Earlier this year, we looked at some facts and figures related to the generosity of American Christians. They didn’t paint a very pretty picture. For example, as reported in the book, Passing the Plate, 77% of Protestants who attend church regularly give less than 10% of their income to charity.
In this follow-up post, we’ll explore some of the possible reasons why American Christians are not more generous. The authors of Passing the Plate examined nine hypotheses, four of which we’ll look at today. I’ll add my own thoughts after each one. Please add yours in the comments section.
1 – Objective resource constraints – some simply don’t have the financial capacity to give or to give generously. The authors didn’t give much credence to this hypothesis, noting, “Available evidence suggests that, with some exceptions, if and when Christians want to give generously, they are able to do so.” The larger issue, they said, “would seem to be less people’s financial capacities and more people’s financial priorities.”
I’m glad the authors included the phrase, “with some exceptions.” I’ve met many people who truly did have “objective resource constraints,” whether through an extended period of unemployment, a divorce, or a mountain of medical bills.
2 – Subjective resource constraints – many believe they don’t have the financial capacity to give or to give generously. The authors of Passing the Plate concluded that this is much more common than truly objective resource constraints. They blamed consumerist advertising and other media messages for leaving people feeling too constrained to be generous.
This is certainly a big issue, with too many of us accepting our culture-given consumer identity instead of our God-given steward identity, along with a consumer’s spend-first financial priorities vs. a steward’s give-first approach to money. Some even mistakenly believe they need to be out of debt before they can begin giving generously.
3 – Unperceived Needs - unawareness of legitimate needs that our resources could help meet. The authors pointed out that we tend to live among and make friends with people like us. In many cases, that means we rarely come face to face with people who have significant needs, and an abstract awareness of the many needs in the world is not enough to drive us to action.
Living with a level of comfort that’s easy to take for granted, and with constant, loud cultural exhortations toward “more,” it’s easy to avoid facing the many needs our generosity could help address. But the reality is that none of us has to look very far to see the needs—whether financial, spiritual, or other types.
4 – Normative ignorance - a lack of awareness about what our faith tradition teaches about generosity. The authors cited research showing that 43% of church members believe their church expects them to give less than 10% of their income. Still, the authors believe that while a lack of knowledge about biblical teaching might explain ungenerous giving to a degree, it does not explain it completely.
After coming to faith as an adult, I remember how helpful it was to learn about proportionate giving and how challenging it was to see the Old Testament example of the tithe. But as the authors pointed out, it took more than that for me to really grow in generosity. It took new attitudes of the heart – mostly the gratitude that comes from considering God’s unending, unmerited generosity toward us.
What are your thoughts on this first set of hypotheses about American Christians’ relative lack of generosity?
By Matt Bell
Matt Bell is Sound Mind Investing’s Associate Editor. He is the author of three personal finance books published by NavPress, leads workshops at churches and universities throughout the country, and has been quoted in USA TODAY, U.S. News & World Report, and many other media outlets.
