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Comment by crankylinuxuser | Hacker News Reader

So...

When Christian churches tell congregants that tithing 10% saves your soul, are they engaging in fraud?

Christian churches shouldn't be telling anyone that, because that's not how Christianity works, but if they did, yes I think they would be.

https://www.britannica.com/topic/indulgence

Now days it’s not mainstream, but I suspect a few preachers/televangelist has suggested such things more recently.

Selling indulgences was never mainstream or officially sanctioned by the Catholic Church, and it was formally banned almost 500 years ago.

And, in any case, many modern churches and denominations are only tenuously connected to Catholicism of any era.

It was Catholic doctrine at the time, and a significant portion of the protestant reformation.

'Luther came to reject several teachings and practices of the Roman Catholic Church. He strongly disputed the Catholic view on indulgences. Luther proposed an academic discussion of the practice and efficacy of indulgences in his Ninety-five Theses of 1517.' https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martin_Luther

Now, I am not saying the church selling indulgences from a specific menu of sins > prices was mainstream. But, the idea of good works on earth and specifically giving to the church being a good work was very much so. There are also cases of rather significant donations to the church connected to this idea.

PS: Note, this is about reducing time spent in purgatory, not buying your way into heaven. Purgatory was supposed to be a very unpleasant place, but your stay was going to be temporary either way.

Indulgences aren't a thing.

The Catholic church today encourages giving "from the heart" without a specific tithe, and doesn't have a concept of indulgences. Mainline protestant churches fundamentally rejected the practice of indulgence. Evangelical churches are different from church to church by nature.

This is incorrect. The Catholic Church still practices the use of indulgences, just not their sale. See the Catechism of the Catholic Church which was promulgated by John Paul II in 1992 and last revised by Pope Francis this year.

http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P4G.HTM

Absolutely, as this runs counter to one of core tenants of Christianity - saved by grace alone.

Not all Christianity is Calvinistic/Puritanical, so no. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sola_gratia

If you're going to take money for performing a service, you should be able to demonstrate that the service has been performed. Otherwise, yes, I'd call it fraud.

They have to launder it a little. The tithe helps keep the church there. The church helps you practice your faith. And practicing your faith may help save your soul.

Nah, there's no way to prove that it doesn't. To prove fraud would require an examination of the soul both before and after tithing.

I would put the word fraud on almost all church activities, but this is just my purely personal view.

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