Getting Lost in the Woods

We offer God our first fruits While I am a lifelong member of the Episcopal church, the first time I remember hearing a minister talk about faith and money I was 22 years old.   Jason and I were newlyweds.   I had just started seminary and was working part time as one of the Diocesan Youth Ministers.  We attended a small, family sized church in Hallowell, Maine.  During the church’s annual pledge drive, the priest did the craziest thing.  He actually talked about the tithe.  This biblical idea that we are called to return our first fruits to God as an act of thanksgiving.  It is typically defined as ten percent of one’s annual income.  Even more startling than the fact he was talking about money during the sermon time, was that he ended his sermon by asking each of us to prayerfully reflect on whether we could strive to tithe.   I am sure some folks were annoyed or tuned out, particularly given the Episcopal Church’s history in recent memory to function more like a country club than a