"Giving God his due?" Understanding tithing and its function within the Seventh-Day Adventist Church

Bibliographic Data

ID2186767
AuthorsEvan Carl Edward Jacobs (University of the Witwatersrand, corresponding author)
Year2015
Volume38
Issue3-4
Pages235-247
Publication date2015-10-02
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueAnthropology Southern Africa (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 2332-3264 • E-ISSN: 2332-3256
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/23323256.2015.1077466
OpenAlexW2283638685
LanguageEN
References cited19

This paper focuses on the practice of tithing as an extraordinary form of religious giving. Tithing involves habitually giving ten percent of one's income to the church, and since this is such a significant portion of a person's income, its giving should reflect that significance. The paper seeks to understand why people tithe, and whether they expect anything in return from the community to which they tithe. In an attempt to find answers, attention is placed on members of the South African division of the Seventh-Day Adventist Church, as this denomination has exhibited an upward trend in tithe-giving behaviour over the last decade. The information gathered through participant-observation is analysed by placing it within an anthropological discourse of gift-exchange. Through this lens, the paper argues that tithing functions to produce group solidarity by maintaining the relationships between clergy, laity and their deity.Keywords: gift-exchangerelationshipsSeventh-Day Adventist churchsolidaritytithing

Function (biology · Political science · Seventh day adventist · Sociology · Solidarity · Theology · Anthropological Studies and Insights · Christian Theology and Mission · Law · Philosophy · Religion, Society, and Development

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