Experts say church giving is beginning to resemble secular giving. Just as a family may pay a monthly bill to attend a health club, so they pay a certain amount for whatever services the church may provide. These days, it is a lot more than spiritual. Churches offer everything from dieting classes to book clubs to special seminars on filling out tax returns. Scholars who study church giving say it is unrealistic to expect members to tithe.
Sociologists say there is no evidence that the majority of church members ever tithed.
In centuries past, European churches received their funding through a general tax. The First Amendment made that impossible in the United States. Instead, some Revolution-era churches generated revenue by renting pews to prominent families. As churches became more influential, they could appeal to members conscience. Today, that influence has declined somewhat.