Religious Giving: The Social Benefits of Religion, Volume 6

• Religious belief and practice have historically played a central role in shaping the development of philanthropy, charitable institutions, and a broader culture of giving in the United States and internationally.
• Empirical research consistently shows that people who are religiously affiliated and actively participate in religious communities are more likely to donate money and volunteer their time, including for secular causes.
• Protecting religious freedom, donor privacy, and the independence of faith-based organizations is presented as essential to sustaining the charitable sector and the social benefits it provides to both religious and nonreligious communities.

This is the final report in a series of publications examining links between religion and crucial contributions like social services, human rights, education, mental health, and family. They have been prepared with two main audiences in mind. First, readers who may be skeptical about or unfamiliar with the way religious beliefs are lived out in the lives of people of faith and in the practices of religious organizations. In past decades, a growing proportion of Americans have joined this category. The reports, it is hoped, can help them understand that people of faith share the same aspirations for flourishing communities and a desire to protect the vulnerable. Along with this, the reports can demonstrate that protecting religious freedom — the constitutional principle that allows religious individuals and groups to carry out their work — can promote these ends.

The series can also equip people of faith to explain to their neighbors why robust protections of religious freedom contribute to stronger and more humane societies. By allowing people of faith to live consistent with their deepest commitments, all people, religious or not, are more secure in their own ability to act in accordance with their own deeply held convictions.

As discussed in the prior volume, there are some essential features of a free and flourishing society that the government itself cannot guarantee. Such qualities as family strength and unselfish care for those in need cannot be mandated by government policy, such as under threat of fines or imprisonment. But neither can they be disposed of by society without losing much of what makes our communities decent, livable, and free.

Among these qualities is generosity, the willingness of individuals to give freely to help others. That is the subject of this publication.

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