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Changes to Tithing Settlement Planned?


Andrew Callahan

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A poster at RfM named Luke (whom I don't know) posted this question:

Anybody heard about changes in tithing settlement?

A friend who is a Church employee said that tithing settlement will no longer will be done on a yearly basis, but quarterly.

Anyone heard of it?

Thinking that some of the folks here (and a few other boards) might be more likely to hear about changes to tithing settlement than either I would or many of the visitors to RfM, I thought I'd post this here and see if anyone had heard anything.

My thoughts on this are that IF it is the case, I think it is more likely that instead of EVERYONE being interviewed quarterly, that perhaps they will spread the interviews out and do one quarter of the ward each quarter, to perhaps ease the burden on the clerks and bishop, but that is only a guess, because it would seem to me to be overly burdensome to interview everyone quarterly.

So, anyone heard any rumblings on this?

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I have not heard of any such thing, but I highly doubt we are going to be called in every quarter for tithing settlement. The Bishop could never handle the load. May be it is as yo say just going to be spread over the year.

Yeah, to do this would but a massive burden on the Bishoprics throughout the Church. I could see instead of doing all the membership at once to divide it into quarters and do one portion each quater to spread the workload throughout the year, but that seems like a logistical nightmare of the ward finance secretary.

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I don't know why we have to have tithing settlement anyway. I've always considered a waste of time. You get your summary at the end of the year and if there is a discrepancy make an appointment with the Bishop. The question of whether one is a full tithe payer is asked at the temple recommend interview and if you aren't applying for that what difference does it make?

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I don't know why we have to have tithing settlement anyway. I've always considered a waste of time. You get your summary at the end of the year and if there is a discrepancy make an appointment with the Bishop. The question of whether one is a full tithe payer is asked at the temple recommend interview and if you aren't applying for that what difference does it make?

It's the one opportunity a year for a full family interview with the Bishop. It's very useful for the Bishop, and can actually be a very edifying experience for the whole family.

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It's the one opportunity a year for a full family interview with the Bishop. It's very useful for the Bishop, and can actually be a very edifying experience for the whole family.

I suppose but I've been a single individual for many years and don't see it serves any purpose. I suppose the bishop can get a feel for how things are going but there really isn't time to get into that anyway.

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I suppose but I've been a single individual for many years and don't see it serves any purpose. I suppose the bishop can get a feel for how things are going but there really isn't time to get into that anyway.

My Bishop schedules each Tithing Settlement interview for 20-30 minutes, depending on the individual/family. It's far more of a conversation on life, the universe, and everything than just a show up and declare. I've enjoyed them.

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I don't know why we have to have tithing settlement anyway. I've always considered a waste of time. You get your summary at the end of the year and if there is a discrepancy make an appointment with the Bishop. The question of whether one is a full tithe payer is asked at the temple recommend interview and if you aren't applying for that what difference does it make?

Not all tithe payers are even active. Many pay full tithes but never come to church or hold recommends.

It is also important for statistical purposes to know how many are full tithe payers, if they hold recommends or not.

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It's the one opportunity a year for a full family interview with the Bishop. It's very useful for the Bishop, and can actually be a very edifying experience for the whole family.

Every bishop I've ever had has spent about 3 minutes, give or take... Maybe I've just had bishops who don't understand that tithing settlement is for a family interview, but we've only ever been asked if we are full-tithe payers, and then thanked for our contribution.

H.

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Not all tithe payers are even active. Many pay full tithes but never come to church or hold recommends.

It is also important for statistical purposes to know how many are full tithe payers, if they hold recommends or not.

Temple recommends can now be tracked automatically with the new system for tracking recommends. As for tithing, I'm unclear why it's important to track for statistical purposes. If I recall, there is no box to check on one's membership record (unless it's in the financial portion of MLS).

H.

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Every bishop I've ever had has spent about 3 minutes, give or take...

Ditto. But I have to get dressed and go to the church for this 3 minute interview.

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A poster at RfM named Luke (whom I don't know) posted this question:

Thinking that some of the folks here (and a few other boards) might be more likely to hear about changes to tithing settlement than either I would or many of the visitors to RfM, I thought I'd post this here and see if anyone had heard anything.

My thoughts on this are that IF it is the case, I think it is more likely that instead of EVERYONE being interviewed quarterly, that perhaps they will spread the interviews out and do one quarter of the ward each quarter, to perhaps ease the burden on the clerks and bishop, but that is only a guess, because it would seem to me to be overly burdensome to interview everyone quarterly.

So, anyone heard any rumblings on this?

tithing is an act of trust and faith in the lord; the lord knows it, the members know it.:P

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Not all tithe payers are even active. Many pay full tithes but never come to church or hold recommends.

It is also important for statistical purposes to know how many are full tithe payers, if they hold recommends or not.

Really? I did not know that. I thought paying tithing was something only active members could do, kind of like other blessings that come with being active (service, Temple, etc). Not quite understanding why an inactive member would pay tithing...unless they are inactive due to illness or something like that, in which case, I wouldn't really call them "inactive".

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I don't know why we have to have tithing settlement anyway. I've always considered a waste of time. You get your summary at the end of the year and if there is a discrepancy make an appointment with the Bishop. The question of whether one is a full tithe payer is asked at the temple recommend interview and if you aren't applying for that what difference does it make?

I felt that way, as well, and actually didn't go to tithing settlement except for a couple of times, the almost seven years I was in. I still held a Temple recommend, so I guess it was not a problem.

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Really? I did not know that. I thought paying tithing was something only active members could do, kind of like other blessings that come with being active (service, Temple, etc). Not quite understanding why an inactive member would pay tithing...unless they are inactive due to illness or something like that, in which case, I wouldn't really call them "inactive".

It's like anything else I guess. We all have aspects of the gospel we believe but do not live, and other principles we do live.

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It's like anything else I guess. We all have aspects of the gospel we believe but do not live, and other principles we do live.

Yeah, I guess.

It just seems kind of strange to pay tithe to a church you don't even attend.

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Thinking that some of the folks here (and a few other boards) might be more likely to hear about changes to tithing settlement than either I would or many of the visitors to RfM, I thought I'd post this here and see if anyone had heard anything.

My thoughts on this are that IF it is the case, I think it is more likely that instead of EVERYONE being interviewed quarterly, that perhaps they will spread the interviews out and do one quarter of the ward each quarter, to perhaps ease the burden on the clerks and bishop, but that is only a guess, because it would seem to me to be overly burdensome to interview everyone quarterly.

So, anyone heard any rumblings on this?

I'll tell you what you ought to do Andrew. Feel free to give Bishop Woodbury a call (I'm sure he'd love to hear from you) and ask him the question yourself. In fact, you can drop by the old chapel across from Watson Elementary in a few hours and ask him. That of course, is my contribution to said "rumbling."

As a ward clerk myself, I've heard nothing about it.

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I agree with Deborah. Where I served as a bishop a quarter century ago, I would have rejoiced had the requirement been eliminated and I know my wife and our very small children would have rejoiced as well to have dad available at home during December instead of down at the church almost every night. (Our stake president instructed us to take the longer periods of time with each person/family). I enjoyed spending the time with each member and family; I did not enjoy being absent from home so much. Spreading them over the year would be better.

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Don't you see guys? The Church wants our money and by having tithing settlement happen quarterly, they can have a firmer grasp on who is contributing to the church and who needs to be kicked out! :P

Edit: Obligatory "was kidding" edit. Spreading tithing settlement year round would certainly be good for some members, especially ones who spend part of the year in another country.

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I'll tell you what you ought to do Andrew. Feel free to give Bishop Woodbury a call (I'm sure he'd love to hear from you) and ask him the question yourself. In fact, you can drop by the old chapel across from Watson Elementary in a few hours and ask him. That of course, is my contribution to said "rumbling."

As a ward clerk myself, I've heard nothing about it.

Thank you for your suggestion. I know full well where the chapel is, having served in the bishopric in that building for two years, and I believe I even attended once last year. Bryan and I are still on good terms. We served in the bishopric together, our wives served together in primary, our children attended seminary together. Bryan was very helpful on my son's Eagle Scout project. He worked with my father-in-law for years and is a family friend. Since my disaffection from the church we of course see each other less, but I still consider us friends.

It seemed to me that asking several folks in different places, who might have different sources of information, would yield greater results than just asking one person at one place.

But, thank you for telling me who my local bishop is and where the ward building is. I haven't a clue why you would feel the need to do that, but than you..

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A poster at RfM named Luke (whom I don't know) posted this question:

Thinking that some of the folks here (and a few other boards) might be more likely to hear about changes to tithing settlement than either I would or many of the visitors to RfM, I thought I'd post this here and see if anyone had heard anything.

My thoughts on this are that IF it is the case, I think it is more likely that instead of EVERYONE being interviewed quarterly, that perhaps they will spread the interviews out and do one quarter of the ward each quarter, to perhaps ease the burden on the clerks and bishop, but that is only a guess, because it would seem to me to be overly burdensome to interview everyone quarterly.

So, anyone heard any rumblings on this?

This would never work.

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Thank you for your suggestion. I know full well where the chapel is, having served in the bishopric in that building for two years, and I believe I even attended once last year. Bryan and I are still on good terms. We served in the bishopric together, our wives served together in primary, our children attended seminary together. Bryan was very helpful on my son's Eagle Scout project. He worked with my father-in-law for years and is a family friend. Since my disaffection from the church we of course see each other less, but I still consider us friends.

It seemed to me that asking several folks in different places, who might have different sources of information, would yield greater results than just asking one person at one place.

But, thank you for telling me who my local bishop is and where the ward building is. I haven't a clue why you would feel the need to do that, but than you..

Andrew, no offense was intended by my telling you where the building was, in fact, I chose the wording based on the mutual familiarity that both of us have with Hastings. I apologize if it was taken the wrong way. Your in-laws were great people, though it's been well over a decade since I've set foot in the Hastings chapel. I know you served in the Bishopric and of your subsequent disaffection from the Church, along with your family. Not long ago I spoke with another ward member and heard a bit more about it, but nothing I wasn't at least marginally aware of already (you're a very popular man in the ex-Mo world). Have you ever considered posting "The Twelve Days of Smithmas" here?

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Quarterly meetings would be difficult given the fiscal year end and tax ramifications. The IRS requires a year end assessment (not as tithe payers but of what has been paid). Often the interview is more than merely the question, but also a reconciliation and question of accuracy. The latter part would still need to be held at the end of the year.

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A poster at RfM named Luke (whom I don't know) posted this question:

The posters ar rfm would love to have it happen so as to validate their caracture of the church as only interested in money and validate their own claims.

As a ward clerk I have heard nothing that would indicae any truth in it. What purpose would it serve?

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