Though many churches present tithing (giving 10 percent of one’s income to the church) as the biblical ideal, churchgoers on average give less than 2.5 percent of their after-tax income, according to John and Sylvia Ronsvalle, authors of Behind the Stained Glass Window: Money Dynamics in the Church.
The Ronsvalles, who have been studying church giving patterns for years, say that evangelical and conservative church members tend to give more than those in other denominations, but all denominational averages fall short of 10 percent, and all giving is declining as a percentage of income. Churches that teach detachment from this world and identification with the next have the most motivated givers, the Ronsvalles say.
— E.P. News
