A lot of people may want to pretend that they are not aware that membership of any socio-cultural, religious, political, economic, or any other group, attracts forms of financial commitment. Even citizenship is not for free, because citizens show financial commitment through the payment of taxes.
No meaningful establishment can stand without the monetary contributions of its members. When you willfully belong to any legally recognized group, the nomenclature notwithstanding, and you make financial contributions willfully to the group, it is not a scam and there is absolutely nothing criminal about it. It is a choice.
Since the USSD payment channel of Winners Church came to public knowledge, people have intensified their verbal abuse of the Church and frankly, I can’t understand why. No, the payment is for the Church members and not for the general public and it is not compulsory! If the anger is because people can now give offering and pay tithe using USSD, well, will the Church not also be technologically compliant with the time?
For the purposes of my argument, it is important that we understand that if a Church requires, demands or persuades its members to make payments in form of tithes and offerings, it is not strange or particularly different from what other socio-cultural or religious groups do. Adherents of the traditional religion also make monetary contributions to finance their agenda.
Mystics or Occult groups make the same, even require members to pay or be sanctioned. Financial commitment is the hallmark of one’s membership of any group or association. In our villages, members of kindred groups make certain financial contributions and it is mandatory for all members. In fact, as a member of a kindred group, you not only pay your dues, you have certain obligations to your kindred during your occasions, like burial and marriage, otherwise, benefits due to you may be withheld.
All these form part of our social fabrics. Let us not forget that we all have a choice to stay on our own and shun belonging to any religious group or any other group, for that matter. In the same way, let us stop pretending that you can be a member of the Church and will not be required to be a financial member. So long as membership of the group is not imposed, there should be no argument as to the financial commitment of the group members, more so, when such monetary contributions are free will.
Traditionalists and adherents of other religious or spiritual background make all kinds of sacrifices and all manner of financial commitments, yet nobody mentions them and it is correct. But once Church talks about tithe or offering, people gather and start attacking the Church and that is wrong.
Some people who live in estates pay so many other dues after their rent. We make all kinds of contributions that are mandatory and we don’t complain even when we are not sure how the money is spent. Traditionalists and adherents of other religious or spiritual background make all kinds of sacrifices and all manner of financial commitments, yet nobody mentions them and it is correct. But once Church talks about tithe or offering, people gather and start attacking the Church and that is wrong.
Meanwhile, many Nigerian Churches are far more responsible than the Nigerian government to which many pay their taxes, which are looted along the country’s accretion from sales of natural resources and Nigerians, are not outraged. Nigerians seem to always be infuriated by the wrong things; things that do not even concern or affect them.
Worst still, what exactly is the interest of people complaining even when they are not members of the Church and nobody is demanding that they make any offering or pay any tithe? Even when tithe and offering is totally free will giving, why they outraged? People are at liberty to belong to any legitimate group they deem fit and free to make commitments, inclusive of financial obligations expected of them as members of the group and there is totally nothing wrong with it.
Nigerians should stop wasting time on nonissues and rather invest their time well into worthy matters that affect them collectively, rather than expending time trying to tell adult members of the Church not to give offering or pay tithe in Church freely, with their own money. That is clear extremism and it has no bearing whatsoever in the scheme of what Nigerians must stop doing to build the country.
If they do not give offering and pay tithe, will they now give the money to the Nigerian government, as taxes? If they do, will the Nigerian government not loot the money? Will the government use it judiciously to improve lives in Nigeria? Why not Nigerians invest as much time in demanding that government account for the resources they mismanage and allow people be financial members of any legitimate group they willfully belong.
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