by Madeleine Collins
When 16 per cent of Australians cannot always afford to pay their utility bills, how can they afford to give regularly to church?
The situation is all too real in Sydney, according to church leaders, who say Christians struggling with the burden of high mortgages, car repayments and credit card debt have little or nothing to fund ministry.
With the average Sydney home loan now costing 40 cents in every dollar, and the cost of living the highest in seven years, many churches growing in attendance are still treading water financially.
This includes parishes in traditionally well-off areas, such as Sydney’s Northern Beaches. Local clergy say the financial pressures facing young singles and families are forcing people to re-evaluate how they use their money.
“People are certainly finding things difficult with juggling the cost of housing and raising children. You have to ask yourself, how much can I or can’t I give?” says Campbell King, rector of St Peter’s, Manly Vale. “Although there is a temptation to be driven by the demands of the cost of living, it ought not to stop us giving generously of our time, energy and money to the work of the gospel.”
Trevor Thomas, associate director of financial planning group Ethinvest, agrees pressure to maintain lifestyle is a contributing factor. “Lifestyle is so important these days. And buying a lifestyle dream in Sydney can have serious ramifications for church giving. This generation is the richest they’ve ever been, much richer than their parents, but ministers tell me that their congregations certainly don’t feel it,” he said.
He says lack of disposable income, coupled with society’s expectations of having the latest material comforts, makes people very sensitive to day-to-day cash flow. “Borrowing has gone through the roof, squeezing people to the limit. This commits you to a certain level of income and expectation of quality of life, limiting disposable income. And economic uncertainty post-September 11 has seen more people, especially baby boomers, locking away their funds into shares, super and real estate, limiting the amount people can give to ministry.”
Mr Thomas says these lifestyle choices quickly become lifestyle burdens. “Many people feel they can’t afford a $20 church dinner, let alone giving ten per cent of their weekly income each Sunday.”
Yet reports show that it is not just ‘mortgage belt’ families who are struggling to cope with a lack of disposable income. According to Anglicare’s Philip Coller, those on fixed incomes, such as pensioners and students, are heavily affected by any increase in petrol, food and interest rates. He says for every three calls for help, Anglicare’s office in Sydney’s west has had the capacity to answer just one.
“We are seeing a troubling trend appearing in the demographics of the families coming to us for help. Despite public perception, increasingly these are not families dependent on some form of welfare payment, but hard working families with employment who simply cannot cope with Sydney’s rising living costs,” Mr Coller said.
Hugh Issacs, of Glenquarie Anglican Church, agrees. Mr Issacs says as churches aim to attract people, they need to consider the embarrassment that can come with struggling to make ends meet.
“One reason people don’t want to come to church is because they feel guilty about not being able to give as much as they would like,” he said.
“Any increase in living costs makes things very difficult if you’re on a tight budget. And it’s hard to come to church if you know you can’t put anything in the plate.”
