SEATTLE -- A growing number of U.S. congregations are doing away with passing the collection plate, fearing it's a turnoff to visitors, according to The Christian Science Monitor.

Emmaus Road Church in Seattle has replaced the traditional collection plates with a donation box in the rear of the worship center. Those who want to tithe or make an offering do so, but no one feels pressured, the Rev. Eric Likkel said. The church has had no trouble covering its $100,000 annual budget since 1996, when the church did away with passing the plate, he said.

"There are so many people who have experienced the abuse of finances by religious figures that we wanted to remove that barrier," Likkel said. Passing the plate to curious newcomers makes them "feel a sense of pressure to give."

Other congregations are trying the same tactic, according to the paper.

New England Chapel in suburban Franklin, Mass., hasn't passed the plate in five years. The Rev. Chris Mitchell said 500 people attend weekly worship services and contribute $300,000 for the annual budget. Mitchell said he was confident that passing the plate would produce less revenue.

Donors at Sagemont Baptist Church in Houston put their money in a central collection basket at the rear of the church without being asked. Anyone in need is told to take from the basket.

Parishioners at St. Agnes Roman Catholic Church in Middleton, Mass., haven't seen the traditional offering plate since child sexual-abuse scandals involving former clergy surfaced a year ago. Giving levels are roughly the same as when ushers passed the plate, said Msgr. John McDonough, who noted people feel able to give "without a feeling of obligation."

The Rev. Paul Sangree of Bethany Congregational Church in Foxboro, Mass., is preparing to ask the board of deacons for permission to stop taking an offering.

"My highest value is reaching out to lost people, because I think lost people matter to God," Sangree said. "And surveys say their No. 1 negative concern about the church is that all they want is your money…The only way they'll come back is if they really have a sense that the church is open and welcoming."