A significant majority of Scripture-engaged Americans donate more financially to charities than those who do not read the Bible, according to a recent survey.
The American Bible Society released the ninth and final installment of its State of the Bible USA 2024 report on Thursday, with the latest chapter titled “Giving.” This section analyzed charitable donations among Americans in 2023, focusing on levels of Scripture engagement among self-identified Catholics and Protestants, based on responses from 2,506 American adults collected between January 4 and 23.
The survey found that 94% of Scripture-engaged respondents reported giving financially to charity in the past year, with a median donation of $2,000. In contrast, among the “movable middle”—those scoring between 70 and 99 on the Scripture Engagement Scale—75% donated to charity, with a median donation of $288.
Less than half (43%) of the “Bible disengaged,” defined as those scoring less than 70 on the Scripture Engagement Scale, gave to charity, and their median donation was $0, indicating that more than half of this group did not contribute to charitable causes.
Delving into charitable giving patterns by denomination, the report revealed that Evangelicals were the most generous, with 80% reporting charitable donations. Their mean donation amount was $4,590, while the median was $900.
Meanwhile, 73% of Catholics reported giving to charity; however, their average contribution of $1,320 was lower than that of mainline Protestants ($4,066) and slightly below historically Black Protestants ($1,726). Yet, the median amount given by Catholics was $300, which surpassed the median donations from mainline Protestants ($250) and historically Black Protestants ($127).
A similar percentage of mainline Protestants (68%) and historically Black denominations (64%) reported donating to charity.
The report also highlighted charitable giving patterns among various groups of Christians categorized by frequency of church attendance and the importance of faith in their lives. Among “practicing Christians,” those who identify as Christians and attend church at least once a month while describing their faith as “very important,” 93% donated to charity, with a mean donation of $5,885 and a median of $2,000.
In contrast, “nominals,” who identify as Christians but do not attend church monthly, had a giving rate of 53%, with an average contribution of $1,572 and a median of $30. “Casuals,” who attend church at least once a month but do not strongly agree that their faith is very important, reported an 88% giving rate, with a mean donation of $2,713 and a median of $600.
Less than half (37%) of non-Christians donated to charity, with the mean giving amount at $1,466. The median donation among non-Christians was $0, indicating that over half of this group did not contribute anything.
“People who consistently read the Bible and live by its teachings are more likely to give to charity,” stated John Farquhar Plake, Chief Innovation Officer and editor-in-chief of State of the Bible, highlighting the chapter's findings. “Our data shows that they also give far more—not only to their churches but also to religious and non-religious charities. At a national level, we could say that Scripture-engaged people form a massive engine of generosity and philanthropy.”
