29 June 2010

Survey on Christian giving shows leaders' timidity over money means churches losing out

Most church leaders dislike talking about the need to give money, according to a new survey on Christian giving. As a result, churchgoers are being given 'an array of mixed messages' by ministers about the need to give.

According to the report "Why Christians Give - Understanding the hearts and minds of 21^st century evangelical donors" churches risk losing out on large amounts of potential giving due to an unnecessary timidity when it comes to talking about financial needs and the importance of giving.

Redina Kolaneci of McConkey ● Johnston international UK, the report's author, said: "Most Christian leaders seem to believe that that they are called to 'do mission' but do not consider that raising the money for this work is part of their remit.

"They tend to sweep money issues under the carpet and fail to preach inspiring sermons on the subject of generosity."

The same is true of Christian charities, with many relegating the task of raising funds to inadequately resourced, even inexperienced fundraisers or volunteers.

In spite of this apparent timidity, evangelicals remain an incredibly generous constituency. One in four donors from the survey, based on members of the Evangelical Alliance, stated that their giving has been impacted by the recession.

However, the average monthly amount donated by respondents is 11.5% of their household income of which 6.5% is given to local churches and another 5% to Christian charities.

"This is good news for churches and charities that are prepared to rethink the ways in which they do the asking," said Kolaneci.

"Evangelicals are not a homogenous group; they have different priorities, different motivations for giving and different preferred ways of giving. Leaders and organisations need to abandon a one-size-fits-all model of fundraising to truly engage with them. For those that are prepared to make the effort, the rewards are still great."

Why Christians Give - Understanding the hearts and minds of 21^st century evangelical donors is based on a survey of 2,000 Evangelical Alliance members surveyed in August-September 2009. The full report was launched on June 22^nd at the Evangelical Alliance inLondon.

Steve Clifford, General Director of the Evangelical Alliance, said: "Why Christians Give is a timely report. The church as we know it has changed. We can't take it for granted that the principles of stewardship are widely applied across our diverse church expressions.

"I believe this report is geared to educate and inform Christian leaders on this issue in a positive way. I hope it will inspire us all to act as partners with God to resource His Kingdom."
Ends

Media enquiries:       Redina Kolaneci

Senior Fundraising & Stewardship Consultant

McConkey ● Johnston international UK

T: 0777 558 2696

E: redina@mcconkey-johnston.co.uk

NOTES TO EDITORS:

1. The Christian giving survey was carried out by McConkey ● Johnston international UKin partnership with the Evangelical Alliance. A free summary of the key findings can be found at:

             www.mcconkey-johnston.co.uk/researchongiving

The report Why Christians Give: Understanding the hearts and minds of 21^st century evangelical donors is available for purchase at £40 + pp. To order a copy email: redina@mcconkey-johnston.co.uk

2. McConkey ●Johnston international UK is a Christian consulting group that helps churches and charities to become more effective in the areas of fundraising, marketing and communications.

3. The Evangelical Alliance, formed in 1846, is the largest body serving evangelical Christians in the UK, and has a membership including denominations, churches, organisations and individuals. The mission of the Evangelical Alliance is to unite evangelicals to present Christ credibly as good news for spiritual and social transformation. According to a Tearfund survey (Churchgoing in the UK, 2007), there are approximately 2 million evangelical Christians in the UK. For more information, go to www.eauk.org.

4. This research project was sponsored by Kingdom Bank, Trinity Wealth Management and David Potter Design.