 |
| |
| |
|
Passing the Plate: Why American Christians Don't Give Away More Money
|
|
|
Average Rating:  out of 33 Reviews
|
Price: $24.95
|
|
Sale: $12.47
|
| |
|
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
|
|
EAN (European Article Number): 9780195337112
|
|
Number of Items: 1
|
| |
|
|
|
Binding: Hardcover
|
|
Author: Christian Smith::Michael O Emerson::Patricia Snell
|
|
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
|
|
Dewey Decimal Number: 248.6
|
|
Publication Date: 2008-09-29
|
|
Reading Level: 288
|
|
|
| |
Description: 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.
|
| |
|
| |
| |
| |
| |
Customer Reviews
|
| |
|
|
| |
|
Review Summary: Long And Winding With No Real Destination. |
Date: 2008-11-21 |
|
| |
|
Details: While I'm always up for a perspective or stance that I have yet to hear, I'm not too big on being lectured to and bored to death with numbers that are irrelevant to the point. That happens way too often in this book. Sure, it's an interesting book, but like one reviewer already said, this book is in search of an audience. I recommend taking a pass on this one. |
| |
|
Review Summary: A book in search of an audience |
Date: 2008-11-20 |
|
| |
Details: As a Christian layperson involved in a start up church struggling with finances, I thought this book might be helpful to me and/or something I could pass along to my pastor to help him. I found the book difficult to read. The authors even made a comment early in the book concerning boring charts and numbers. But, they proceeded to load the book down with boring charts and numbers.
The little of the book I did find interesting were some of the summaries of comments from the research surveys taken. Rather than bore me with pages and pages of what the church COULD do if everyone gave 10% (which seems to be the magical number we're supposed to give), tell me why people aren't being more generous and what we can do to encourage them to be more generous. The insistence on a "tithe" as normal and anything below that as almost sinful I also found to be off-putting. I realize there is a set of Christians out there who view the law of the tithe (from the Hebrew scriptures given during the time of the temple) to be binding to modern day Christians. But, I don't think it's a valid assumption that all Christians feel that way.
I found the book to be way too detailed for a lay person. Perhaps a sociologist would appreciate all the charts, graphs, etc. I don't think a pastor would get a lot out of it in terms of how to speak to his congregation about money either. I did not even recommend the book to my pastor.
|
| |
|
Review Summary: A leader from every church should read this. |
Date: 2008-11-16 |
|
| |
Details: This book has some sections that every church leader should read. However, I think the best use for this book would be for every church to have one lay leader read this book and summarize the key points for other church leaders. The book contains a lot of statistics and can be dry at times. While well written, is probably a bit scholarly for the typical reader. It's not that the "average Joe" cannot understand it; it's just that the average Joe would not care about some of the items that the authors find interesting.
That said, this book should be discussed among church elders, deacons, pastors and other leaders. It provides valuable insights into why people don't give and more importantly, provides some extremely valuable direction as to what can be done to help improve giving. Pages 180-190 in particular have great ideas for church leaders to consider and are worth the price of the book on a stand-alone basis. |
| |
|
Review Summary: This book covers it all |
Date: 2008-10-29 |
|
| |
Details: This book covers it all. This is a thorough investigation of all aspects of this private and highly charged subject. We rarely have an awareness or get any insight into the appalling giving patterns within the church. Every possible reason for poor giving is explored and supported by research. We get an insider's view of the problem through the eyes of the clergy as well as the layperson. Every position and excuse is laid out.
The authors tell you that this is not a how-to book, but we are certainly led to some very helpful approaches to the solution. The two ways that churches have dealt with these issues are explored. There is an open invitation to change the church culture from "we need to pay the bills" to "we need to live the vision" and in the process be changed corporately and individually to more closely conform to Christ.
When I saw this book, I thought the timing could not be worse. Economically, we are facing a perfect storm, both personally and internationally. This book might have to be the second step in getting our financial houses in order. We may first need to reorder our finances by following Dave Ramsey's book The Total Money Makeover to shape our budgets on the way to opening our resources to God's will.
Whether you are a pastor, financial committee member or layperson in the pew, you can find yourself in this book.
In the interest of full disclosure, I have to say that one of the authors, Christian Smith, is my son. I honestly don't believe that this has influenced my enthusiasm for this much overdo book.
Bob Smith
|
| |
|
Review Summary: contemporary prophesy |
Date: 2008-10-26 |
|
|
| |
Details: This book looks like one more how-hum "survey" report from academia to meet the 'publish or perish' requirement. It has the usual trappings of conventional scholarship--lots of tables and graphs, 170 pages of appendix and footnotes.
It is much more. It really scares the devil out of me. The book jacket provides the first data point: "One out of five self-identified Christians gives nothing at all" (to ANY charity.)
More than anything I read in Sociology classes in school, this book reminds me of a much older book, credited to one called Ezekiel and found in Christian bibles, pointedly Ezekiel 16:49. Sodom was not destroyed because of its sexual excesses , but because "she had pride, excess of food, and prosperous ease, but did not aid the poor and needy"
Smith and Emerson state "every Christian impulse to generously give money way inevitably runs up against potent counter-impulses driven by mass consumerism to instead perpetually spend, borrow, acquire, consume, discard, and then spend more . . . such forces are not merely maters of personal "values" but are structured into deep-rooted institutions of employment, transportation, media, home ownership, entertainment, and the distribution and selling of masses of descretionary purchases and material luxuries."
The real sin of Sodom. I drive around my hometown and see lots of "Christian" churches with the Christian flag on a pole out front but there is also an American flag above it. I tremble for this 'Christian" nation. |
| |
|
| |
Similar Products
|
|
|
| |
This Product is similar to and may be found in the Following Categories:
|
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
