A New Report Says Church Giving Has Plummeted to Depression-Era Lows

Empty Tomb, a Christian research outfit, is reporting that evangelicals haven’t been filling up collection plates lately. In fact, percentage-wise, Christians haven’t been giving this little since the Depression years. According to the study, giving has been tumbling for the past four years, all the way down to an average about about 2.1% of an individual church member’s income. In 1968, that number was 3.1 percent. “Is the issue that the church is not providing an authentic alternative to the consumer mindset?” said Sylvia Ronsvalle, the group’s executive vice president. “Over a period of time, if the church isn’t providing more of an authentic alternative, the church will lose” …