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Fast offering is the term used in
the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a nontrinitarian Christian church that considers itself to be the restoration of the original church founded by Jesus Christ. The ch ...
(LDS Church) to denote money or usable commodities donated to the church, which are then used to provide financial or other assistance to those in need. The local
bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...
or
branch president A branch president is a leader of a "branch" congregation of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). The calling of branch president is very similar to the calling of bishop, except that instead of presiding over a ward, th ...
is responsible for the use of the fast offering resources, and is usually assisted by other local church leaders to identify individuals and families to receive assistance and to disburse the resources."Fasting and Fast Offerings"
churchofjesuschrist.org.


Background

Members are encouraged to fast once a month on
Fast Sunday Fast Sunday (previously Fast Day) is a Sunday set aside by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for fasting by its members. On Fast Sunday, a fast and testimony meeting is held by local congregations of the Church of Jesus Christ of La ...
and to give the money they save by not eating two meals to the church; those who can afford to be more generous are encouraged to give more than simply the money saved as a fast offering. Members may also choose to fast and donate fast offerings more than once per month. When the
Mormon pioneer The Mormon pioneers were members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), also known as Latter Day Saints, who migrated beginning in the mid-1840s until the late-1860s across the United States from the Midwest to the S ...
s first settled in the western United States in 1847, LDS Church leaders encouraged members to perform their fast on the first Thursday of each month, and to donate the food thus saved to their
bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...
. This food was collected in small buildings called "
Bishop's Storehouse A bishop's storehouse in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) usually refers to a commodity resource center that is used by bishops (lay leaders of local congregations analogous to pastors or parish priests in other Chris ...
s", and were held until needed by other members. Over time, this practice was changed: the members, who were primarily farmers and laborers, had difficulty fasting on a day of regular labor, so the day of observance was changed to Sunday. When
money Money is any item or verifiable record that is generally accepted as payment for goods and services and repayment of debts, such as taxes, in a particular country or socio-economic context. The primary functions which distinguish money are as ...
, in the form of
specie Specie may refer to: * Coins or other metal money in mass circulation * Bullion coins * Hard money (policy) * Commodity money * Specie Circular, 1836 executive order by US President Andrew Jackson regarding hard money * Specie Payment Resumption Ac ...
instead of
barter In trade, barter (derived from ''baretor'') is a system of exchange in which participants in a transaction directly exchange goods or services for other goods or services without using a medium of exchange, such as money. Economists distingu ...
, became more available in
Utah Territory The Territory of Utah was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from September 9, 1850, until January 4, 1896, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Utah, the 45th state ...
, members were encouraged to make their donations in cash, which could better be held until needed to purchase food.


Purposes

Donations from fast offerings are not used for the same purposes as those monies given through
tithe A tithe (; from Old English: ''teogoþa'' "tenth") is a one-tenth part of something, paid as a contribution to a religious organization or compulsory tax to government. Today, tithes are normally voluntary and paid in cash or cheques or more r ...
s. Specifically, fast offerings are used to provide food, shelter, clothing, medical care, and other necessities for those who are in need, fulfilling the meaning conveyed in Isaiah 58:6–11, with attendant blessings to the giver and the receiver. Tithing funds are used to build and maintain meetinghouses,
temples A temple (from the Latin ) is a building reserved for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. Religions which erect temples include Christianity (whose temples are typically called churches), Hinduism (whose temple ...
, and educational facilities; for the general maintenance of church operations; and for costs of
missionary A missionary is a member of a religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thomas Hale 'On Being a Mi ...
and genealogical and family history work.


Collection methods

Church members are encouraged to make regular financial contributions to the church through the leader of the local church unit, usually a bishop. The combined contribution can include tithing, fast offerings, and other humanitarian donations, and is delivered to the leader on a "convenience" basis (i.e., there is no set time either in or outside of a formal meeting where the funds are requested). Young men (
deacons A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian churches, such as the Catholic Churc ...
or
teachers A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching. ''Informally'' the role of teacher may be taken on by anyone (e.g. whe ...
in the Aaronic Priesthood) are often assigned to pass by members' residences to inquire if they can convey any fast offerings to the bishop. In some areas, members may also pay fast offerings on the Internet. There is no requirement to make any financial donation to fast offerings or any of the church's other funds in order to maintain one's membership; such donations are encouraged but are not mandatory.


Distribution

No publicly available accounting of fast offerings exists. (The LDS Church does disclose its financials in the
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and Nor ...
, Canada, and other jurisdictions where it is required to do so by law. These financials are audited by the UK office of PricewaterhouseCoopers.) However, it is claimed by the church that fast offering funds are primarily available to the bishop to distribute to those in need in the area where they were collected, but that any excess (or deficiency) is shared with the rest of the church, first on a
stake Stake may refer to: Entertainment * '' Stake: Fortune Fighters'', a 2003 video game * '' The Stake'', a 1915 silent short film * "The Stake", a 1977 song by The Steve Miller Band from ''Book of Dreams'' * ''Stakes'' (miniseries), a Cartoon Netw ...
level, then on wider levels. Bishops are instructed by church guidelines that they have "a divine mandate to seek out and care for the poor (see D&C 84:112). It is not enough to assist ith fast offeringsonly when asked."


Purpose of fast offerings, and financial prudence

While administering to the needs of the poor through use of the fast offering funds, each bishop is also counseled to encourage individuals and families to become self-reliant through reducing debt, seeking work opportunities or improved income through education if needed, and paying tithes and offerings to receive temporal blessings from the Lord as promised in Malachi 3:8–12.


In Early Christianity

The practice of Sunday fast offerings are well-attested to in early postapostolic Christianity. As is recorded in the early Christian work
The Shepherd of Hermas ''The Shepherd of Hermas'' ( el, Ποιμὴν τοῦ Ἑρμᾶ, ''Poimēn tou Herma''; la, Pastor Hermae), sometimes just called ''The Shepherd'', is a Christian literary work of the late first half of the second century, considered a valuab ...
, extremely popular among Christians in the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th centuries:
And thus shalt thou do. Having fulfilled what is written, on that day on which thou fastest thou shalt taste nothing but bread and water; and from thy meats, which thou wouldest have eaten, thou shalt reckon up the amount of that day's expenditure, which thou wouldest have incurred, and shalt give it to a widow, or an orphan, or to one in want, and so shalt thou humble thy soul, that he that hath received from thy humiliation may satisfy his own soul, and may pray for thee to the Lord.


References

{{reflist Latter Day Saint practices Latter Day Saint terms Christian fasting Alms in Christianity