In 2009, gifts to religious institutions were first on the spending list of the “general population” members, and fourth on the spending list of “high net worth” individuals, after “basic needs,” education and arts, according to the same study.

Dr. Patrick Rooney, executive director of the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University, sorted through the available statistics, picking out those pertaining to religious institutions and individuals, and shared them during the National Religious Broadcasters convention earlier this week.

One myth he addressed is that religious giving has melted together with the global economy. According to research by the center at Indiana University and others, giving to religious organizations has grown despite the recession, Rooney assured. In fact, “religious giving tends to be more recession proof” than secular philanthropy, he said.

Over 15 years, religious giving has grown 1.3 percent per year.

Interestingly, the amounts of donations to religious institutions differ depending on a faith group. Here, Mormons are undeniable leaders. Some 93.7 percent of all Mormon households give something to religious institutions per year, Rooney’s 2010 study, “Dispelling Beliefs about Giving to Religious Institutions in the United States,” revealed. The Latter-day Saints church members give on average 6.24 percent of their annual income.

“I think as a faith group they are very explicit about their tithing and they take it more seriously, including personal conversations about ‘How much you gave?’ ‘How much you made?’ and ‘Are you putting your fair share?'” Rooney said. Such openness has a “very powerful effect,” he suggested.

Rooney’s study shows that people of various Christian denominations and various religions in general do give differing amounts to religious institutions. The number of people who give differs as well. For example, 64.4 percent of Baptist households are offering such gifts, whereas 88.3 percent of Jewish households, 73.7 of Catholic households and 69.9 percent of Muslim households.

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