I.          SOCIAL AND CULTURAL PRACTICES

There are different approaches to the principle of tithing.  Some of these have created great ambiguities and distortions to this biblical practice.

• • • Some link tithing to prosperity gospel – sowing a seed with the expectation that God would respond with blessings;
    • Some give their tithes with the intention that it would be re-claimed on their tax returns;
    • Some consider the tithe as a percentage of their net income;
    • Some see the need for tithing towards special projects and not the general work of God;
    • Some resist tithing because it is a specific requirement of the Old Testament and it is not explicitly stated in the New Testament;
    • Some members/adherents in the MCCA tithe in a disciplined way, whereas others resist tithing;
    • Some do not tithe because they do not have confidence in the stewardship of the church’s resources;
    • The general practice of giving in the MCCA is the free will offering.

II.        DEFINITION

Tithing is to give one-tenth or 10% of one’s income for the work of God.  As a practice it is grounded in the covenantal relationship between God and the children of Israel.

By giving the tithe, we recognize God as the one who ‘demands our soul, our life, our all.’ Withholding the tithe is a violation of the eighth Commandment – “Thou shall not steal” [Exodus 20:15]. Consequently, not giving the tithe is regarded as robbing God [Malachi 3:8-11]. In other words, tithing is priority giving.

 III.      BIBLICAL THEOLOGICAL TEACHINGS:

 1       Even before the giving of the Law and the prophets, both Abram [Abraham] and his grandson, Jacob, practiced tithing:
                 a. Abraham: Giving starts from the idea that covenantal relationships with God are enriched by God and dependent on God                                   [Genesis 14:22b, 23; Genesis 17:7ff].
                 b. Jacob: While Jacob places conditions or expectations on giving to God, ultimately the tithe belongs to God [Genesis 28:22].

2       The ground for tithing is that everything belongs to the Lord [Leviticus 27:30; Psalm 24:1].

a. The tithe is devoted to the Lord and comes from all our possessions [Leviticus 27:30].
b. Tithing is priority giving [Leviticus 27:31].
c. The tithe is one tenth of all our income [Leviticus 27:32].
d. Do not short-change God [Leviticus 27:33; Malachi 3:8-9].
e. God deserves the full quota of our tithe and in event of default an additional one-fifth of the value of that tithe is to be added to   it when it is given [Leviticus 27:31].

3        Foundational Directive: The tithe provides support for the priesthood [Numbers 18:21-24; Nehemiah 10:37;
see also 1 Corinthians 9:7-14].
4        Blessings from God spring from tithing [2 Chronicles 31:10; Malachi 3:10].
5        God challenges us to put Him to the test by the giving of tithes. [Malachi 3:10b].
6        Tithing and social justice should go hand in hand [Matthew 23:23].
7        The tithe is given in the context of Worship [Deuteronomy 12:10-13; Malachi 3:10].

From the foregoing the following teachings should be emphasised:

• Tithing is a Divine plan for the work of God,
• Tithing will be a serious challenge to those who believe that they own what they possess.
• Tithing encourages planning in accordance with the ‘Law of Giving’
• Tithing is about g
  (a) giving the best, giving from a generous and grateful heart (Mark 12:41-44)];
  (b) giving willingly [II Corinthians 9:7];
  (c) giving freely [Romans 11:35-36];
  (d) giving consistently [Malachi 1:6-10]; and
  (e) giving systematically [I Cor. 16:2].

There is no definitive practice of tithing in the MCCA. In light of the biblical and theological perspectives of tithing, the MCCA should embrace tithing as the appropriate response to the grace and providence of God.

IV.        IMPLICATIONS OF TITHING

Tithing is practiced as a response to the grace and providence of God whose love evokes the total stewardship of our life. Therefore, while we recognize that there are various biblical examples of giving, the tithe is the least that we should give to the Lord.  Therefore:

• The MCCA calls its members to tithe in response to God’s grace and providence.
• Tithing should be effected on the gross income.
• In the exercise of their stewardship of the church’s resources, the relevant officers are to give updated and transparent disclosure of the church’s financial transactions.
• Tithing and its practice should be taught as part of our core teaching in all areas of congregational life, including the Church School, Members-in-Training Classes, Confirmation Classes and other organisations.
• All means necessary should be utilised to educate and encourage the whole congregation to tithe in response to God’s grace and providence.
• The leadership of the church should seek to more purposefully and deliberately help members to an awareness of God’s grace and providence leading to greater devotion and discipline in tithing

Affirmed by the MCCA Faith and Order Commission
November 13, 2019, 5.18 p.m.
United Theological College of the West Indies, Kingston 7, Jamaica).