In Australia, giving to church isn't tax deductible, therefore there are no receipts, therefore churches don't know who is giving, let alone how much they are giving.

I'm curious as to why the church is so reluctant to talk about money, other than broad calls for people to be generous. Has it always been this way, or has the church at other times been more willing to speak on an individual level to people about their giving?

Regarding: The reasons for this range from official policy to the pastor's desire to avoid favoritism (James 2:1-13).

I have seen this happen where a pastor became respecter of persons because he knew their income. James has wisdom.

Regarding: But is this practice biblical? Jesus teaches on money and giving more than any other topic except the Kingdom of God. Giving is such an important spiritual thermometer.

Yes it is biblical because James and Paul both applied the teachings of Jesus to the early church and both of them made no provision for being income inspectors. 1 Cor 16:2 and 2 Cor 9:7-8.

Regarding: When it comes to shepherding, it seems perilous to neglect one of the most important evidences of spiritual fruit, or lack thereof.

You are confusing the work of the Holy Spirit with the work of shepherding. It is very perilous for shepherds to overstep their bounds. I have seen this happen in two different church context. Money corrupts.

Regarding: How should the elders of the church handle this sensitive subject? What are the biblical and pragmatic reasons for and against pastoral oversight of the offering plate?"

Again, the Elders should not go any further than what was handed down to us by the apostles. Teach on giving and pray for the people and let God change their hearts.

Regarding: And the same should apply to our giving. If we shepherd by opening up the financial database to see who's giving what, we miss the opportunity to build transparency about giving into the fabric of our church culture.

I have heard this buzz word, "Transparency" that gets thrown around like it is the end all of every church. It is a word that is used to overstep bounds. You open up the financial database to the church and you will destroy it. There is no historical or biblical precedence for this. No shepherd is greater than Jesus and can avoid being tainted by money.

Regarding: Instead, we should explain to people that we don't look at individual giving out of a desire to not show favoritism.

Learn from the Pharisees as to how far you should go as a shepherd. Mat 23:23 "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cumin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness. These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others.

9Marks you really need to understand what grace giving is all about before you start posting blogs. This is irresponsible.

I think that we should start with churches examining how they are spending contributions before we start questioning people's giving.

In other words, if giving is low, I wouldn't jump to the conclusion that it is a reflection of a person's commitment to the Lord, though that could also be the case.

But it could also be that they've seen donations spent in ways they don't think are faithful to the Word of God and have in that way been discouraged from giving.