Should Students Pay Tithe?

Review and Herald Publishing Association · Takoma Park Station, Washington, D. C. · Jan 7, 1909

Should Students Pay Tithe?

Most certainly, each and every one of them should pay tithe. God gave the Sabbath to man as a memorial of the fact that God is the Creator; he also instituted the ordinance of tithe-paying to help man to keep in mind his Creator's ownership. The Lord reserves one seventh of our time for himself, to remind us that we are indebted to him for all the time at our disposal. Likewise the tithe is reserved by God, not only for the purpose of carrying on his work in the earth, but to teach us that he is the giver of all we have, and that we are to use it only to his glory—for the advancement of his cause of truth in the earth. We feel it important to teach our students to observe and love the Sabbath; we say much about it in our schools. Is there any reason why we should not say as much about the binding obligation of the tithe and its payment?

Many of our students work for their room and board, and have but little ready cash. It certainly seems that our schools all ought to make provision for such students to receive sufficient money that their tithe may be fully paid. If in our schools we fail to teach this important truth, we are certainly coming far short of our duty. We should seek to establish

proper habits of tithe-paying and the giving of free-will offerings, as well as Sabbath-keeping and other Christian observances. There is no doubt that, if this is done, many of our schools will have to consider the question from a financial point of view. But it will pay. The proper teaching of this important subject in our schools will have a great influence throughout the whole denomination.