WASHINGTON (RNS)—The numbers prove it: Southerners are more generous to their churches, while lagging in other categories of giving.
Using data provided by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, a new study by empty tomb inc. shows that in 2005, Southerners gave an average $816.81 per household to church and religious organizations while Northeasterners gave only $453.84. And the South has been outpacing the Northeast in religious giving almost 20 years.
“One point that often ‘defends' the Northeast is that the region has higher living expenses,” said Sylvia Ronsvalle, executive vice president of empty tomb, a Christian research organization in Champaign, Ill.
That reasoning only goes so far, though, because “although the Northeast has the second-highest level of expenditures … it also has the second-highest level of income,” she said.
The study found the Midwest came in second in religious giving, at an average of $784.16 per household, and the West came in third, at $665.61.
However, in giving to “charities and other organizations,” the South ranked last, at $176.69 per household, while the West came in first, at $221.75. In giving to educational institutions, the South also placed last, at $22.49, while the Midwest came in first at $53.77.
In other words, the South leads the nation in religious giving but barely leads in overall charitable giving. Other parts of the country, it seems, just direct their charitable dollars elsewhere.
So what would explain the difference? Observers say it's not entirely clear but offered several possibilities.
In religious giving, there may be a denominational link.
The North American Religion Atlas, using data from the 2000 census, shows a high concentration of Protestants in the South while Catholics dominate the Northeast. For example, only 8 percent of people in the South are Catholics, compared to 42 percent of New Englanders.
Francis Butler, president of the Washington-based Foundations and Donors Interested in Catholic Activities, said research shows Catholics give about 1 percent of income to charity. Protestants, meanwhile, generally give double that, he said.
Charles Zech, director of the Center for the Study of Church Management at Villanova University, wrote a book addressing that very topic—Why Catholics Don't Give … And What Can Be Done About It.
In it, Zech says Protestants give more than Catholics because their churches do better at teaching the concept of stewardship and because Protestants are more transparent about their finances.
Also, since one parish may be home to as many as 2,000 Catholic families, parishioners don't experience the same feelings of community as Protestants do. And ultimately, as Zech said, “people give to people.”
Ronsvalle suggested there also may be political reasons behind regional differences in giving. She said people in the red Southern states generally want to minimize government while promoting private industry and philanthropy. The blue Northern states, on the other hand, stress the government's responsibility and government-led social welfare programs.
Charles Reagan Wilson, professor of Southern studies at the University of Mississippi, came to a similar conclusion. “The South's approach to giving has stressed private charity over governmental assistance,” he said.
Southerners have “long tended to be conservative on issues of government,” stressing provision from family and churches rather than government intervention in times of crisis, he explained.
Melissa Brown, associate director of research at the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University, said education levels play a role in giving, regardless of region.
“College and above, you really do start to expect a higher level of giving,” Brown said, adding college graduates will give away more of their income because of their social networks, work affiliations and ties to more than one community.
Ronsvalle said the survey may prompt more questions than answers.
“I don't think we have to have all of the answers at this point,” she said, “But we have to establish the truth that there are trends, and these trends … have occurred over multiple years.”