I had a thought the other day. I was wondering what would happen if all of us who were spiritually and/or emotional hurt/damaged/abused by Gracepoint/Berkland asked for our tithes and offerings back.
I did some cursory research and it doesn't seem like churches are legally bound to give offerings back to the giver but it sure would send a loud and clear message if a lot of us did this. Not sure about you but I gave thousands and thousands of dollars to Gracepoint/Berkland. And this was when I was a student.
Of course, I was giving to God, not to Gracepoint/Berkland but it does make me kick myself to know that I was financially supporting the legalistic hierarchy.
Your thoughts?
I did some cursory research and it doesn't seem like churches are legally bound to give offerings back to the giver but it sure would send a loud and clear message if a lot of us did this. Not sure about you but I gave thousands and thousands of dollars to Gracepoint/Berkland. And this was when I was a student.
Of course, I was giving to God, not to Gracepoint/Berkland but it does make me kick myself to know that I was financially supporting the legalistic hierarchy.
Your thoughts?
It's an interesting idea. I'm 99 percent sure they will not give you back one cent.
ReplyDeleteOn the other hand, one of the things told to me when I brought up complaints was basically, “it's in the past get over it. There's nothing that can be done now.” They love saying that.
But what if there is something you can do about it? Would they? Or would they just accuse you of being petty or some other negative? It would be interesting to see. Would it reveal something about their true nature?
Giving a lot of money to an organization u no longer believe in hurts. Though I can't say I've given thousands to gracepoint the amount I did feel pressured to give was sort of painful. Love offerings, missionaries, gifts for mothers day, different staff appreciations, graduations, etc. It wasn't necessarily that those were bad things, but I never felt like I could say no. Giving not really of your free will was sort of insidious, and they could and did say later, you're an adult, you made those decisions as an adult and you're blaming us?
What if you told them you'd rather give that money to another charity or church organization?
Sorry but I think your money is pretty much gone but would be fascinating to see what the reaction to your request would be.
I also literally gave thousands of dollars to GP and regret it after having suffered 4 years of depression under their care. I have done no reseach, but think it unlikely any obligation exists for them to return the money. Interested in how they would respond as well.
ReplyDeleteAppending to my earlier response. At the time of the giving we were willing, so it cannot be called extortion. Regret bites, but I imagine it is similar to not being entitled to the return of gifts after a breakup. Even if he or she did emotionally abuse you.
ReplyDeleteFeel the pain though.
Hey, nice blog, just came through someone else sharing. I also went to Cal, didn't go to Gracepoint but had a lot of friends who did, and some who got really hurt by it. I went to another church in Berkeley and was deeply involved for a long period, and then left, and was also personally hurt through that ordeal (I don't want to name at this time, because I personally don't believe in naming and shaming, and don't want to potentially cause hurt and harm, or confusion to younger believers).
ReplyDeleteI would say this -- it's in the past, move on.
Here are some positive ways to think about it:
- While there is a good number (to be statistically significant/relevant) of people who have been hurt by XYZ ministries, realize that at the same time, some good did come out of the ministry. I personally know a lot of people who came to know Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior through the ministry of Gracepoint, some who are still there, some who have moved on.
- "Love the sinner, hate the sin."
- I think your blog is helpful, but in general, I'd recommend to not dwell too much in the past. I have basically come to peace
- Genesis 50:20 says, "As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive." As you said, you were giving to God at the time, not to Gracepoint. I 100% agree with that. God will judge/reward you for your personal obedience, and others will be accountable to God for their actions as well.
- I have personally come to terms with the different types of churches out there. No one church is perfect, each one has its own unique problems, to different degrees, and different manifestations. Each evangelical church that teaches the true, orthodox gospel will have its idiosyncrasies, and each will appeal to different populations. Look at Revelation 2-3 -- only two of the seven churches, Smyrna, Philadelphia, were strictly praised by Jesus and not criticized. Also, in Acts 15:39, "And there occurred such a sharp disagreement that they separated from one another, and Barnabas took Mark with him and sailed away to Cyprus." we see that the end result is that the gospel is spread and multiplied at a faster rate, due to two humans (by definition, imperfect) disagreeing and having a dispute.
Yes, your money is gone, poo poo. Or, sorry, rather, but I don't feel too sorry, because hopefully, God has blessed you with so much more. At least you (I am assuming) graduated with a degree from Cal, one of the top universities in the country and the world, and have a decent job now. I am only extrapolating, that if you had given thousands and thousands and thousands of dollars while you were a college student, now that you have been out of college for so long, you have probably earned tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars while working.
So many Christians around the world are suffering and don't have food or are still struggling for basic things we take for granted, even safety and security.
We can be thankful that God has blessed us richly, and see the responsibility we have to give back--ultimately, everything you have is God's in the first place, He owns it all, and doesn't need any of it. It's a privilege to be able to participate.
Yes, humans screw up a lot of things, but it's sokay, in the grander scheme of things. That's why Christians, throughout the ages, have been earnestly longing for the Lord's return.