Memberships, Tithing, and Pagans

Unlike a church, it’s usually a loose banding of people who have no “stake” in the organization, and they show up and pay the entrance fee for the class, ritual, or event, or they decide to not go to something because they don’t feel like it, there’s a concert they want to go to, they forget, they decide to watch TV, a family crisis comes up, or something else keeps them from attending. But it’s still a capitalist model where people have other things competing for their attention, and they can decide to attend or not. There’s not a co-ownership of the group; it’s just “Do I feel like attending that class/event?”

If organizations like NIPA, Pagan Unity Councils, and other groups serving Pagans want to get out of the trap of either being stuck offering things capitalistically (only those who can pay, and who are interested enough, come to events when they feel like it) or offering things that are only free (choosing inconvenient venues with no cost, or leaders paying out of pocket for events) there needs to be a different model of how we pay for all this.

The model I’m using for my organization, Ringing Anvil, will be a sliding scale membership fee. In other words, a tithe. Some organizations charge a flat annual fee, like $200, to be a member of the organization. I recognize that that isn’t possible for everyone, especially with something like 10 percent or more being unemployed.  So I’m offering membership in our organization on a sliding scale from $1 to $100. Those who are doing well can put in $100 a year, or more. Those who are students, unemployed, or on disability, can pay in the $1-$25 range. I might even make an exception where people can offer a good or service in trade that could be auctioned off -- hand-made crafts, tarot readings, etc.

This kind of membership is a tithe.

It is getting people to buy-in to the organization. They will have co-ownership of what goes on in the organization. I’m trying to engage people not as occasional attendees, but as regular members who care about what’s going on with the group, people who will volunteer for events, attend events, and get all that they can out of it. It’s not about, “I’m not interested in that class so I’m not paying for it.” It’s, “I want to make sure that diverse education is offered to myself and other members of the community and I’m putting forth some money to make sure that education happens.”

I find there’s a spiritual apathy that happens when someone has ten events they could attend, but isn’t a member of any organization and thus has no community connection reason to attend something. When we tithe together, work together, we become a spiritual family, we have an obligation to one another, and we can connect and grow together.

Here’s a suggestion of a tithing/membership-based community organization structure:

• The organization takes annual memberships on a sliding scale. This builds up a kitty of funds.
  
• Monthly rituals use some of those funds for space rental, but perhaps donations are also accepted at the rituals. Maybe there’s also a bake sale, auction, or divination done at some of these monthly rituals to raise additional funds. Ideally, each ritual at least pays for the space, and possibly puts a few bucks back into the kitty.
  
• The group runs an annual fundraiser (Witch’s Ball, carnival, pennywar) to bring in funds for special projects, or to replenish the group funds.
  
• The community decides that there are enough new folks coming in that it needs to offer a rolling Pagan 101 class, providing basic skills and tools for Pagans and introducing Pagans to the various different traditions. This would help in introducing them to the different groups in the area so that the newer folks can figure out what type of Pagan, Heathen, Wiccan, Druid, Shaman, or other, they might be. The community finds teachers who can teach this, and decides on a fee to pay them for their time. Space is rented for the class. The fee comes out of the group funds. Donations are accepted at the class, but it’s assumed that the classes will lose money. This is decided to be an acceptable loss in order to bring this important education to all who seek it.
  
• More advanced classes are planned by people within the organization who want further learning in a particular topic, or who want to bring in a specific presenter. Let’s say, for example, that a number of folks in the group want to take some Celtic Shamanism classes. Funds are stewarded for this class; those who want the education donate toward this class, and also engage in a bake sale in order to raise additional funds to bring this education. They also reach out to surrounding areas to find more people who might be willing to travel 3-5 hours to attend something like this. Once enough funds are raised to make the class feasible, a venue is chosen and the date for the class is set. Because enough people were committed to attending the class ahead of time and had already paid in, additional registrants from the surrounding area helped the class to make a few hundred dollars to put into the group funds.
  
• Another group of people want more education on runework. They follow a similar pattern as the group before, but discover that this class isn’t generating as much interest. They can cover most of the costs, but it looks like the class will operate at a loss. They decide that the education is worth it and operate at an acceptable loss. They also agree that those who learn the runework will do free readings at some of the upcoming rituals as a fundraiser to help pay for the class after the fact and replenish group funds.
  
• A member of the congregation decides they would like to get leadership training to better serve the group. Perhaps they want to take a class at Cherry Hill Seminary or Earth Traditions online, or perhaps they want to do a weeklong intensive in mediation and conflict resolution. They can’t afford the class and the reason they want to take the class is to serve the group, so the organization decides to help sponsor this person, taking some money from the group funds, but also holding a special fundraiser. In exchange, once the member has finished the class, they offer a free session for the community on some of the things they learned, and they offer this skill set to the group.
  
• After a few years, the group has a stable enough tithing membership, and has enough work, that they realize a couple of folks are needed on a full time basis to do the administrative and leadership work of the group. The group has already been offering a small stipend to the folks regularly planning the rituals. They discuss who might be willing to do this work part time or full time, and agree upon a salary for this person’s work. The person is hired, and is now accountable to the organization for their work. Perhaps this person discovers that he or she needs additional training in the clergy arts, such as counseling. The congregation votes and sets aside funds to help pay for this training so that the staff member can better service the organization.
  
• The organization has been collecting funds in a special account earmarked for purchasing a community center. Community members have already been doing collaborative gardening, growing food to be eaten at community gatherings, and taking the food waste from the monthly potluck and composting that food waste to be used in the community garden. The new community space has enough yard for a more extensive garden. The congregation checks out the space, decides that this is the right space, and engages in some additional fundraising to purchase the space. This group now has a community center -- a church -- that all can use, and all in the organization have bought into it, whether for the $1 they could afford on unemployment, or for the $1000 they saved after getting a raise at work.