Tech Forum

The Church really needs to get on this. Some people, like me, don't use checks anymore. I don't have any. Everyone uses transfers or debit or credit cards now - well, except for the Church. This is a problem that it way passed the point of needing a solution.

deaneborn wrote:The Church really needs to get on this. Some people, like me, don't use checks anymore.

They are headed in that direction. You may want to read the Tithing/Fast Offering Direct Deposit to Church HQ thread.

tckenney wrote:I imagine this system or something similar will be rolled out world wide eventually.

I hope not!
Now I seat on my armchair with my laptop. Then I go to my Online bank and issue a command to the bank to tranfert to Church's bank account my offerts.
Into the request there's a text box where I write the ammount of each fund.
All this without charge for me and Church.
The Clerk of my Ward go into the Online Church Bank and see all the tranferts done with funds description and enter the data into MLS.

The online system used in the United States requires no effort at all on the part of the ward clerk. A batch file appears on the financial side of MLS and shows up in all of the reports as if the clerk and bishopric had entered the contributions, but they did not. It was all done automatically by the computers at Church headquarters.

lajackson wrote:It was all done automatically by the computers at Church headquarters.

By the computers or employees?

marianomarini wrote:

lajackson wrote:It was all done automatically by the computers at Church headquarters.

By the computers or employees?

By the computers. According to your description, your country uses a different system that requires a person to manually record the donation. You described a text box where you write the amount of each fund, and then having the clerk go into the Online Church Bank to view and enter the data into MLS.

In the U.S., an electronic Bill Pay contribution is directed to one individual category and is processed electronically. If a member wishes to pay tithing and fast offering, for example, they make two electronic contributions, one for each category.

The only involvement by a Church employee in the U.S. is to set up the account one time before the first contribution. After that, it is all done by the computers.

It's hard to believe that it's as easy as that to the church, with no extra operational costs or technical limitations. If that were the case, you would expect it to have been made widely available already and publicized...

But, if it's not a technical or operational challenge, then there certainly must be another good reason why it's not being publicized by the church.

sbradshaw wrote:It's hard to believe that it's as easy as that to the church, with no extra operational costs or technical limitations. If that were the case, you would expect it to have been made widely available already and publicized...

But, if it's not a technical or operational challenge, then there certainly must be another good reason why it's not being publicized by the church.

I think that lajackson gave the answer to that previously when he reported on this method: https://tech.lds.org/forum/viewtopic.ph ... 30#p126045

Basically, the church isn't ready to handle mass signups and they have to work with each new bank to get it set up. The second factor be less of an obstacle as they organically connect with more and more banks. I expect they probably have plans to automate the first but are taking things slowly to make sure everything works well.

eblood66 wrote:

sbradshaw wrote:But, if it's not a technical or operational challenge, then there certainly must be another good reason why it's not being publicized by the church.

I think that lajackson gave the answer to that previously when he reported on this method: https://tech.lds.org/forum/viewtopic.ph ... 30#p126045

Basically, the church isn't ready to handle mass signups and they have to work with each new bank to get it set up. The second factor be less of an obstacle as they organically connect with more and more banks. I expect they probably have plans to automate the first but are taking things slowly to make sure everything works well.

To elaborate on what I said in my linked post, it is the signup process. The Church has to establish your account number in their database (just as if you were paying a credit card or a mortgage payment), and the bank has to establish a business payment relationship with the Church. Many larger banks have done that already.

But if you don't set up the payment properly with matching information at your bank, the Church gets a paper check and has to figure out what to do with it. They get hundreds of checks a week from anxious members who have not properly followed the process, and that should not be.

I believe that is what is keeping the Church from rolling it out faster. That is why I am allowed to share the application process, but not the specific signup information. The actual signup information is unique to you as a member and the bank from which you will contribute.

If you do it wrong, or if you do it before the Church is ready to receive your contribution, there is weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth and some poor sister at Church headquarters has to figure out what to do with the paper check.

(Full disclosure: I just made up that last paragraph, but I suspect it is partially true.)

Any update with Paying Tithing online. Some Stake Technology clerk "heard" that the church was doing some Beta test of paying Tithing online -- or to the church. It would then show up in some Download the Bishop/clerk could get.
Not sure if we are any closer to this happening or not?