Hodges: Motivation, not method, matters for giving
Corey J. Hodges
Article Last Updated: 09/07/2007 06:42:37 PM MDT

ATMs in church lobbies are a growing trend causing a stir among parishioners. The "Giving Kiosks" created by "Secure Give" do not dispense cash but simply allow congregants to make electronic donations during church services and returns them a receipt. (Some parishioners place receipts in the collection plates as a means of participating in traditional forms of giving).
Since the company's inception, "Secure Give" has sold more than 40 machines to churches around the country, but the company has received sharp criticism from people who believe ATMs have no place in church.

Critics call the machines tacky, even sacrilegious, citing the biblical passage in Matthew 21 when Jesus entered the temple and drove out the people who were buying and selling. He overturned the tables of the moneychangers, saying, "My house shall be a house of prayer, but you are making it a den of thieves."
Proponents of the electronic collection plates point out that the machines are not used for commerce but are simply a convenience in a culture that is increasingly becoming a cashless society.
Marty Baker, founder of Secure Give and pastor of Stevens Creek Community Church, spoke about it in August on CNN's "Prime News."

"In the early days [people] would bring vegetables or grain to the [temple]," he said. "Can you imagine the stir in the temple when they started bringing coins? And then what about when they started bringing paper money? How about [when people] brought checks? This is just part of the evolution of the financial system."
As donations in his church dropped because people were carrying smaller amounts of cash, Baker came up with the idea for the devices he sometimes calls "Automatic Tithing Machines."

According to "Secure Give," as many as half of American adults carry credit or debit cards.
Merchants nationwide have long since realized the value of accepting electronic payments; even vending machines now come equipped with the ability to purchase products with a swipe of plastic.
Fewer businesses are accepting checks, which take time to clear, and may result in high fees if a customer's account has insufficient funds. (Churches must usually incur bounced check fees).

The "Giving Kiosks" are enabling churches to keep up with changing times. In 2 Corinthians 9:7, the Apostle Paul says, "Let each man give according as he has determined in his heart; not grudgingly or under compulsion; for God loves a cheerful giver."
God is not concerned with the method used to give; he looks instead at the donor's motivation for giving.

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* COREY J. HODGES writes about current events and ideas from a moral perspective. Hodges, the senior pastor of the New Pilgrim Baptist Church in Taylorsville, welcomes comments at coreyjhodges@comcast.net. You also may send comments to religioneditor@sltrib.com.