Proportional Giving

God loves us and gives to us at 100%! Everything we are and have in this world is a gift from God.

When you pray on the ways you will give back to God, consider making your monetary contribution proportional to your annual income. The key to proportional giving is to think in terms of a percentage, not a flat amount.

The Biblical standard, and the standard of the Episcopal Church, is the tithe, or 10%. Whether you give 10% or 3%, we encourage you to calculate your pledge as a percentage, or proportion of your income. This is a way of giving the “first fruits” to God. It puts all our spending into the context of our faith. When we give proportionally, the amount becomes a means of reinforcing our trust in God’s providence and care.

What we do with our money has a profound effect on our spiritual life. Proportional giving puts our faith in God first. Proportional giving shifts our thinking from scarcity to abundance. We give back to God out of the abundance of what God has given us. This simple act can shift our entire relationship with money from one of fear to one of hope. Jesus said, “where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:21).

Here is an exercise to consider as you make your pledge:

• Look at your pledge for the current year (or the amount you gave).
• Calculate your proportional giving rate by dividing what you gave by your income.
• Consider increasing your pledge by 1% of your income, moving you closer to the tithe (10%).

FYI: The average pledge in the Episcopal Church is around 3% when considered as a proportion of the average income. If you are giving less than 3%, please consider coming up to that national average. Whatever you give, thank you for your trust as we do God’s work together. No pledge is too small!