Black Church Giving

Abstract

Church giving is an understudied phenomenon; queries on Black Church giving are even rarer. In response to the latter dynamic, levels of tithing, income, and mission donations are examined based on a national sample of 1,601 Black churches across seven denominations using linear and ordered logit modeling. Findings show minimal ideological and programmatic effects. However, denominational differences suggest that Black congregations affiliated with the Church of God in Christ have higher relative percentages of tithers and those associated with the Presbyterian and United Methodist faiths have the lowest rates as compared with their Baptist peers. Moreover, African Methodist Episcopal Zion, Presbyterian, and United Methodist churches are more likely to have higher church incomes and mission giving than Baptists. Thus, although Baptists tend to generally have higher rates of church tithers, this pattern does not translate to higher church incomes or mission donations. As expected, church size and formally educated memberships positively influence giving patterns. Results provide important insights into the Black Church economic ethic.