How much money is given to churches and temples every year in the US?

How about finding a list of the hospitals that were started by religious organizations while you’re at it?

Too much.

The same can be said about any charity – secular or religious. Its common for most businesses to spend a lot of money maintaining themselves as well. Putting money back into a business or charity is common. Why are you singling out churches? Seems a bit odd to me.

Sorry, but this site is the closest “help” I could find.. You might have to a write a federal department to get a real answer on that. Or you could like a specific church’s website for financial details.

@SeventhSense I would include that as money outside of maintaining the church itself. I said in my question that i assume the majority of the money goes to maintaining the church itself, By I have no idea how th emoney really divides up. I am not trying to make an assumption.

@Spinel Good point. I guess I would be curious how those things compare? Religious charities compared to other charities and how the money is spent.

This is just curiosity, I am not making a judgment.

I use to work in a church. They barely make ends meat and yes, most of the money, after expenses is given to aid those in need. Unfortunely when times are hard the church sometimes doesn’t make enough to support itself and that is why so many close. The church totally depends on charity. They do not live the life of luxury that so many think they do. I agree with spinel, the same can be said for any charity. Even if the irs tells you how much they made, that wouldn’t tell you how much they spend just to keep things going.

I have always preferred a congregation with a simple modest building, no paid clergy and everything done by willing volunteers. They have no membership fees and people contribute as they wish and as they can afford. I belonged to one for many years.

@JLeslie I see. In that case, this charity grading site may be of use to you. It is a mix or religious and non-religious charities. The higher grade ones usually include a financial report on their home website, which can be compared to other financial reports.

According to this awesome infographic from Mint, $107 billion a year.

There’s lots of other interesting stuff in there, too.

@ben
And where can we get your quarterly report mr ben?

@ben Interesting graph. I have to admit I am kind of dismayed that people who are making $20k are giving so much money away. I am assuming that means they are below the poverty line, unless they have a spouse making money? Not sure how they figure that. Amazing how much money is going to religious organizations – $107 billion.

I have seen research that shows that the poorest are among the most generous (proportionally) donors to religious organizations and particularly to TV evangelists.

How many of you feel TV evangelists exploit the lonely and the poor who need the most material help?

@Dr_Lawrence raises hand Dateline did a segment on those guys, they interviewed an evangelist with a private jet….w…t…f…

@JLeslie
It’s not so bad when you consider that most of them are not throwing their money to the wind, but rather are investing in their church. For example, when I tithe, I’m giving 10% of my check to help keep the lights on in my place of worship, I’m helping the pastor keep the roof from leaking when it rains—and in Missouri, it rains, believe you me; I’m helping to pay for the Sunday morning coffee that I and the others drink, I’m helping fund missionaries abroad so that they might better proselytize, I’m helping finance such charitable activities as my church is involved in, and so on.

@ DrLawrence
I would say that a lot of televangelists exploit, with varying levels of culpability. A televangelist that gets a lot of money in donations and uses it in a wise and Godly manner is one thing, and Blackberry’s Dateline-guy-with-the-plane is another.

@Nullo I think for some people who are not religious and don’t go to church it seems like money not well spent (I am talking about the money spent on the building and the coffee and the ministers salary) BUT I don’t think we can really judge the worth because obviously for people who are religious their church and beliefs give them some sort of comfort and peace, and I would say community also. A place to gather with your neighbors, regardless of the specific religion, it has worth I would say. I think for we, the non-religious, we sometimes feel like some religions actually cause harm, and are taking money without integrity, and so we question that, but I think even religious people question some of those churches also.

You speak of proselytizing which I generally am not happy about, but then I am torn at times on this subject. I wonder, I have never asked this of anyone, for the people you are able to convert in rural parts of the world, how does their lives change besides just worshipping your God? Does the church bring things to these people through contributions from others in the church?

@Spinel I was looking through the last link you gave, thank you by the way, and I was wondering for organizations like Catholic Relief Fund, would that be included as money given to the Catholic church, or would it be counted seperately?

@JLeslie I am sure they would be counted separately. The Catholic Relief Fund and the Catholic church are to different institutions with two different purposes.

@Spinel That is what I assumed, thanks for your response. So same with giving to Baptist Hospital for a new ing or something. It is not really giving to the Baptist church, but to a particular hospital. Now I a mthinking of @SeventhSense comment, that religious organizations have started hospitals, but really it is a separate thing altogether in the end. at least concerning the major facilities that are around today.

@Dr_Lawrence on a different thread, not sure if you were on it, someone who had grown up very poor talked about her mom giving away some of the food given to them by churches to demonstrate to neighbors they were not THAT poor. I was not aware of this type of possibility, I found it interesting. That her mother had some shame associated with taking charity from churches and other organizations outside of the government. So, I guess some of it might be psychological that the poor feel better about themselves if they give, some shame, some peer pressure, and some brainwashing by so many messages of how giving makes you a good person. Don’t get me wrong, I think giving is a wonderful thing, a mitzvah, but as I said I am a little dismayed that the poor are giving when they can barely live themselves. It seems to be shortsighted.

But, I guess you can look at it like a pay it forward? You give, and hopefully in a time of need someone will help you.

@JLeslie
that religious organizations have started hospitals, but really it is a separate thing altogether in the end.
But without their beginning there would of course be no end. And the point is that religious otganizations started the majority of hospitals in this country. So regardless of one’s views towards religion, and I am not religious myself, one can not overlook their contributions towards the betterment of society. One only need look at the names of the most prominent hospitals in NY for example:

Beth Israel Medical Center
Mount Sinai Hospital
Mary Immaculate Hospital
NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital
North Shore – Long Island Jewish Health System
Our Lady of Mercy Healthcare System
Saint John’s Episcopal Hospital
Saint Francis Hospital
Saint Josephs Hospital
Saint Luke’s-Roosevelt Hospital Center
Saint Vincent’s Hospital Manhattan

@SeventhSense Yes, yes of course. I do not want to take the credit away from the religious organizations. I am just thinking of it in terms of how the money donated is counted at this point. If $107 billion is donated a year to religious organizations does that include Hospitals like you mention above? Or, is that $107b only for money directly given to churches?

@JLeslie
It’s almost impossible to calculate. As long as they have tax free status there is little icentive to track them which no doubt leaves open the possibility of abuse. But still the benefit to the unfortunate and outreach programs are really immeasurable. There’s barely a church that doesn’t feed hungry people in the community in addition to outreach programs that offer medical and even dental services.

The excesses of the mega churches is a bit much for me though with luxury travel etc. But I suppose still if a community wants an awe inspiring structure and want to shower their pastor with luxury that’s their prerogative. It’s a two edged sword but the focus on the material is counterproductive in my estimation. If the focus is to heal hurting hearts then that takes people who are willing to sacrifice for another and be able to give up creature comforts for the sake of the needs of their neighbors. And they can be accountable to an independent objective auditor to oversee their budget. Which again, most churches with integrity do but I don’t think there’s anything legally binding them to do this.

@SeventhSense I agree with what you have stated. The only time I feel negative about the churches and the money going into them is when there is a mandatory amount like 10%, or when poor people are giving money they really cannot afford. Oh, and it also bothers me when churches or temples charge money for a seat during a high holy day service like on Yum Kippur. Many synagogues have gotten away from it, but some still do charge,

To a Protestant the idea of charging for anything is blasphemy and was one of the chief tenets of the Protestant Reformation against the Church at Rome who were selling indulgences or kind of like tickets to heaven . Although the idea of tithing(10%) is said to have a biblical foundation in the Book of Malachi:

(Mal 3:10–12) Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in my house, and prove me now here with said the Lord of hosts. If I will not open you the windows of heaven and pour you out a blessing that there shall not be room enough to receive it. And I will rebuke the devourer for your sake. And He shall not destroy the fruits of your ground. Neither shall your vine cast her fruit before the time I the field said the Lord of host. And nations shall call you blessed; for ye shall be a delightsome land said the Lord of hosts .
For more in depth reading on tithing consider this exegetical commentary of the books of Amos and Hosea from a Jewish standpoint. Tithing is also common in many Arab traditions.

@SeventhSense thanks for the background. I disagree with many things in the bible, so this is another one. I guess maybe it can be compared to paying taxes though, would you agree?

Jesus was an incredibly generous man and a devout Jew so he kept the Law. In regard’s to taxes he said this about paying taxes:
“Render unto Caesar the things which are Caesar’s, and unto God the things that are God’s” (“Ἀπόδοτε οὖν τὰ Καίσαρος Καίσαρι καὶ τὰ τοῦ Θεοῦ τῷ Θεῷ”)
Matthew 22:21

Having faith takes trust and one demonstration of faith is:
Who is your source and do you trust that source to provide for your needs by demonstrating generosity.“Give us this day our daily bread”(Matthew 6:11 from the Lord’s Prayer) And since the first commandment was elaborated by Jesus to be “Love your neighbor”, then giving to one’s neighbor in love is a demonstration of faith in the goodness by being its earthly ambassador.
Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. (Matt. 6:28–29)
I have very little faith but my needs are always met and sometimes astonishingly so when I just stop imagining it all rests on my own willpower.

@JLeslie
Even we, the faithful, think that certain faiths cause harm (radical Islam, anybody?). My particular non-denomination sees religiosity as being Bad and as a Thing To Be Avoided.
You ask about missions work.Yes, there are effects beyond merely changing who they worship, (and it’s not restricted to the underdeveloped parts of the world -there’s a lot of missions activity in Western Europe, and there’s a pretty-good missionary church in Rome, of all places).
As for what changes, and how, it varies; different people are different in different ways. My grandfather and step-grandfather, for instance (though both of them live in the States), underwent tremendous changes. The first had been, in his own words, a horrible person (as in, Klansman kind of horrible, and he will not elaborate any further) and a foul-mouthed deadbeat father besides, who couldn’t keep a job for all the issues that he’d have with his bosses. The second I have less data on, beyond that had been an abusive alcoholic who would terrorize my mother and her sister. Now, the first is a mostly-harmless bus driver at the local military base, and supports seven people. The second has limited his excesses to finishing the cake in the refrigerator uninvited, and is quite possibly the nicest person that I know. Results are reported to be typical for the more extreme cases.
And the business about the 10% offering is Biblical, not rooted in the rules of the churches. It is, as far as I have seen, never mandatory.