The Mormon People: cynically over-tithed by the Brethren.

[_Buffalo]

D&C 119:4

4 And after that, those who have thus been tithed shall pay one-tenth of all their interest annually; and this shall be a standing law unto them forever, for my holy priesthood, saith the Lord.

The Board of Directors at the COB have cynically manipulated and twisted this verse to their financial advantage and to the disadvantage of the members struggling to feed and educate their children. They have deliberately twisted "interest" to mean "income" when it means nothing of the sort. Interest very specifically means the money you gain over the principal investment. For example, if you invest $100 in a fund, and at the end of it you receive $110, your interest in dollars is $10, not $110.

In this lesson manual, they've twisted interest and made it to refer to both interest and principal investment:

http://LDS.org/ldsorg/v/index.jsp?hideNav=1&locale=0&sourceId=b2a6a41f6cc20110VgnVCM100000176f620a____&vgnextoid=198bf4b13819d110VgnVCM1000003a94610aRCRD

Discuss the following attitudes and decide on the right solution:

1. A man once said, “I pay tithing on all my salary after deductions, since I don’t get the money that is taken for taxes.” Is he correct? (Tithing is one-tenth of all our interest or increase, before anything else is taken out. See D&C 119:4.)

This is so dishonest that it almost rises to the level of fraud. They make the discussion about paying tithing based on gross or net income, when in fact the scriptural basis for tithing is 1/10th of interest only.

In other words, an honest and forthright tithing is the following:

Gross Income
- Taxes
- Deductions
- Rent/Mortgage
- Grocery
- Electricity/heat
- Misc non-discretionary expenditures

The resulting figure is your annual interest, of which, as a Mormon, you're obligated to pay 10%. It's not 10% of the principal. The brethren are robbing the Latter-day Saints. There is no nicer way to put it.

[_Buffalo]

[_DarkHelmet]

horse = tapir
year = unspecified amount of time
steel = wood
translate = receive revelation that is totally unrelated to the ancient text you are "translating"
interest = gross income

[_zeezrom]

Run faster than you have strength = pay tithing on gross income

right?

[_moksha]

When so many claim not to masturbate, isn't it also likely they fib about paying on the gross amount?

[_Yoda]

n other words, an honest and forthright tithing is the following:

Gross Income
- Taxes
- Deductions
- Rent/Mortgage
- Grocery
- Electricity/heat
- Misc non-discretionary expenditures

The resulting figure is your annual interest, of which, as a Mormon, you're obligated to pay 10%. It's not 10% of the principal. The brethren are robbing the Latter-day Saints. There is no nicer way to put it.

Amen!

[_Panopticon]

What I find interesting is that people like Lynn Robbins of the Seventy have the audacity to tell poor people that they need to pay their tithing, even before buying food.

http://LDS.org/ensign/2005/05/tithing-a ... e?lang=eng

"Faith isn’t tested so much when the cupboard is full as when it is bare'

'If a destitute family is faced with the decision of paying their tithing or eating, they should pay their tithing.'

Incidentally, Lynn Robbins is a multi-millionaire and co-founder of Franklin Covey. He recently purchased one of the new apartment condos across from Temple Square for over a million bucks. It is so easy for him to tell the destitute what they can do with their money. It is like Marie Antoinette saying "let them eat cake."

[_Drifting]

What I find interesting is that people like Lynn Robbins of the Seventy have the audacity to tell poor people that they need to pay their tithing, even before buying food.

http://LDS.org/ensign/2005/05/tithing-a ... e?lang=eng

"Faith isn’t tested so much when the cupboard is full as when it is bare'

'If a destitute family is faced with the decision of paying their tithing or eating, they should pay their tithing.'

Incidentally, Lynn Robbins is a multi-millionaire and co-founder of Franklin Covey. He recently purchased one of the new apartment condos across from Temple Square for over a million bucks. It is so easy for him to tell the destitute what they can do with their money. It is like Marie Antoinette saying "let them eat cake."

The Prophet Hinckley pitched up in New Orleans in the immediate aftermath of Katrina.
What was the first thing he told them to do? That's right, ''pay your tithing''.

[_Black Moclips]

In other words, an honest and forthright tithing is the following:

Gross Income
- Taxes
- Deductions
- Rent/Mortgage
- Grocery
- Electricity/heat
- Misc non-discretionary expenditures

Interestingly enough, this is almost exactly how I figure what I am going to pay. Then I take that number, and put a large chunk to fast offerings and the remainder as tithing.

Honestly, if I was really certain the church was true, I wouldn't have a problem paying on gross (even if not technically doctrinal). I did that in fact for most of my life. But as my faith wained, so did my willingness to hand over large sums of money that I don't know exactly how its being used. Isn't that odd? It is mainly a tax deduction for me now, but I like have a model to follow and justify my amount (just in the off chance the church is actually true.) Plus, my wife and kids do get some social utility out of the organization and its programs, so I'm okay "paying" for those so to speak.

[_zeezrom]

Since I stopped paying 10% tithing on gross income, I have diverted the same gross 10% over to a Roth IRA. Do you think that is selfish of me? I think it is a little selfish but at the same time, I feel like I'm finally able to start on a path towards a *real* safety net for retirement.