In a new statement posted on Church Newsroom, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints discusses how the sacred funds of the Church are used. The full text of the article is below:
In 1991, then Church President Gordon B. Hinckley said, “The tithes of the Church are sacred. They are appropriated in the manner set forth by the Lord Himself. We have become a very large and complex organization. We carry on many extensive and costly programs.” He continued, “But I can assure you that we will not exceed our income. We will not place the Church in debt. We will tailor what we do to the resources that are available” (October General Conference, 2001).
As the Church has grown, the financial needs of the Church have accelerated. This has meant billions of dollars spent each year in support of facilities and activities, including the cost of building and operating places of worship, such as chapels and temples for congregations of more than 16 million members; sharing the message of Jesus Christ through its global missionary program; undertaking welfare and humanitarian efforts that bless God’s children around the globe; educating hundreds of thousands of students at various colleges and universities, seminaries and institutes; and providing world-class family history resources to anyone, without regard for their religious beliefs. The Church does all these things and much more.
The Church teaches its members to live within their means and set aside money for life’s unexpected obstacles. And the Church practices this principle. It sets aside a portion of the sacred funds received from its faithful members. No matter how strong or weak the global economy, the Church needs to carry on its divinely appointed mission, even in difficult times.
The faithfulness of the members of the Church who live God’s Law of Tithing and other financial donations reflect the selfless love and sacrifice Jesus Christ asks of all His followers. Thus, the Church considers every cent it receives from Latter-day Saints as sacred. Church leaders know that these funds are God’s, not their own. That’s why they handle tithes and donations with the care, prudence and wisdom such offerings require.
In an interview given only to Church-owned websites Deseret News and Church News, the Presiding Bishopric shared some more specific thoughts. In the interview, Bishop Gerald Caussé spoke specifically about the Church’s investment funds. “Most of the growth, I have to say, is because we are right now in the longest period of prosperity in the United States that has ever been recorded, and this is creating that surge of financial markets,” he said. “We are just beneficiaries of it.”
One of the most beneficial aspects of a large fund is the safety it provides when future downturns happen. “we won’t have to stop missionary work, we won’t have to stop maintaining buildings and building temples, we won’t have to stop humanitarian and welfare work, we won’t have to stop education work,” Bishop Caussé said.
You can read more about the Church’s finances here.
Aleah is a graduate of Southern Virginia University, where she studied English, Creative Writing, and Dance. She now works full time as a marketing and product manager, writer, and editor. She currently hosts the podcast “Single to the Glory” about singlehood in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Aleah served a mission in California and loves baking, Lang Leav poetry, Gaynor Minden pointe shoes, and Bollywood movies.
