Quote:
Originally Posted by photon
Well considering that most people tend to be religious, that would be expected.
A better question would be what the ratios are within each group.
Plus as has been pointed out, it's not always comparing apples to apples.. most Christians I know give to their church to support their church's expenses which includes staff, building, etc to support the social infrastructure of their group, which I wouldn't consider charitable donations because it doesn't actually go to help anyone other than their own group. Some churches are better than others in actually getting the money the congregation gives out where it can do actual good.
Most non-religious people I know make a contentious effort to select organizations where the largest possible % of the money donated goes towards the actual cause rather than administration.
However our anecdotal experience of "most people I know" is pretty much meaningless.
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I would also say that many atheist/agnostic people donate to religious charities, because they like the work they are doing. Humanist organizations are just getting started with this kind of thing (many people are coming out of the closet only recently). Many people considered "religious" in the study, may not be very religious at all.
You don't need to be religious to do good.