Overwhelmed by financial burdens, the 3,000 members of Mount Carmel Baptist Church in Norfolk, Va., are helping each other pay off credit card debt.

Twice a month, church members gather for a revival where they worship Jesus and cut up credit cards. Their mission since early 2000 has been to make every member who seeks assistance debt-free, the church's pastor, C. Vernie Russell, said.

"There's no way to serve God, the master, when you're busy serving MasterCard," Russell said.

Like many pastors, Russell noticed church contributions were slipping over the last several years, although he didn't indicate by how much. Although more people were in the pews, fewer seemed to be giving to the offering plate.

Then he read a report that suggested Christians could quadruple their giving without a negative impact if they would pay off debt.

"I knew something had to be done," Russell said. "Families are suffering from indebtedness, and so are America's churches."

The Bible instructs Christians to tithe, or give 10 percent of their income to the church. Only one-third to one-half of church members gives any financial support, according to a 2001-2002 report from The Christian and Missionary Alliance.

Credit card debt is partly to blame, Russell said, and is something with which the church can help.

Russell's debt-liquidation revivals help pay off others' debt, one family at a time. Hundreds gather at each revival, during which Russell selects a family at random to pay off credit card bills with donations from other church members. More than $320,000 has gone toward the effort so far, helping more than 500 families, Russell said. He expects within the year all the church's families who have asked for assistance will be debt free.

"They'll be free from worry and free to give more to the church," Russell said.

Churches rely on weekly offerings to fund their operations.

Protestant pastors think their members could give more, according to studies from the Barna Research Group, but too much of their family budgets go to personal spending and consumer debt. Consumer spending has reached an all-time high and churches are suffering for it.

Spending more, giving less

Americans had racked up $1.65 trillion in debt by the end of 2001, up nearly 5 percent from the previous year, according to U.S. government reports. Personal bankruptcy filings jumped 19 percent in 2001, according to the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts.

"People are having trouble paying the bills, let alone feeling free enough to give to the church," said Harvey Nowland of Crown Financial Ministries. The Gainesville, Ga.-based organization offers individuals Christian-based financial counseling.

"Credit card debt is a particular problem for today's society," Nowland said. "When people owe so much, it's hard for them to give."

Overall charitable giving slipped 2.3 percent in 2001 when adjusted for inflation, according to Giving USA, an annual survey by the American Association of Fundraising Counsel Trust for Philanthropy. It was the first time in seven years that contributions have dropped.

Human services organizations saw their donations rise more than any other group thanks to the outpouring of Sept. 11 gifts. More than $20 billion was given to those agencies, up 8.7 percent from 2000.

Religious organizations, including churches and missions, received the biggest chunk of charitable contributions, 39.2 percent, in 2001. While religion always leads other categories, including education and human services, it, too, had dropped. Americans gave $80.96 billion to religious organizations in 2001, compared to $83 billion in 2000, according to Giving USA.

A downturn in the economy is partially to blame, according to the report. But when it comes to church contributions, Americans' debt plays a bigger role, Nowland said.

"We have research that shows Americans spend 102 to 112 percent of what we make," Nowland said. "We're committed to paying off that debt, which is the right thing, but too many Christians take the attitude that ‘God can wait.'"

Churches taking action

Few churches have taken radical steps like Russell, who is holding the debt-liquidation revivals. But churches nationwide are turning to resources like Crown Financial Ministries and Financial Peace University, a 13-week course that helps couples prepare budgets and develop a plan to pay off debt. Increasingly, church leaders are encouraging their congregations to take advantage of the courses in small-group settings.

"It's not just about what's good for the church," Nowland said. "No one enjoys being in debt, and churches are committed to helping people overcome such barriers. Of course, the more contributions a church receives, the more opportunities it can afford to reach new people."

In a 2000 survey of 1,005 adults nationwide, the Baran Research Group found that more people say they give to the church than actually do. Seventeen percent of adults claim to tithe, according to Barna, but only 6 percent do.

Married adults are more likely than single adults to donate, although most don't tithe, Barna reported.

George Barna, president of the Ventura, Calif.-based company that tracks Christian trends, said churches face a number of challenges when it comes to future contributions. One of the fastest-growing population segments are among those least likely to fund church work, he said.

"Hispanics only give 39 percent as much to churches as does the average adult," Barna said.

Americans who have never been married give one-third as much to churches as the typical American, Barna said.

"These groups and their reluctance to support churches is a reminder that traditional views about the importance of giving to churches are absent in the minds of a growing proportion of non-traditional populations," Barna said.

Understanding the situation

Church leaders might not realize how dire the situation is, Barna said. A look at information from a 2001-2002 Christian and Missionary Alliance study of more than 1,050 families nationwide offers some insights:

• Eight of 10 families spend more than they make.
• Seven of 10 will live in debt, retire in debt and die in debt.
• Sixty-five percent of married households require two incomes.
• In 95 percent of homes, families would have trouble coping with a three-month income interruption. A six-month income interruption would find many dependent on other family, the church or government programs.

Churches are no better prepared, Barna said. Ninety-percent of churches have no stewardship plan and one-third are underfunded, according to his research.

"It's time churches seriously address the situation," he said.