Churches Bypass Passing the Plate
From Charisma News Service, August 23, 2002

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A growing number of congregations are doing away with collections because they think passing the plate is off-putting to people who think that churches are just after their money, reports "The Christian Science Monitor."

At Emmaus Road Church in Seattle, worshipers are given the opportunity to donate via a small white box at the rear of their meeting room. The church ditched the traditional collection six years ago, but still covers its annual $100,000 budget.

"There are so many people who have experienced the abuse of finances by religious figures that we wanted to remove that barrier," pastor Eric Likkel told the newspaper. The usual collection style made newcomers "feel a sense of pressure to give," he added.

At New England Chapel in Franklin, Mass., pastor Chris Mitchell said he believed that going back to passing the plate would reduce his church's income. The church has met its $300,000 budget each year since doing away with the collection in 1997.

Paul Sangree wants to drop the offering at Bethany Congregational Church in Foxboro, Mass. "My highest value is reaching out to lost people because I think lost people matter to God," he said. "And surveys say their No. 1 negative concern about the church is that all they want is your money..."