Atheist don't donate to charity.....

[Aroura33]

We've all seen this, or read the articles and studies, that say atheist tend to donate less money to charity.  This is then, falsely, used to say that atheists are therefore less charitable.

I found a good article here:
http://www.patheos.com/blogs/friendlyat ... o-charity/
It points out that if you remove churches from the equations, more secular states actually donate more than religious states.  But this does not really cover individual atheist vs religious person, and it also does not cover donated TIME.

Personally, I only donate money to animal shelters, and occasionally my pocket change to the local kid having heart surgery type jar at my local grocery store. Oh, and Red Cross.
Most organized charities are either lining the pockets of Fat Cat religious leaders, or Fat Cat Corp execs.   Put it this way: For the most part, I distrust large charities. I suspect many other atheists feel the same way.
However, I do donate my time.  Volunteering mostly at local schools, I have done this since I was old enough to do it, not just now because I have a kid.
My dad volunteers at so many places (farmers market, Audubon society, local radio station, and even a soup kitchen) and none of them are organized by religion, nor most thought of as your typical charity type work, but it still counts!

So my question is, do you think atheists are getting an unfair shake here?  Do we actually donate MORE to truly needy causes if you count volunteer time, and discount churches?

[Elohim]

My parents give 10% of their income to the Mormon church and then claim it as a charitable donation on their tax return. If you asked them they would say they give 10% of their income to charity. I think they give 10% of their income to a racket and none of it to charity. As to whether atheists are more or less charitable, I don't know if atheism would have an effect one way or another.

[SGOS]

Well, I for one donate about $1000 a year to a wilderness organization.  I don't know if that qualifies as a charity, but doing it makes me feel good because they use the money for something I think is important.  I don't claim it on my tax return.  I file the short form which works out better for me.  Being an atheist allows me to give my money to any organization I want.  That's just the way I choose to donate.  But I'd never give my money to a church.  Churches give charity a bad name, as far as I'm concerned.

[Johan]

The only truly noble charitable donation is an anonymous charitable donation IMO.

[Farroc]

I don't care enough about humans to donate to them. Animals, on the other hand, I do plan to give some money to.

[SGOS]

The only truly noble charitable donation is an anonymous charitable donation IMO.

Thanks a million.  Now that I've spilled my beans so to speak, I feel like shit.   :-D

[Aroura33]

The only truly noble charitable donation is an anonymous charitable donation IMO.

Thanks a million.  Now that I've spilled my beans so to speak, I feel like shit.   :-D

Actually a fair point.  
By telling us, you are not bragging, after all this is what we are talking about in this thread.  You anon donation IS one you are not claiming on tax returns, or telling the whole world about, so I assume you usually do it anonymously.

I just finished reading an article on a secular humanist site //http://secularhumanism.org/index.php?section=fi&page=generous_atheists
that linked a lot of different studies, and one of them had to do with why people donate.  Religious people are more likely to feel they need to be seen as being generous, but in practice they give no more than non-religious people.  I think they want the bragging rights, and are less likely to do it anonymously, which is another thing that would skew some study results.

In another of Batson's studies, participants were asked to volunteer to help raise money for a sick child. Some were told they would probably be called upon; others were told they would probably not be. This time the religious were more likely to volunteer—but only when they were told that their help would probably not be required! Batson concluded that religion seems to promote the need to be seen as generous but not generosity itself.

This is sort of ironic...it is promoting some of the very things it is supposed to be getting rid of....vanity and pride

[SGOS]

In another of Batson's studies, participants were asked to volunteer to help raise money for a sick child. Some were told they would probably be called upon; others were told they would probably not be. This time the religious were more likely to volunteer—but only when they were told that their help would probably not be required! Batson concluded that religion seems to promote the need to be seen as generous but not generosity itself.

This is sort of ironic...it is promoting some of the very things it is supposed to be getting rid of....vanity and pride

LOL.  Many years ago, my college roommate, probably already an atheist by that time, grew up in the Catholic Church.  I remember him telling me that every year the Church would print a list of all the contributions individual members made that year.  He said that in his household, the event was greatly anticipated and read with intense interest.  He said his family referred to it as the "Scandal Sheet."   :-D

[Jason78]

Animals, on the other hand, I do plan to give some money to.

But they don't have pockets to keep it in!

[Youssuf Ramadan]

Animals, on the other hand, I do plan to give some money to.

But they don't have pockets to keep it in!

Some Australian animals do....  

[AllPurposeAtheist]

I seldom donate, but do on occasion. I'm much more apt to just GIVE money, goods or services directly to the person needing it.
Example, here at VOA a lot of guys come here with nothing, just the clothes on their back. They typically have no cigarettes, no coffee, their shoes are torn up, they have only the socks on their feet. I regularly give people tobaccoo, coffee, clothing, etc. I do loan money from time to time and usually never see it again, but I don't hand it over to 'organizations' to divy up as they see fit as they all to often have built in schemes to divy a nice, sizable portion to themselves.

[AllPurposeAtheist]

Needless to say churches can go piss up a rope with very few exceptions. I do occasional donate time, but it has to have a direct benefit to society at large with no $$ coming out for salaries.

[rickcopeland648]

My parents give 10% of their income to the Mormon church and then claim it as a charitable donation on their tax return. If you asked them they would say they give 10% of their income to charity. I think they give 10% of their income to a racket and none of it to charity. As to whether atheists are more or less charitable, I don't know if atheism would have an effect one way or another.

Mitt Romney made similar such claims. The Rick Copeland would love to see figures stating where the LDS church spends these funds. He doesn't know, but he suspects it mostly goes into building new churches/ temples and into political causes such as their involvement in California's Prop 8. He also suspects most of the charitythey claim might be things such as subsidizing the DI/ their Deseret food brand and occasionally sending water to victims of earthquakes/ famines/ other natural disasters.

Does anybody know whether one must be a member of the church to benefit from their food welfare program or is it open to the general public ala local food banks?

[hillbillyatheist]

I donate money. I've done it for the Democrats, the Red Cross, a Music in Schools Program, , as well as just helping people I interact with in life such as giving money to some poor lady who needed bus money, or giving a meal to a homeless guy, or groceries to a neighbor.

I do it because I care. not because some invisible man will punish me if i failed to.

which (Christians or atheists) do you think is giving to charity, and which do you think is paying ransom demands?

[MilitantAtheist]

I've made some small donations over the last year or so. Not much but it makes me feel like I've done at least a little bit to back up my words with some form of action, albeit a small one.

20 dollars to the Bradley Manning Defense Fund &
100 to the It Gets Better Project.

I know it's probably an insignificant amount of money but I suppose it's better than nothing.