Passing the Plate: Why American Christians Don't Give Away More Money - Hardcover

9780195337112: Passing the Plate: Why American Christians Don't Give Away More Money
View all copies of this ISBN edition:
 
 
Passing the Plate shows that few American Christians donate generously to religious and charitable causes -- a parsimony that seriously undermines the work of churches and ministries. Far from the 10 percent of one's income that tithing requires, American Christians' financial giving typically amounts, by some measures, to less than one percent of annual earnings. And a startling one out of five self-identified Christians gives nothing at all.

This eye-opening book explores the reasons behind such ungenerous giving, the potential world-changing benefits of greater financial giving, and what can be done to improve matters. If American Christians gave more generously, say the authors, any number of worthy projects -- from the prevention and treatment of HIV/AIDS to the promotion of inter-religious understanding to the upgrading of world missions -- could be funded at astounding levels. Analyzing a wide range of social surveys and government and denominational statistical datasets and drawing on in-depth interviews with Christian pastors and church members in seven different states, the book identifies a crucial set of factors that appear to depress religious financial support -- among them the powerful allure of a mass-consumerist culture and its impact on Americans' priorities, parishioners' suspicions of waste and abuse by nonprofit administrators, clergy's hesitations to boldly ask for money, and the lack of structure and routine in the way most American Christians give away money. In their conclusion, the authors suggest practical steps that clergy and lay leaders might take to counteract these tendencies and better educate their congregations about the transformative effects of generous giving.

By illuminating the social and psychological forces that shape charitable giving, Passing the Plate is sure to spark a much-needed debate on a critical issue that is of much interest to church-goers, religious leaders, philanthropists, and social scientists.

"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.

About the Author:

Christian Smith is William R. Kenan Jr. Professor of Sociology and Director of the Center for the Study of Religion and Society at the University of Notre Dame. He is the coauthor, with Michael O. Emerson, of Divided by Faith: Evangelical Religion and the Problem of Race in America (Oxford, 2000), which was named the 2001 Distinguished Book of the Year by the Society for the Scientific Study of Religion, and Soul Searching: The Religious and Spiritual Lives of American Teenagers, which won a Christianity Today Book Award in 2006.
Michael O. Emerson is the Allyn R. and Gladys M. Cline Professor of Sociology and Founding Director of the Center on Race, Religion, and Urban Life at Rice University. In addition to Divided by Faith, his books include United by Faith: The Multiracial Congregation as an Answer to the Problem of Race, coauthored with Curtiss Paul DeYoung, George Yancey, and Karen Chai Kim.
Patricia Snell is Programs and Research Specialist for the Center for the Study of Religion and Society at the University of Notre Dame.
Review:

"Superb. Urgent. Well researched but highly readable. This book is a powerful summons to use our abundance to bless others. A must-read." --Ronald J. Sider, President, Evangelicals for Social Action


"Americans are, supposedly, a generous people, and religiously active Americans are supposed to be among the most generous of the generous. These stereotypes are not entirely false, but sociologists Christian Smith and Michael Emerson want to register a dissent. Their patient and diligent research explores the troubling question why American Christians do not give MORE. Passing the Plate explores this unusually important subject with unusual depth, unusual clarity, and unusual insight." --Mark A. Noll, author of America's God: From Jonathan Edwards to Abraham Lincoln


"Financial giving to churches and charitable organizations has been neglected by scholarly researchers and remains poorly understood. With characteristic clarity and empirical precision, Christian Smith and Michael O. Emerson have tackled one of the thorniest aspects of American Christians' behavior. I hope church leaders will read this fine book and find ways to incorporate its insights into their thinking about church finances. Scholars of religion and nonprofit organizations will benefit from it as well." --Robert Wuthnow, author of After the Baby Boomers: How Twenty- and Thirty-Somethings Are Shaping the Future of American Religion


"They are clear in their presentation of their research and in the analysis of their conclusions. Seminary professors and leaders in church organizations might be well advised to read the excellent introduction first, and then pursue those chapters that present the authors' research and analysis." --Choice


"I am convinced that Passing the Plate is urgently important for the American church. Every pastor should read it and beg God for the courage to insist that his or her congregation deal directly and systemically with this topic in an ongoing way. Every seminary professor and church leader should read it and take its lessons to heart. And every informed Christian layperson should pray over this book, asking God for a biblical understanding of stewardship and the strength to act accordingly." --Books & Culture&R


"An outstanding work that should be read by anyone interested in Christian charitable giving. Its findings may surprise and perhaps even shock scholars and church leaders." --Sociology of Religion


"This book is a stunner... Smith, Emerson, and their colleagues have done outstanding work describing and analyzing important features of American Christianity in our time." --Church History


"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.

  • PublisherOxford University Press
  • Publication date2008
  • ISBN 10 0195337115
  • ISBN 13 9780195337112
  • BindingHardcover
  • Number of pages288
  • Rating

Top Search Results from the AbeBooks Marketplace

Stock Image

Smith, Christian; Emerson, Michael O; Snell, Patricia
Published by Oxford University Press (2008)
ISBN 10: 0195337115 ISBN 13: 9780195337112
New Hardcover Quantity: 1
Seller:
Ebooksweb
(Bensalem, PA, U.S.A.)

Book Description Condition: New. . Seller Inventory # 52GZZZ00CVQX_ns

More information about this seller | Contact seller

Buy New
US$ 12.26
Convert currency

Add to Basket

Shipping: FREE
Within U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds
Stock Image

Smith, Christian; Emerson, Michael O; Snell, Patricia
Published by Oxford University Press (2008)
ISBN 10: 0195337115 ISBN 13: 9780195337112
New Hardcover Quantity: 3
Seller:
BookShop4U
(PHILADELPHIA, PA, U.S.A.)

Book Description Condition: New. . Seller Inventory # 5AUZZZ0001U8_ns

More information about this seller | Contact seller

Buy New
US$ 12.26
Convert currency

Add to Basket

Shipping: FREE
Within U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds
Stock Image

Christian; Emerson, Michael O; Snell, Patricia Smith
ISBN 10: 0195337115 ISBN 13: 9780195337112
New Hardcover First Edition Quantity: 1
Seller:
Biblio Pursuit
(Lenhartsville, PA, U.S.A.)

Book Description Hardcover. Condition: New. Dust Jacket Condition: As New. First edition. Brand New! Sec 61D. Seller Inventory # 46389

More information about this seller | Contact seller

Buy New
US$ 7.77
Convert currency

Add to Basket

Shipping: US$ 4.97
Within U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds
Stock Image

Smith, Christian; Emerson, Michael O; Snell, Patricia
Published by Oxford University Press (2008)
ISBN 10: 0195337115 ISBN 13: 9780195337112
New Hardcover Quantity: 2
Seller:
Book Outpost
(Blawnox, PA, U.S.A.)

Book Description Condition: NEW. Brand new!. Seller Inventory # 51WZZZ000AXN_ns

More information about this seller | Contact seller

Buy New
US$ 9.99
Convert currency

Add to Basket

Shipping: US$ 3.99
Within U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds
Stock Image

Christian Smith, Michael O Emerson, Patricia Snell
Published by Oxford University Press, USA (2008)
ISBN 10: 0195337115 ISBN 13: 9780195337112
New Hardcover Quantity: 1
Seller:
Ergodebooks
(Houston, TX, U.S.A.)

Book Description Hardcover. Condition: New. Seller Inventory # DADAX0195337115

More information about this seller | Contact seller

Buy New
US$ 16.00
Convert currency

Add to Basket

Shipping: FREE
Within U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds
Stock Image

Smith, Christian
Published by Oxford University Press (2008)
ISBN 10: 0195337115 ISBN 13: 9780195337112
New Hardcover Quantity: 1
Seller:
GoldenWavesOfBooks
(Fayetteville, TX, U.S.A.)

Book Description Hardcover. Condition: new. New. Fast Shipping and good customer service. Seller Inventory # Holz_New_0195337115

More information about this seller | Contact seller

Buy New
US$ 22.23
Convert currency

Add to Basket

Shipping: US$ 4.00
Within U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds
Stock Image

Smith, Christian
Published by Oxford University Press (2008)
ISBN 10: 0195337115 ISBN 13: 9780195337112
New Hardcover Quantity: 1
Seller:
GoldBooks
(Austin, TX, U.S.A.)

Book Description Hardcover. Condition: new. New Copy. Customer Service Guaranteed. Seller Inventory # think0195337115

More information about this seller | Contact seller

Buy New
US$ 27.70
Convert currency

Add to Basket

Shipping: US$ 4.25
Within U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds
Stock Image

Smith, Christian
Published by Oxford University Press (2008)
ISBN 10: 0195337115 ISBN 13: 9780195337112
New Hardcover Quantity: 1
Seller:
Front Cover Books
(Denver, CO, U.S.A.)

Book Description Condition: new. Seller Inventory # FrontCover0195337115

More information about this seller | Contact seller

Buy New
US$ 29.11
Convert currency

Add to Basket

Shipping: US$ 4.30
Within U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds
Stock Image

Smith, Christian; Emerson, Michael O; Snell, Patricia
Published by Oxford University Press (2008)
ISBN 10: 0195337115 ISBN 13: 9780195337112
New Hardcover Quantity: 1
Seller:
GF Books, Inc.
(Hawthorne, CA, U.S.A.)

Book Description Condition: New. Book is in NEW condition. Seller Inventory # 0195337115-2-1

More information about this seller | Contact seller

Buy New
US$ 49.99
Convert currency

Add to Basket

Shipping: FREE
Within U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds
Stock Image

Smith, Christian; Emerson, Michael O; Snell, Patricia
Published by Oxford University Press (2008)
ISBN 10: 0195337115 ISBN 13: 9780195337112
New Hardcover Quantity: 1
Seller:
Book Deals
(Tucson, AZ, U.S.A.)

Book Description Condition: New. New! This book is in the same immaculate condition as when it was published. Seller Inventory # 353-0195337115-new

More information about this seller | Contact seller

Buy New
US$ 49.99
Convert currency

Add to Basket

Shipping: FREE
Within U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds

There are more copies of this book

View all search results for this book