than on Christ (or churches which were eventually overtaken by such things) are, in fact, not the true Christian church at all. They are exactly what you describe, a business, and it isn't representative of churches as a whole, it is just a very sadly popular thing that has come from it.

The church I meet with is not a business, nor a campus for a larger umbrella organization, and given the size of the world I do not think it is the only church of its kind. It's just a community of Jesus followers meeting together to worship and learn together. And in the past year it has been moving much more to help the community. That should be the goal of the church, and it's exactly the kind of thing the first-century church was doing, and we should imitate what they were doing. The building is just a building, but it is a useful building for services, studies, and other things. At some point, depending on the size of the congregation, I would argue that such a place is needed.

Anyway, I could talk more later, but I need to continue on with my day. Thanks for sharing your experience. I hope you find a good church. God bless, dude.

Welp, youre one of the lucky ones and seem to have a good thing going. Godspeed all your efforts. 👍

Thanks man, you too!