The Shadow-gloom and Weight of the Sacred

Credit: 401K http://www.flickr.com/photos/68751915@N05/ CC BY-SA 2.0

I have become convinced in recent years that the modes of giving present in the church are designed to protect the wealth of church members and, in turn, perpetuate poverty and need among the poor and lower class.

Consider this article in a Christian newspaper describing events during the recent NCAA Tournament for  college basketball. Two nearly identical churches hosted two very similar events: (1) a 3-on-3 basketball tournament that raised money for a facility serving the homeless, (2) a basketball tournament that raises funds for children orphaned by AIDS.

I think both of these fundraisers are fine things to do and I'm really happy that Christians want to help those in need, want to help the sick. I only point out this article as an illustration that the modes of giving we are utilizing are a safety net for the wealth of Christians. It's not simply things like the basketball tournaments mentioned above. Regular church giving (i.e., tithing) is practiced in this fashion: "I will spend my money that I earned through my job on want I want, and whatever is left I will place in the collection on Sunday." That amount placed in the collection might even be significant--enough to impress ourselves with our own generosity, perhaps others too. But, is it a giving of self? Is it a giving modeled on Jesus or on modes of charity originating with the empire?

What I have come to believe is that the regular church contribution, even though we can use Scripture to justify it, is a mode of giving that does not proclaim the coming kingdom but rather it is a mode of giving that would have us believe the empire is generous and good. The real witness of Scripture is that first we give to the needy, the hungry, the sick, and God will care for all of us. None of us will be with need.

Our giving should be something that proclaims freedom from the bonds of sin, freedom from need--Salvation.