money for my friends

A friend of mine recently sent me an email and asked me if I would post my thoughts on tithing. Here goes…

The preacher says:
Tithing is a word used in some churches to describe the church'’s particular theology about how each church member's money should be distributed. Namely, a tithe” is usually considered 1/10 of the church member's income. Some churches believe everyone should be “tithing,” meaning that everyone who attends the church should be cutting checks to the church equal to 10% of their income.

Considering this concept, I wonder: 10% of pre-tax or post-tax income? What about investment income and dividends? If I own investment properly, can I deduct my monthly costs from my monthly income? Do I pay weekly, or can I schedule my 10% payments to coincide with my bi-monthly pay checks? If I have two dependents, and both are working, am I responsible for their 10%? What about gambling income? Is that tithed as well? And would the church consider a barter system? If I mow the church lawn once a week, can I get a 4% discount? And the real humdinger: considering the IRS grants money given to churches as tax deductible, at the end of the year should I determine how much my church-giving tax deduction saved me in federal and state tax, and then pay that amount back to the church?

My ethical convictions, spurred by my nuanced Christian beliefs, demand we give willingly to the widows and orphans, the poor and destitute. After all, theirs is the kingdom of heaven, lest we forget. I believe any church which mandates a financial requirement is a church I don't have much interest in attending. Churches aren't fraternities, God is not for sale. For some families, 0% is too much--every dime that is earned is needed to buy food, clothes, and pay rent.