United States ties for fifth place in global giving. The United States tied with Switzerland for fifth place in a worldwide giving index by the British-based Charities Aid Foundation that measures charitable behavior across the globe. The ranking was based on the United States’ showing in three categories—60 percent of Americans gave to an organization; 39 percent volunteered for a group; and 65 percent were willing to aid a stranger. Australia and New Zealand were ranked as the most charitable countries, followed by Ireland and Canada. Burundi and Madagascar tied for last place. The report was based on data from Gallup’s World Poll, taken in 153 countries and representing about 95 percent of the global population.
Report finds spike in U.S. poverty levels. The number of people in poverty in America increased to its highest recorded point last year, and the poverty rate rose to its highest level since 1994, new statistics show. The Census Bureau released data that showed a significant annual increase in poverty, rising 1.1 percentage points to 14.3 percent in 2009. A total of 43.6 million live in poverty—the highest since recording began in 1959—and up from 39.8 million in 2008. As result of the ongoing financial crisis, social service programs—including faith-based providers—are faced with the challenge of increased needs from individuals and working families, budget cuts and a decrease in individual donations.
IHOP sues IHOP. The International House of Pancakes has sued the International House of Prayer, a Missouri church, for trademark infringement. The restaurant chain—which uses the website IHOP.com—claims the Kansas City church—whose website is IHOP.org—intentionally is misleading customers. The restaurant chain, which started in 1958, has used the IHOP acronym since 1973. Both the church and the restaurant claim around-the-clock operations. Many of the almost 1,500 restaurants in the United States, Canada and Mexico are open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, serving breakfast and a plethora of pancakes. According to the church’s website, it seeks to “combine 24/7 prayers for justice with 24/7 works of justice.” Its “24/7 prayer room” has a schedule of 12 two-hour worship meetings each day. The church declined to discuss the suit beyond a brief statement: “We are aware of the lawsuit. We are reviewing the situation. At this time, we have no comment.”
Calvin College withdraws band’s invitation. Calvin College has canceled a scheduled Oct. 15 concert by the Canadian indie rock band New Pornographers after the band’s name prompted complaints from the local community. Ken Heffner, director of student activities at the Christian Reformed Church-affiliated school, said complaints had poured into the school since the show was announced in August, but wouldn’t say specifically the source of most of them. The band’s name often is interpreted as a reference to preacher Jimmy Swaggart’s insistence that rock music is “the new pornography,” but frontman A.C. Newman has said he took it from a Japanese film called The Pornographers, a dark comedy.