Should a Christian still tithe to day?

Should a Christian still tithe today?

To tithe or not to tithe is still a question that can stir passions among Christians. A central figure in the church history of tithing is the towering figure of probably the greatest monarch of the early Middle Ages, Charlemagne, (Charles the Great) who lived from about 740 to 812 AD and ruled over Europe from the Atlantic Ocean to Hungary and from The Baltic to Northern Italy.

Charlemagne saw himself quite definitely, as a Christian king who desired to enhance Christianity and all its benefits in his realm. Naturally he was a monarch of his day and age. He had a distinct romantic fondness for women that horrified his monks. He threatened conquered peoples with execution if they did not convert and was not averse to carrying out his threat.

The king also was keen to bring education and law and learning into his realm. He could read but not write and he set up a palace school at Aachen and imported some of the great scholars of the day to reside there. One such scholar was Alcuin of York (735-804) who was lured across the North Sea to serve and advise the king. He was called by a contemporary ‘the most learned man anywhere to be found’.

Early in Charles’ reign one of the adjacent unconquered peoples were the Saxons. They were wild and barbarous, living in a vast area of Northern Germany, fierce warriors who could retreat into dense forests and near impenetrable marshes when attacked. Yet Charlemagne ruthlessly prevailed over them. He then set about the task of building towns, and churches and setting up monasteries with clergy and bishoprics to transform the lives and values of the people.

To do this he needed money and with good intentions he promulgated legislation, (capitularies) enforcing the tithe. Here everyone ‘shall pay the tithes of their possessions to the churches of God, as had been commanded by God’s law’.  Thus, Charlemagne compelled the tithe and this set in train the practice that would become standard for the rest of the Middle Ages. The significance is that before this, church councils had merely encouraged tithing, here Charlemagne mandated it.

Yet Alcuin advised against this exercise of power. His approach was pastoral. He argued that compelling new believers to pay a tax was far more likely to drive them away from Christ that have them embrace the faith from the heart. His attitude can be seen in a letter to Arno, Bishop of Salzburg (c796):

‘Be a preacher of piety, not an exacter of tithes; for the freshly converted soul is to be fed with the milk of apostolical piety until it grows, strengthens, and becomes strong enough to receive solid food. Tithes it is said, have subverted the faith of the Saxons. Why should we place on the neck of the ignorant a yoke which neither we nor our brethren have been able to bear.’

To Charlemagne he wrote: ‘We know that the tithing of our substance is a very good thing; but it is better to sacrifice the tithe than to lose the faith.’

The differences between the king and the scholar are still instructive. Charlemagne used power and law whereas Alcuin counselled as a pastor and evangelist.

Surely Alcuin, far better understood St Paul than the king.

‘Each one should give what he has desired in his heart to give. Not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver’. 2 Cor 9:7

In churches today, mandating tithing as command can easily irritate the faithful and alienate the inquirer. In my book, Giving Generously I have advocated a way forward in this controversial issue.  No one disputes that Christians should be generous. Yet it is difficult for those of us in rich western nations to be generous if we give less than an Old Testament peasant farmer who would starve if his crops failed, (Malachi 3:6-12). Giving Generously provides a brief overview of tithing throughout Church history. I invite you to have a look at the rest of the story. https://givinggenerously.com/buy-the-book-2/