Toke Makinwa, a well-known figure in Nigerian media, has given an explanation for why she no longer gives her tithe to churches.
According to Naija News, the businesswoman stated that she made her choice after giving careful thought to how money should be used to benefit others.
She revealed that her opinions on tithing have evolved over time in an interview with Chude.
She claims that she started to wonder how churches manage to get such big quantities of money yet many of its members still struggle to meet their basic requirements, like daily food, rent, and medical bills.
She talked about what she called “post-traumatic church syndrome,” a condition in which people’s experiences in places of worship cause them to feel emotionally and spiritually wounded.
She claimed that this forced her to carefully examine the financial management and operations of religious organizations.
According to Makinwa, she began to question why she should contribute to well-funded religious structures when there are people in dire need of assistance.
She clarified that rather than depositing funds into a church account, she now wants to help the person directly if they seek her help with an urgent issue.
The single mother disclosed that she previously donated her church a full brand endorsement deal without keeping any of the money.
According to her, this occurred roughly seven years ago when she thought that doing so would result in financial benefits. But with time, she made a different decision.
She says she now focuses her donations on widows, maternity wards, hospitals, and strangers who confide in her about their actual needs.
She believes that although many pastors are wealthy and churches have already been constructed, other people still lack the funds for basic living expenditures and medical care.
According to Makinwa, giving has to be motivated by one’s own beliefs rather than customs or peer pressure.
She urged people to consider carefully how they help others and to concentrate on helping in situations where the difference in someone’s life is evident.
She stated: “I began to question why I should put money into a building that is already wealthy if I have it and someone tells me they need it to pay rent. If a stranger tells me what they really need, I would rather give them my tithe. The church is constructed. The pastors are wealthy. Let’s assist those that the church is unable to reach. I carried all of the money from an endorsement contract into the church seven years ago without touching a single naira. I now donate when it directly benefits a person in need. Giving ought to be motivated by one’s own beliefs.
