So I did the math.....

[Wickabee]

I can see the church as a non profit and with it's members donating would not be able to operate and pay day to day expenses such as light bill, internet, water, phone, mortgage, etc. However i do have a problem with someone with 4 kids who doesen't know if they kids will eat tommorrow giving their last while the preacher lives in a mansion and their kids have all the latest jordans and videogames. That's just not right.

That brings up another point. Aren't preachers supposed to live without?
Don't get me wrong, under today's system, I have no problem with a preacher having common comforts and luxuries, but that BMW could easily be replaced with a Camry at a profit and that money used to help others.

For reference, a couple of preachers around here drive BMW, Mercedes, Porche, etc. It's like a German Performance Car Club.

[Kosmo kards]

There is nothing in the bible per say that makes 10% official. The first think I thought of was the verse Malachi 3:8 "Will a man rob God? Yet you are robbing Me! But you say, 'How have we robbed You?' In tithes and offerings. God doesn't need our money, he just wants us to understand that he comes before money. By giving money to church it is suppose to remind us that God comes before money. Personally, I don't think it has to be given to church, it can go to anything charitable as long as the intentions are good and you don't let the greed of money overpower you.

This will be my last post unless I am responding to others. I just want to share two PM's I sent to people reaching out to me. This is a tough topic. I occasionally post thinks like this online because I feel more likely that I will get more honest responses.

First PM

Thanks for the PM, it was interesting to read. First off, I didn't mean that Christians are lazy, far from it. What I meant to say is that Christianity does appeal to some people because it doesn't require anything except faith. I feel that we all can be lazy in a way. People that become Doctor's or Lawyers or Investment Bankers or even running your own business usually do so for the money or the prestige, not to help others. Is it hard work to succeed in those professions? Absolutely. But if they are done for your own personal gain and not to help others or God does it really mean anything?

The other thing I want to say is just because the bible is an old book doesn't automatically make it true. The Iliad and the Odyssey are dated around 8th century BC I believe so much older that the New Testament. Now the Iliad and Odyssey are both extremely important are far as literature goes, but if ask people if they believe the Iliad or the Odyssey is true they will usually tell you that there is not way of knowing and if they were guessing they'd say no. The Iliad tells a story of the Trojan War, a pointless war with no real meaning (it was basically over a Women, Helen of Troy) and it has Greek gods flying around interfering with a war among humans. My point is the Iliad and Odyssey are much older than the New Testament, but most people don't truly believe it. Dante's Inferno (the first part of his divine comedy) which was written in the 14th century states that the journey to hell is through the Earth's Crust and that Satan along with Brutus and others are enslaved in ice at the earth's core and that purgatory is real and it exists and its on opposite side of the Earth from Jerusalem. It is said that most people at the time believed this to be true, that Dante did journey through hell and hell is just the way Dante's Inferno described it to me.

Part of me truly believes that we as people are so insecure with not knowing the answers that we will make up anything to fill that void. If you look at newer religions you will see people will believe in anything. If you don't know what Scientology is, you really should look it up. It is believed that over 12 million people believe this. Mormon's have about 6 million believers in the US alone. The human imagination is more capable that you will ever know.

Second PM

Thanks for the PM, I really appreciate it. The only thing that I have ever been mad at God for is letting man corrupt his message and leaving so much uncertainty for all of us instead of just telling me himself. I never blamed God for life being unfair or not life going the way I want it. All the uncertainty that exists could be cleared up in 5 minutes. When I was religious I never really blamed God for anything. I will be honest though I use to thank God for everything. I thanked God for an A on an Algebra test, I thanked God for a parking space, I always thanked God when my sports teams won and I thanked God once for finding my keys. I'll be honest though, I don't thank God for anything anymore. I still pray here and there, not nearly as much as I use to, but on occasion I do. I don't really have any belief in any other religion and I'm not much of an evolution guy, to me the big bang theory and all that other stuff is just as hard to believe, so who knows, I might take that leap of faith again.

[duane1969]

That brings up another point. Aren't preachers supposed to live without?
Don't get me wrong, under today's system, I have no problem with a preacher having common comforts and luxuries, but that BMW could easily be replaced with a Camry at a profit and that money used to help others.

For reference, a couple of preachers around here drive BMW, Mercedes, Porche, etc. It's like a German Performance Car Club.

I get what you are saying, but the preacher earns a salary. How he chooses to spend it is his choice. I don't know about other areas, but in our area the preacher buys and pays for his own car. So him driving a cheaper car or more expensive car has no impact on the church.

The same can be said of many other professions. Call an area supervisor of a charity such as the Red Cross, Salvation Army or Susan G. Komen, I bet you $20 they show up in a $50k SUV or luxury car.

[Wickabee]

I get what you are saying, but the preacher earns a salary. How he chooses to spend it is his choice. I don't know about other areas, but in our area the preacher buys and pays for his own car. So him driving a cheaper car or more expensive car has no impact on the church.

The same can be said of many other professions. Call an area supervisor of a charity such as the Red Cross, Salvation Army or Susan G. Komen, I bet you $20 they show up in a $50k SUV or luxury car.

No I get that. At the same time, shouldn't these people be setting examples for the rest of us? Driving a nice car instead of a luxury car is by no means doing without.
I guess it bugs me because of one church/preacher in particular in my town. I've been in the church twice, once for a funeral and once for my graduation ceremony and let me tell you, that is no church. That is a theater.
And they rent it out as such for insane prices (and I mean INSANE). The church nets a nice profit and the preacher is in a Mercedes. Thing is, he writes an article every week on what sacrifices we should be making for God, and he's never shy about telling everyone to donate to their church.