WASHINGTON (RNS) — Collection plates are growing even lighter as Protestant church member giving reached new lows in 2011, and tithing probably will not recover from the recession, according to a new report by Empty Tomb, a Christian research group.
“Is the issue that the church is not providing an authentic alternative to the consumer mindset?” said Sylvia Ronsvalle, executive vice president of Empty Tomb. “Over a period of time, if the church isn’t providing more of an authentic alternative, the church will lose.”
The percentage of a church member’s income given to the church dropped to 2.3 percent in 2011 (the latest year for which numbers are available), down from 2.4 percent in 2010, according to the Empty Tomb study.
Church members now put about 2.3 percent of the income in offering plates.
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In 1968, church members gave an average of 3.1 percent of their income.
Giving has declined for four consecutive years, according to the report. The only other period of prolonged decline in giving per member was from 1928 through 1934, almost entirely during the Great Depression.
In 2011, the 23 denominations researched by Empty Tomb received $22.94 billion. In 2010 they received $22.88 billion.
The steepest monetary decline was in the area of “benevolences,” spending that does not apply to a local congregation’s needs but includes things like seminary support or missions work. Giving to benevolences was at 0.34 percent of a person’s income, a decrease of 48 percent since 1968 — its lowest level since that time period.
Altogether, the report found, churches had $87.2 million less to spend in 2011 on work beyond their congregations than in 2010.
Empty Tomb also reported that overall church membership has declined.
Empty Tomb examined data reported by congregations to their denominations and then compiled in the “Yearbook of American and Canadian Churches.” In some cases, Empty Tomb obtained data directly from denominations.
The denominations included in the report encompassed more than 100,000 congregations across the U.S. and included denominations affiliated with both the National Association of Evangelicals and with the National Council of Churches, as well as unaffiliated denominations. Although Catholics were not included in the report, previous Empty Tomb research has found that Catholics generally give at comparable or slightly less rates than Protestants.
The decline could be attributed to a variety of reasons, including economic struggles, said Matt Branaugh, director of editorial and business development for the Church Law & Tax Group at Christianity Today, which has conducted its own surveys on church tithing.
Another reason could be a decline in church member attendance, Branaugh said.
“I’ve heard some reference that phenomena as the ‘grazer effect’ — people are not going to church every week now, and the weeks they don’t go they’re listening to podcasts, doing worship on their own or fellowshipping with people in other ways,” Branaugh said. “They’re not there as much, and consequently they’re not giving as much.”
Other churches struggle with how to talk about finances, not realizing that churches must teach about how a relationship with God involves giving — “stewardship,” as churches would say, Branaugh said.
“As a result, if it’s not being talked about and it’s not really being taught, it may not necessarily grow into the culture of that congregation,” Branaugh said.
Katherine Burgess writes for Religion News Service.