Churches and synagogues raise roughly the same amount from congregants but vary widely in how they spend the money, the Jewish weekly the Forward found in a survey of houses of worship across the country.
The study found that in aggregate terms giving per member is similar between Christian and Jewish congregants. However, most synagogues levy membership dues, while giving to churches is voluntary. As a result fewer church parishioners give, but those who do often contribute more than their Jewish counterparts.
The Forward survey—based on interviews with employees at more than 20 institutions in the Atlanta, Boston, Los Angeles, Minneapolis-St. Paul, New York, and Tulsa, Okla., metropolitan areas—also found that synagogues tend to pay their spiritual leaders more, while churches send more of their funds to the denominations that oversee their congregations.
0 Responses to Churches and Synagogues Raise Like Amounts but Spend Differently, Survey Finds
sfailla - September 8, 2010 at 2:43 pm
Without knowing the breakdown of income from sources such as dues, pledges, and other donations, I can think of at least one obvious reason for synagoges to rely more heavily on a dues-based model, rather than on voluntary contributions. While many churches have a custom of “passing the basket” at Sunday services, Jewish law forbids engaging in business on the Sabbath; in the traditional interpretation, this means that handling money is off limits, even for noble purposes such as charity. Even in more lenient congregations, members are often explicitly asked not to carry handbags into the sanctuary for services. In general, there seems to be substantially less opportunity for in-person solicitations at synagogues.
revdenelson - September 9, 2010 at 2:39 am
Whether Jewish synagoges are more lenient or not regarding their donations, there is still an implicit fee-for-service model which is heavily entrenced in the teachings of the Torah – or rather a sacrifice for a service. This is akin to the teaching in many of the protestant churches as well, however just not as explicit as noted in the article.