A recent survey from the National Association of Evangelicals finds that a majority of pastors do not believe the Bible requires tithing. In this report from CNN, Leith Anderson and Brian Kluth discuss the survey and the theological basis for the tithe.
Anderson explains that while most evangelical pastors don’t believe the tithe is required, most report that they give at least 10 percent and that the Bible encourages us to give far more. But Kluth reminds us that giving in the US has been declining for years, and therefore continued teaching on the tithe is helpful.
What do you think? Does emphasizing tithing actually limit Christian giving? And what do you read behind the survey’s findings? Are pastors not taking the issue as seriously as in the past, or are they merely taking the New Testament’s words about giving as more weighty than the Old Testament’s? How should giving be taught today?
