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Would you give away 90 percent of your fortune?

Millions of Americans are besieged by appeals to give at this time of year. How about you? Do you tithe? Give zakat? Dasvand? These three are variations of the practice of donating a portion of one’s wealth to a religious organization and related charitable activities. Tithe is a Judeo-Christian concept; zagat, Islam; dasvand, Sikhism. Other religions have similar concepts.

Tithe means, literally, one-tenth. So does dasvand. Historically, payment was compulsory and could be made in money, agricultural products, livestock, production and so on.

Do you give 10 percent each year?

If you’re not a member of a formal religious organization, do you give 10 percent of your resources each year to secular causes?

Now, Bill and Melinda Gates are flipping around these traditional percentages. They plan to give away 90 percent of their wealth. So far, they have pledged $30 billion to their philanthropic foundation, as has Warren Buffett. Since its formation in 1994, $13.8 billion has been committed to global health, $5.9 billion for education in the U.S., $3 billion to global development and more.

The Gates’ primary motivation is to help alleviate suffering and improve life around the world. But, they say another motivation is that they don’t want to leave their gigantic fortune to their three children because it would have deleterious effects on them.Of course, even if their parents give away 90 percent of their wealth, there’s still a sizable chunk of change leftover. (Want to learn more? Watch this “60 Minutes” interview of Bill and Melinda Gates.)

Is there a moral obligation to give?

How should people set their percentage?

Dr. Wayne E. Baker is a sociologist on the senior faculty of the University of Michigan Ross School of Business. Dr. Baker blogs daily at Our Values and can be reached at ourvaluesproject@gmail.com.