Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologiae

Objection 1: It would seem that men are not bound to give tithes of all things. The paying of tithes seems to be an institution of the Old Law. Now the Old Law contains no precept about personal tithes, viz. those that are payable on property acquired by one's own act, for instance by commerce or soldiering. Therefore no man is bound to pay tithes on such things.

Objection 2: Further, it is not right to make oblations of that which is ill-gotten, as stated above (Question 86, Article 3). Now oblations, being offered to God immediately, seem to be more closely connected with the divine worship than tithes which are offered to the ministers. Therefore neither should tithes be paid on ill-gotten goods.

Objection 3: Further, in the last chapter of Leviticus (30,32) the precept of paying tithes refers only to "corn, fruits of trees" and animals "that pass under the shepherd's rod." But man derives a revenue from other smaller things, such as the herbs that grow in his garden and so forth. Therefore neither on these things is a man bound to pay tithes.

Objection 4: Further, man cannot pay except what is in his power. Now a man does not always remain in possession of all his profit from land and stock, since sometimes he loses them by theft or robbery; sometimes they are transferred to another person by sale; sometimes they are due to some other person, thus taxes are due to princes, and wages due to workmen. Therefore one ought not to pay tithes on such like things.

On the contrary, It is written (Gn. 28:22): "Of all things that Thou shalt give to me, I will offer tithes to Thee."

I answer that, In judging about a thing we should look to its principle. Now the principle of the payment of tithes is the debt whereby carnal things are due to those who sow spiritual things, according to the saying of the Apostle (1 Cor. 9:11), "If we have sown unto you spiritual things, is it a great matter if we reap your carnal things?" . For this debt is the principle on which is based the commandment of the Church about the payment of tithes. Now whatever man possesses comes under the designation of carnal things. Therefore tithes must be paid on whatever one possesses.

Reply to Objection 1: In accordance with the condition of that people there was a special reason why the Old Law did not include a precept about personal tithes; because, to wit, all the other tribes had certain possessions wherewith they were able to provide a sufficient livelihood for the Levites who had no possessions, but were not forbidden to make a profit out of other lawful occupations as the other Jews did. On the other hand the people of the New Law are spread abroad throughout the world, and many of them have no possessions, but live by trade, and these would contribute nothing to the support of God's ministers if they did not pay tithes on their trade profits. Moreover the ministers of the New Law are more strictly forbidden to occupy themselves in money-making trades, according to 2 Tim. 2:4, "No man being a soldier to God, entangleth himself with secular business." Wherefore in the New Law men are bound to pay personal tithes, according to the custom of their country and the needs of the ministers: hence Augustine, whose words are quoted 16, qu. 1, cap. Decimae, says : "Tithes must be paid on the profits of soldiering, trade or craft."

Reply to Objection 2: Things are ill-gotten in two ways. First, because the getting itself was unjust: such, for instance, are things gotten by robbery, theft or usury: and these a man is bound to restore, and not to pay tithes on them. If, however, a field be bought with the profits of usury, the usurer is bound to pay tithes on the produce, because the latter is not gotten usuriously but given by God. On the other hand certain things are said to be ill-gotten, because they are gotten of a shameful cause, for instance of whoredom or stage-playing, and the like. Such things a man is not bound to restore, and consequently he is bound to pay tithes on them in the same way as other personal tithes. Nevertheless the Church must not accept the tithe so long as those persons remain in sin, lest she appear to have a share in their sins: but when they have done penance, tithes may be accepted from them on these things.

Reply to Objection 3: Things directed to an end must be judged according to their fittingness to the end. Now the payment of tithes is due not for its own sake, but for the sake of the ministers, to whose dignity it is unbecoming that they should demand minute things with careful exactitude, for this is reckoned sinful according to the Philosopher (Ethic. iv, 2). Hence the Old Law did not order the payment of tithes on such like minute things, but left it to the judgment of those who are willing to pay, because minute things are counted as nothing. Wherefore the Pharisees who claimed for themselves the perfect justice of the Law, paid tithes even on these minute things: nor are they reproved by our Lord on that account, but only because they despised greater, i.e. spiritual, precepts; and rather did He show them to be deserving of praise in this particular, when He said (Mt. 23:23): "These things you ought to have done," i.e. during the time of the Law, according to Chrysostom's commentary. This also seems to denote fittingness rather than obligation. Therefore now too men are not bound to pay tithes on such minute things, except perhaps by reason of the custom of one's country.

Reply to Objection 4: A man is not bound to pay tithes on what he has lost by theft or robbery, before he recovers his property: unless he has incurred the loss through his own fault or neglect, because the Church ought not to be the loser on that account. If he sell wheat that has not been tithed, the Church can command the tithes due to her, both from the buyer who has a thing due to the Church, and from the seller, because so far as he is concerned he has defrauded the Church: yet if one pays, the other is not bound. Tithes are due on the fruits of the earth, in so far as these fruits are the gift of God. Wherefore tithes do not come under a tax, nor are they subject to workmen's wages. Hence it is not right to deduct one's taxes and the wages paid to workmen, before paying tithes: but tithes must be paid before anything else on one's entire produce.

Articulus 2

Argumentum 1

Ad secundum sic proceditur. Videtur quod non de omnibus teneantur homines decimas dare. Solutio enim decimarum videtur esse ex veteri lege introducta. Sed in veteri lege nullum praeceptum datur de personalibus decimis, quae scilicet solvuntur de his quae aliquis acquirit ex proprio actu, puta de mercationibus vel de militia.

Ergo de talibus decimas solvere nullus tenetur.

Argumentum 2

Praeterea, de male acquisitis non debet fieri oblatio, ut supra dictum est.

Sed oblationes, quae immediate deo exhibentur, videntur magis pertinere ad divinum cultum quam decimae, quae exhibentur ministris. Ergo etiam nec decimae de male acquisitis sunt solvendae.

Argumentum 3

Praeterea, Levit. Ult. Non mandatur solvi decima nisi de frugibus et pomis arborum, et animalibus quae transeunt sub virga pastoris.

Sed praeter haec sunt quaedam alia minuta quae homini proveniunt, sicut herbae quae nascuntur in horto, et alia huiusmodi. Ergo nec de illis homo decimas dare tenetur.

Argumentum 4

Praeterea, homo non potest solvere nisi id quod est in eius potestate. Sed non omnia quae proveniunt homini de fructibus agrorum aut animalium remanent in eius potestate, quia quaedam aliquando subtrahuntur per furtum vel rapinam; quaedam vero quandoque in alium transferuntur per venditionem; quaedam etiam aliis debentur, sicut principibus debentur tributa et operariis debentur mercedes.

Ergo de his non tenetur aliquis decimas dare.

Sed Contra

Sed contra est quod dicitur Gen. XXVIII, cunctorum quae dederis mihi decimas offeram tibi.

Sed omnia quae homo habet sunt ei data divinitus.

Ergo de omnibus debet decimas dare.

Corpus

Respondeo dicendum quod de unaquaque re praecipue est iudicandum secundum eius radicem. Radix autem solutionis decimarum est debitum quo seminantibus spiritualia debentur carnalia, secundum illud apostoli, I ad Cor. IX, si nos vobis spiritualia seminavimus, magnum est si carnalia vestra metamus? super hoc enim debitum fundavit ecclesia determinationem solutionis decimarum. Omnia autem quaecumque homo possidet sub carnalibus continentur. Et ideo de omnibus possessis decimae sunt solvendae.

Ad 1

Ad primum ergo dicendum quod specialis ratio fuit quare in veteri lege non fuit datum praeceptum de personalibus decimis, secundum conditionem populi illius, quia omnes aliae tribus certas possessiones habebant, de quibus poterant sufficienter providere Levitis, qui carebant possessionibus; non autem interdicebatur eis quin de aliis operibus honestis lucrarentur, sicut et alii Iudaei. Sed populus novae legis est ubique per mundum diffusus, quorum plurimi possessiones non habent, sed de aliquibus negotiis vivunt, qui nihil conferrent ad subsidium ministrorum dei, si de eorum negotiis decimas non solverent.

Ministris etiam novae legis arctius interdicitur ne se ingerant negotiis lucrativis, secundum illud II ad Tim. II, nemo militans deo implicat se saecularibus negotiis.

Et ideo in nova lege tenentur homines ad decimas personales, secundum consuetudinem patriae et indigentiam ministrorum.

Unde Augustinus dicit, et habetur XVI qu. I, cap. Decimae, de militia, de negotio et de artificio redde decimas.

Ad 2

Ad secundum dicendum quod aliqua male acquiruntur dupliciter.

Uno modo, quia ipsa acquisitio est iniusta, puta quae acquiruntur per rapinam aut usuram, quae homo tenetur restituere, non autem de eis decimas dare. Tamen si ager aliquis sit emptus de usura, de fructu eius tenetur usurarius decimas dare, quia fructus illi non sunt ex usura, sed ex dei munere. Quaedam vero dicuntur male acquisita quia acquiruntur ex turpi causa, sicut de meretricio, de histrionatu, et aliis huiusmodi, quae non tenentur restituere.

Unde de talibus tenentur decimas dare secundum modum aliarum personalium decimarum. Tamen ecclesia non debet eas recipere quandiu sunt in peccato, ne videatur eorum peccatis communicare, sed postquam poenituerint, possunt ab eis de his recipi decimae.

Ad 3

Ad tertium dicendum quod ea quae ordinantur in finem sunt iudicanda secundum quod competunt fini. Decimarum autem solutio est debita non propter se, sed propter ministros, quorum honestati non convenit ut etiam minima exacta diligentia requirant, hoc enim in vitium computatur, ut patet per philosophum, in IV ethic..

Et ideo lex vetus non determinavit ut de huiusmodi minutis rebus decimae dentur, sed relinquit hoc arbitrio dare volentium, quia minima quasi nihil computantur. Unde Pharisaei, quasi perfectam legis iustitiam sibi adscribentes, etiam de his minutis decimas solvebant. Nec de hoc reprehenduntur a domino, sed solum de hoc quod maiora, idest spiritualia praecepta, contemnebant.

Magis autem de hoc eos secundum se commendabiles esse ostendit, dicens, haec oportuit facere, scilicet tempore legis, ut chrysostomus exponit.

Quod etiam videtur magis in quandam decentiam sonare quam in obligationem. Unde et nunc de huiusmodi minutis non tenentur homines decimas dare, nisi forte propter consuetudinem patriae.

Ad 4

Ad quartum dicendum quod de his quae furto vel rapina tolluntur ille a quo auferuntur decimas solvere non tenetur antequam recuperet, nisi forte propter culpam vel negligentiam suam damnum incurrerit; quia ex hoc ecclesia non debet damnificari.

Si vero vendat triticum non decimatum, potest ecclesia decimas exigere et ab emptore, quia habet rem ecclesiae debitam; et a venditore, qui, quantum est de se, fraudavit ecclesiam. Uno tamen solvente, alius non tenetur. Debentur autem decimae de fructibus terrae inquantum proveniunt ex divino munere. Et ideo decimae non cadunt sub tributo, nec etiam sunt obnoxiae mercedi operariorum. Et ideo non debent prius deduci tributa et pretium operariorum quam solvantur decimae, sed ante omnia debent decimae solvi ex integris fructibus.