to summarize what the bible says is. pay ur tithes and trust God to do the rest. if u dnt have faith in God supplying ur needs u better pay ur rent.
to summarize what the bible says is. pay ur tithes and trust God to do the rest. if u dnt have faith in God supplying ur needs u better pay ur rent.
Ok, So is that 10% gross or take home?
exactly.Originally Posted by quickdodge®
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exactly tithing is a joke... it is designed for the church to make money and further its greed. w/o it you wouldn't see these multi-million dollar facilities being built for churches. alot of churches actually have cards that break down what and how much you should pay... i had a card from one that had break downs from 10-25% of annual income how much you should be paying the church. its basically a nice way for you to buy your way into heavenOriginally Posted by quickdodge®
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I believe we should tithe and that it is necessary. I disagree that you have to do 10% of your gross income. There are more ways to tithe than to give money. You can be his hands and feet. You can give your time and your labor.
It is problematic to me to hear people who are posting on a forum populated by folks who are involved in an expensive hobby say "I'm going to pay my rent first." Pay your rent first that's fine. Even spend a couple hundred a month on your hobby. God wants you to be happy, to follow your bliss.
But, what have you done this week for him? Go to the car show nine weeks out of ten but on that tenth weekend volunteer somewhere. Pick up a hammer and help habitat for humanity build a house. Cook a meal for a soup kitchen. Do something. That's tithing.
That's along the lines of what I was thinking about but. My co-worker says otherwize. I feel it dosen't matter how you give as long as you are doing it in some way as you stated.Originally Posted by Malana
I do that every goddamn day of the week. I give my time and my labor to Budweiser so that I can support my family the best I can. Wouldn't "God" be happy that I am taking care of my family?Originally Posted by Malana
Don't let it be "problematic" to you. It isn't any of your concern, is it?Originally Posted by Malana
What has "He" done for me? Tell me what you can prove. Don't give me that "he lets you wake up every day" shit, either. Maybe He did, maybe He didn't. No one will ever know. Later, QD.Originally Posted by Malana
Yes.Originally Posted by quickdodge®
While this is an inventive debate strategy, it is hardly sporting. It comes across like this…Originally Posted by quickdodge®
A: I think the sky is red because the sky is the same color as my car and my car is red.
B: I find it problematic that you believe your car to be red. If your car is the same color as the sky, it is probably blue.
A: Don’t let it be “problematic” to you. The color of my car isn’t any of your concern, is it?
My answer can only be “Well… I guess not.” You gave paying the rent first as a negative argument for not tithing in an open forum designed for debate. If you didn’t want anyone to comment or concern themselves then you shouldn’t have put it forth as an argument.
However, I will withdraw my earlier comment in favor of this…
I would find it problematic if a regular churchgoer who was involved in an expensive hobby was using “I’m going to pay my rent first” as an excuse not to tithe. You should pay your rent first. You should spend money on your hobbies whether they are expensive or cheap because he wants us to enjoy this life he has given us.
I do believe that God would rather see you feed your family than enrich the coffers of a yuppie church. However, I’ve seen many of the yuppies who populate those churches say, “Oh… I have to pay my rent or mortgage first… I can’t tithe.” Then they talk about the weekend they spent in Tahoe skiing. I have a problem with that but I would never say anything to anyone about it. Metalman is right… how much you give is between you and God. No one should tell anyone else how much to tithe.
If you don't believe in him, you don't need to tithe. I have a friend who calls himself an "apathetic agnostic." He says he doesn't care enough to be doubt the existence of God. You seem to be a passionate and concerned agnostic. You are really ticked off that you are skeptical about his existence. That's an okay way to be but I think you need to recognize that no one has forced this on you. This is your choice. There is no reason to be angry.Originally Posted by quickdodge®
In Germany, in the ultimate antithesis of no one telling you how much to give, the money to run churches is collected by the state as taxes and then distributed evenly among the denominations based on what the people paying the church taxes report their denomination to be.
You can opt out of paying for religion if you are an atheist or agnostic but you are then barred from ever going to church. You cannot attend a church wedding or funeral. You have declared you don't believe in that stuff and that you will not be using the services of the church. In order to re-up with God, you'd have to pay your back church taxes.
I think you are missing something. I never said anything about not making a comment.Originally Posted by Malana
I don't do that. As I have no need to discuss my financial situation with you, I sure don't spend weekends out.Originally Posted by Malana
You blew me away with that shit. With your "college" posting, I can guess that you went to school for psychiatry? If not, how do you come up with the "you are really ticked off..." comment. I'm not "ticked off" at all. I'm not angry, either. Where do you get your "assumptions?"Originally Posted by Malana
We're not in Germany and no one brought up that country. You really, as in much of your posts, made no sense. Later, QD.Originally Posted by Malana