Called To Serve

"Called to Serve" is the title of the study done by two University of Pennsylvania professors who researched the charitable donations and volunteerism of 2,664 active members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Their conclusion is that Latter-day Saints "volunteer and donate significantly more than the average American and are even more generous in time and money than the upper quintile of religious people in America.” 

What the study authors called “prosocial behaviors” are a result of actively following Jesus Christ’s commandments to love and serve one another. Decades ago when we were taking the missionary discussions, we read a book in which the authors mentioned the amount of time Latter-day Saints spent serving in the church and wider community. We said the numbers couldn’t possibly be that high. We can tell you now, after 30 years of membership, that the authors were correct. There is a high expectation for reaching out to others in love and service. Anyone who follows these teachings receives an abundance of treasured friendships and experiences.

Volunteerism

Average American – 48 hours per year

Active Latter-day Saint – 427.9 hours/year (see breakdown below)

Charitable Donations

88.8 % active Latter-day Saints tithe. In addition, an active Latter-day Saint donates an average of $1,821 to social & community causes.

Read more in this Church Newsroom article. 

The Christian Post also wrote about the study. Click here. 

University of Pennsylvania article about the study is here. 

Called To Serve - pdf of the study is here. 

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