$8.8 Billion In Religious Donations To The Developing World

Aid and relief is one of American Christianity's strongest outward signs of Christ-like actions. The immense amount of aid sent to developing nations by Christians, not to mention those who service in medicine, care, missions, and relief efforts, shows that American Christianity can follow the tenants of the Christ who served the poor. I would say that countries like those in Africa and some of Asia should not be labeled as only "poor" but as countries who suffer great injustice. Such famine, poverty, and lack of education are the result of corrupt choices, especially in areas like Sudan, North Korea, Myanmar, and the Congo.

These numbers prove that American Christians are aware of such atrocities worldwide and want to support causes to alleviate the suffering. We learn today that Christian relief has hit $8.8 billion!!! This is a news story worth coverage but completely lost in the media. The Christian Post explains,

The amount of $8.8 billion is equivalent to 37 percent of all U.S. government aid, pointed out the Hudson Institute’s Center for Global Prosperity (CGP) in its 2008 Index of Global Philanthropy. Previously, the religious giving for 2005 was reported at $5.4 billion based on limited available data...
More than half of U.S. congregations gave an average of $10,500 to U.S. organizations for relief and development in poor countries. And over 30 percent made donations directly to programs in developing countries as well as volunteering for short-term missions or service trips, according to the survey.

As the Church in America begins to see more and more suffering worldwide these numbers will continue to expand. Americans are learning the vast sufferings of those oppressed by injustice in lesser developed countries.

I am excited to see these numbers grow because it shows the world that Christianity is a force based on God's love, not an exclusive, uninformed clique. For an atheist to say that Christianity does more harm than good in the world is just grievously wrong. Christianity, unlike any other religion, is morally oriented around a commission against injustice and based on equality. I'm not talking about 'let's all just get along and leave each other alone' or 'you do what you want, I'll do what I want.' It's more like, "If you aren't treated fairly or you are suffering or starving I have a real problem with that and I have to look at my own responsibility in that."