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The temples, like all religious institutions, have always needed and survived on a mixture of donations and earned income from fees and investments and quite often from direct government help. I'm not sure what the question actually is.
In every church board I've ever sat on and in every discussion with Ministers and Monks, the one universal is that trying to fund even a small group trying to get by using only private, voluntary donations never works. The sad truth is, the majority of people, even the ones sitting in the pew or meditation mat, are stingy when it comes to giving. If they can get something for free, their minds will justify doing so and "The people with more money will cover it. Besides, I need to eat out once in a while and my bills come first."
Do you realize only one in about a thousand people who listen to viewer and listener funded NPR and Public Broadcasting television and radio stations bother to donate a penny come pledge time? These same people screamed when the Republicans said they wanted to defund the programs.
@Cinorjer you're so right. Even members of Buddhist centres can be very stingy. At our centre, our annual membership fee is only RM120 which is less than USD39, and USD3.25 per month, but some people even complain about that but they enjoy the facilities, airconditioning etc. It's really quite sad.
Of course NOT all members are stingy, just some...
Yes, some members are remarkably giving, and some honestly are struggling to get by. There isn't an easy answer, short of some rich patron giving enough for everyone. In the Christian churches I came out of, passing the plate was part of the ceremony and bonding. Supposedly, "God provides" and there are lots of stories about the preacher or traveling musicians desperately needing money and having God provide it. But, that plate still has to get passed around. The tiny bit of social pressure of having your neighbors know if you don't drop something in adds up.
I know, some people in the Sangha have a real problem with temples and groups trying to raise funds. The televangelists and rich churches and temples and gurus living like millionaires have made them distrust religious institutions, and rightfully so. The people I talk to that complain usually vastly underestimate how much money it takes to keep even a rented hall open and pay for gas and supplies for the Teacher.
i've always believed it is not the amount people donate but the heart behind it. As in if someone earns like USD200 a month and donates USD20, that is 10% of their earnings, and pretty generous but if someone earns USD20,000 a month and donates USD20 then that can be disheartening. More because the donor does not realise the benefits of sponsoring sangha or a dharma centre.
Comments
In every church board I've ever sat on and in every discussion with Ministers and Monks, the one universal is that trying to fund even a small group trying to get by using only private, voluntary donations never works. The sad truth is, the majority of people, even the ones sitting in the pew or meditation mat, are stingy when it comes to giving. If they can get something for free, their minds will justify doing so and "The people with more money will cover it. Besides, I need to eat out once in a while and my bills come first."
Do you realize only one in about a thousand people who listen to viewer and listener funded NPR and Public Broadcasting television and radio stations bother to donate a penny come pledge time? These same people screamed when the Republicans said they wanted to defund the programs.
Human nature.
I know, some people in the Sangha have a real problem with temples and groups trying to raise funds. The televangelists and rich churches and temples and gurus living like millionaires have made them distrust religious institutions, and rightfully so. The people I talk to that complain usually vastly underestimate how much money it takes to keep even a rented hall open and pay for gas and supplies for the Teacher.