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A Conflict of Interests in Administering Tithes & Tithing?
Abstain from All Appearance of Evil
In 1 Thessalonians 5:22 the apostle Paul wrote:
"Abstain from all appearance of evil" (AV).
Young's literal translation says: "from all appearance of evil abstain ye" (YLT). Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible explains that this means: "We should therefore abstain from evil, and all appearances of evil, from sin, and that which looks like sin, leads to it, and borders upon it".
Today we use an expression which isn't so different: "Justice must not only be done, it must be seen to be done". Even in the secular world, most people would acknowledge that this is an important ethical principle.
BUT, if elders who are responsible for enshrining mandatory tithing as doctrine take income provided by tithes collected as a result of the doctrines they administer, it may APPEAR that justice is NOT being done.
This is what's known as an apparent "conflict of interests". Ethics committees for various bodies, professional or otherwise, secular and non-secular, constantly have to guard against infringements of this important ethical principle.
Viewed from this perspective, even if tithing doctrines are administered "in good faith", it nevertheless matters a great deal that this MIGHT APPEAR TO BE a conflict of interests.
Regrettably, salaried elders who champion mandatory tithing as a fundamental belief, risk both compromising 1 Thessalonians 5:22 AND the potentially damaging PR that goes with this territory, because the need for justice to be SEEN to be done is overlooked.
Avoiding The Conflict of Interests Trap Regarding Tithes & Tithing
To avoid this apparent conflict of interests in administering tithes and tithing, The Tithe Debate advocates that religious organisations who believe in a doctrine of mandatory tithing (in the absence of a Levitical priesthood), should enshrine responsibility for defining tithing doctrines SOLELY to those elders who have AT NO TIME gained in any material way from funds raised by tithing, and are not reasonably expected to at some stage in the future.
Taking this action can both help to minimise potential for harmful public relations and more importantly ensure that 1 Thessalonians 5:22's admonition is complied with.
Only Benefits From Avoiding Conflicts of Interests
If religious organisations' doctrinal positions on the subject of tithing doctrine are sound, there should no risk in adopting this policy - only the benefits of compliance with clear ethical and scriptural standards.
Why should any religious organisation risk doing anything less?
Other Articles About Tithes & Tithing
Go to the beginning of The Tithe Debate: About Tithes and Tithing?
© www.tithe-debate.info Dec 2005.
In Galatians, does Paul really say the Torah law, given by God to Moses, was "done away" especially if he kept Nazirite vows & offered sacrifices at the temple, after the crucifixion as many christian theologians believe? Certainly in Acts even one small & predictable change to an "Old Testament" law about the circumcision of gentile proselytes caused massive turmoil in the predominantly Jewish first century church. Why then, isn't there any comparable tension recorded if most of the other Old Testament laws were "done away"?
