# Are there any atheist service organizations that help the poor and homeless? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [December 14, 2009, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-atheist-service-organizations-that-help-the-poor-and-homeless/521221 "2009-12-14T16:02:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![The\_Urban\_Spaceman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8c91f0/32.png) [@The\_Urban\_Spaceman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Urban_Spaceman)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2009, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-atheist-service-organizations-that-help-the-poor-and-homeless/521221/41 "2009-12-15T16:18:18Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > Sure, but the tribal identities of atheists and other secular types don’t impel them towards charitable giving nearly as much as religion does. Religious people donate far more to charity than do the secular ([cite](http://www.heritage.org/Research/Religion/bg1992.cfm#_ftn108)), and even contribute in ways not affected by income like [donating blood](http://inductivist.blogspot.com/2007/09/religion-and-donating-blood-some.html) as well. Whilst numerous studies have found an association between religious attendance and donations, there are many indicating that no association (including via non-monetary means), or even an inverse correlation, exists. Certain studies indicate that much depends on the context in which the question is asked, rather than your assertion of some undefined atheist ‘tribal identity’. Patterns of philanthropy are ‘substantially’ less monochromatic than the way in which you present them. > [@](#): > > In Australia, religious involvement and secular giving appear not to be related or even inversely related (Lyons & Nivison-Smith 2006; Lyons & Passey 2005). A similar finding is reported in two U.S. studies (Schiff 1990; Wilhelm et al 2006). Brooks (2004) found no relationship between self-identifying as Christian and secular philanthropy; in a later study the relationship between (more than) weekly church attendance and secular philanthropy was negative (Brooks 2005), while rarely/never attending church was negatively related with both religious and secular philanthropy. A study of giving to human services found no relationship with religious affiliation (Marx 2000). > > Exceptions to the regularity that religious involvement is positively related to philanthropy are often reported in experiments, in which the participants had an opportunity to donate in a non-religious context (Bekkers 2006c; 2007b; Eckel & Grossman 2004). The fact that no relationship between giving and religiosity was found in these studies may indicate that either the religious context is crucial, or that the higher likelihood of being asked is the reason for heightened generosity of the religious, or both. Bekkers and Schuyt (2005) find that both explanations are true to some extent. [Generosity and philanthropy: A literature review (.pdf)](http://geveninnederland.nl/uploads/doc/WP1_Bekkers_Wiepking_Nov07.pdf) Equally, your statement that religious people tend to be happier, is unsupported by a wide number of studies (i.e. [Lewis _et al._ 2000 (.pdf)](http://www.infm.ulst.ac.uk/~chris/63.pdf); [O’Connor _et al._ 2003](http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL&_udi=B6V9F-453NMFM-2&_user=10&_rdoc=1&_fmt=&_orig=search&_sort=d&_docanchor=&view=c&_searchStrId=1136816481&_rerunOrigin=scholar.google&_acct=C000050221&_version=1&_urlVersion=0&_userid=10&md5=5ab60eba15722c99866dc5ef4a7d4fd0); [Robins _et al._ 2008](http://www.informaworld.com/smpp/1287922157-89769987/content~content=a788555835&db=all); etc.) due in large part to contradictory methodological approaches, and even a basic coherent theory for happiness itself. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2009, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-atheist-service-organizations-that-help-the-poor-and-homeless/521221/42 "2009-12-15T16:32:32Z")
> [@astorian](#): > > Well, this is true only if you re-write the definition of terrorism regularly. > > It’s a safe bet the Red Brigades and Baader-Meinhof Gang were all atheists. You could claim, of course, that atheism was incidental, and not the main focus of their activity, but that strikes me as a copout. Hardly. Communism in Western Europe was as much a response to fascism as it was first-impulse movement. Many of the Cambridge Five (spies) felt this way, for example - they weren’t necessarily atheists, just antifascists, and helping the communists was seen as the most obvious means to defeat fascism. Kim Philby, for example, was a devout Christian. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2009, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-atheist-service-organizations-that-help-the-poor-and-homeless/521221/43 "2009-12-15T17:38:28Z")
> [@Boyo\_Jim](#): > > This is interesting. I hope your grandfather is still around to answer some questions. My guess would be that they attacked churches and priests because they were seen as tools of repression, and not because of any belief in a diety. > > But I would love to hear his take on that – was it the faith they were attacking, or the church’s role as a patriarchal institution of control? My grandfather has nothing against any kind of patriarchal institutions; he’s tried to claim that the reason grandmother grabbed back control of the family’s monetary resources several months after they moved to Pamplona (she’d been in charge of it since he’d gone to the war, but relinquished it for that move) was, not that he had been burning their savings (“my daughter’s inheritance,” in her words), but “Basque matriarcal notions”. In his case, he hates being told what to do and specially what not to do. Things like “do not stick your dick in women who aren’t your wife” are particularly jarring. ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2009, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-atheist-service-organizations-that-help-the-poor-and-homeless/521221/44 "2009-12-15T17:50:07Z")
> [@The\_Urban\_Spaceman](#): > > [Generosity and philanthropy: A literature review (.pdf)](http://geveninnederland.nl/uploads/doc/WP1_Bekkers_Wiepking_Nov07.pdf) Your own cite states - > [@](#): > > Positive relations of church membership and/or the frequency of church attendance with both secular and religious philanthropy appear in almost any article in which this relation was studied (Bekkers 2003; Bekkers & Schuyt 2005; Bennett & Kottasz 2000; Bielefeld et al 2005; Brooks 2003b; 2004; Brown & Ferris 2007; Bryant et al 2003; Chang 2005a; Chaves 2002; Davidson & Pyle 1994; Eckel & Grossman 2003; Eschholz & Van Slyke 2002; Feldman 2007; Forbes & Zampelli 1997; Hoge & Yang 1994; Hunter et al 1999; Jackson et al 1995; Lee & Farrell 2003; Lunn et al 2001; Lyons & Nivison-Smith 2006; Lyons & Passey 2005; Olson & Caddell 1994; Park & Park 2004; Reed & Selbee 2001; 2002; Regnerus et al 1998; Schiff 1990; Schlegelmilch et al 1997a; Sokolowski 1996; Sullivan 1985; Tiehen 2001; Van Slyke & Brooks 2005; Zaleski & Zech 1992; 1994). So on the one hand, we have forty or so studies that say what I claim, vs. three from you that examine only the relation between religious practice and **secular** philanthropy. > [@](#): > > Equally, your statement that religious people tend to be happier, is unsupported by a wide number of studies (i.e. [Lewis _et al._ 2000 (.pdf)](http://www.infm.ulst.ac.uk/~chris/63.pdf); This study begins > [@](#): > > A number of recent studies have consistently reported a positive association between religiosity and happiness, when happiness is operationalised in terms of the Oxford Happiness Inventory and religiosity is operationalised in terms of the Francis Scale of Attitude toward Christianity. > [@](#): > > [O’Connor _et al._ 2003](http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL&_udi=B6V9F-453NMFM-2&_user=10&_rdoc=1&_fmt=&_orig=search&_sort=d&_docanchor=&view=c&_searchStrId=1136816481&_rerunOrigin=scholar.google&_acct=C000050221&_version=1&_urlVersion=0&_userid=10&md5=5ab60eba15722c99866dc5ef4a7d4fd0) This one concludes, not that religion and happiness are not associated, but that > [@](#): > > The results of the present study provide evidence, among an undergraduate sample, that religiosity is not associated with psychological distress. Which is not quite the same thing. > [@](#): > > [Robins _et al._ 2008](http://www.informaworld.com/smpp/1287922157-89769987/content~content=a788555835&db=all) And this one says - > [@](#): > > The data demonstrated a significant positive correlation between prayer frequency and happiness before controlling for individual differences in personality. > [@](#): > > What do they find? In a nutshell, they find that people who are involved in religion also report greater levels of happiness than do those who are not religious. For example, one study involved over 160,000 people in Europe. Among weekly churchgoers, 85% reported being “very satisfied” with life, but this number reduced to 77% among those who never went to church (Inglehart, 1990). This kind of pattern is typical – religious involvement is associated with modest increases in happiness. [Cite.](http://www.psychwww.com/psyrelig/happy.htm) Regards, Shodan ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2009, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-atheist-service-organizations-that-help-the-poor-and-homeless/521221/45 "2009-12-15T17:52:40Z")
Self-reported happiness is not a very reliable or significant data point. I think there’s a lot of pressure in some religious groups to project oneself as happy whether it’s true or not. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2009, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-atheist-service-organizations-that-help-the-poor-and-homeless/521221/46 "2009-12-15T18:05:51Z")
> [@Nava](#): > > My grandfather has nothing against any kind of patriarchal institutions; he’s tried to claim that the reason grandmother grabbed back control of the family’s monetary resources several months after they moved to Pamplona (she’d been in charge of it since he’d gone to the war, but relinquished it for that move) was, not that he had been burning their savings (“my daughter’s inheritance,” in her words), but “Basque matriarcal notions”. In his case, he hates being told what to do and specially what not to do. Things like “do not stick your dick in women who aren’t your wife” are particularly jarring. So, would you say that he was participating in a war on christianity? ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2009, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-atheist-service-organizations-that-help-the-poor-and-homeless/521221/47 "2009-12-15T18:08:40Z")
I suspect that most care is given to the homeless by the government, which is (in the US) a secular organization. If all churches and so on closed doors, I’m not sure it would even make a particularly large vacancy to be filled in the basic “keeping people alive and kicking” sense. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2009, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-atheist-service-organizations-that-help-the-poor-and-homeless/521221/48 "2009-12-15T18:10:25Z")
My other grandfather would have said he was, the reason this other grandfather took up arms against the government was that he viewed the situation as an attack on his religion which was by no means being slowed down by the government (he had no problem with other people practicing whichever religion or lack thereof they fancied, but took umbrage at the notion of not being allowed to practice his). Me, in the case of Gramps I think he was participating in the merry destruction of people and institutions he saw as a barrier to his wishes, he also considered that he did it at little personal risk (he certainly wasn’t happy to get “volunteered” to go to the real war). I can’t speak for other people. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Urban\_Spaceman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8c91f0/32.png) [@The\_Urban\_Spaceman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Urban_Spaceman)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2009, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-atheist-service-organizations-that-help-the-poor-and-homeless/521221/49 "2009-12-15T18:20:50Z")
**Shodan** , whilst you excel at selectively quoting from sources to justify your assertions, and a failure of basic addition in comparing the cites provided in the literature review, people who read the papers in full, might recognise they indicate a more nuanced reality, than the one you present as undeniable fact. For example you quote, > [@Shodan](#): > > > [@](#): > > > > The data demonstrated a significant positive correlation between prayer frequency and happiness before controlling for individual differences in personality. Whilst conveniently excising the following sentence of the paper, > [@](#): > > After controlling for personality, however, this apparent association vanished. Similarly when quoted in full, > [@Shodan](#): > > > [@](#): > > > > A number of recent studies have consistently reported a positive association between religiosity and happiness, when happiness is operationalised in terms of the Oxford Happiness Inventory and religiosity is operationalised in terms of the Francis Scale of Attitude toward Christianity. Concludes, > [@](#): > > However, this general finding is not consistent across other measures of either construct. The present aim was to examine the generalisability of the link between religion and happiness using the Francis Scale and the Depression–Happiness Scale. Among two samples (Anglican priests and members of the Anglican Church), no significant associations were found between scores on the religiosity and happiness measures. Further research is now required to clarify the components of happiness that are associated with the Francis Scale. Deliberately misrepresenting the literature undermines the likelihood that you might present a meaningful, or even accurate, answer. ---
**Author:** ![DSeid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dseid/32/20194_2.png) [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2009, 1:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-atheist-service-organizations-that-help-the-poor-and-homeless/521221/50 "2009-12-16T01:27:24Z")
Damn you and your source checking **Urban**! In any case **Shodan** suggests a bit of a tangential question, which I would like to ask more broadly: Independent of whether or not you believe in any religion or have any theistic or atheistic leanings, is there or has there been any adaptive advantage to having religious faith, selecting at either the individual or tribal level? Of course the mere fact that virtually every society has or at least has had religious belief systems argues that it must be adaptive … One must acknowledge that we are tribal creatures no matter what, and that religion is not a cause of tribalism so much as a result of it. Given that, a shared belief system did allow the sense of tribe to expand beyond true kinships into very broad fictive kinships that are currently worldwide in distribution. Societies were only possible as a result of that. Of course a tribe that is too inclusive breaks down as human nature seems to need for us to have someone to label as the out-group, the other, to exclude and to be against. Too big of a religion is doomed to splinter. Those who do not profess belief and adopt the rules (that presumably benefit the tribe/society as a whole at some potential cost to the individual would be punished, possibly killed or expulsed - an thereby at a selective disadvantage. The tribe that has a strong belief system has greater loyalty of its membership and has members that will engage in what the group considers “pro-social” activities. Of course in so far as religion has impeded scientific advancements it has been maladaptive and in so far as it has worsened the tendency to have tribal conflicts, in particular taking on losing battles in the name of religious principles, it is maladaptive as well. All that said I believe that religion has been adaptive at an evolutionary and anthropologic timescale, but that the future _must_ lie in a secular value system that all religigious and areligious groups can ascribe to without disavowing their own individual belief (or non-belief) systems. Only then can we hope to a community of communities. My soap box pontification exhausted are there other takes on the question? ---
**Author:** ![Dangerosa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Dangerosa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dangerosa)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2009, 1:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-atheist-service-organizations-that-help-the-poor-and-homeless/521221/51 "2009-12-16T01:34:41Z")
The Unitarian Universalist Service Committee - while not atheist, is Unitarian - half of all UUs identify as humanist, atheist, or some other “non-theist” or “theist lite” (like agnosticism, Deism, non-theist Buddhist…) ---
**Author:** ![Measure\_for\_Measure](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/measure_for_measure/32/557_2.png) [@Measure\_for\_Measure](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Measure_for_Measure)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2009, 7:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-atheist-service-organizations-that-help-the-poor-and-homeless/521221/52 "2009-12-16T07:30:00Z")
The NY Society for Ethical Culture runs a [social service board](http://www.nysec.org/social-service-board/) that operates a homeless shelter, East Harlem School Partnership and other programs. The Unitarian Universalist’s charity may or may not the conditions of the OP, but I thought it merited mention: [http://www.uua.org/giving/nowis/index.shtml](http://www.uua.org/giving/nowis/index.shtml) Of course there are a lot of nondenominational foreign and domestic aid programs as well. A list of religious and nonreligious operations is here: [http://www.bbb.org/charity-reviews/national/human-services/](http://www.bbb.org/charity-reviews/national/human-services/) ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2009, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-atheist-service-organizations-that-help-the-poor-and-homeless/521221/53 "2009-12-16T15:15:20Z")
> [@The\_Urban\_Spaceman](#): > > **Shodan** , whilst you excel at selectively quoting from sources to justify your assertions, and a failure of basic addition in comparing the cites provided in the literature review, people who read the papers in full, might recognise they indicate a more nuanced reality, than the one you present as undeniable fact. To reiterate - > [@](#): > > Positive relations of church membership and/or the frequency of church attendance with both secular and religious philanthropy appear in almost any article in which this relation was studied (Bekkers 2003; Bekkers & Schuyt 2005; Bennett & Kottasz 2000; Bielefeld et al 2005; Brooks 2003b; 2004; Brown & Ferris 2007; Bryant et al 2003; Chang 2005a; Chaves 2002; Davidson & Pyle 1994; Eckel & Grossman 2003; Eschholz & Van Slyke 2002; Feldman 2007; Forbes & Zampelli 1997; Hoge & Yang 1994; Hunter et al 1999; Jackson et al 1995; Lee & Farrell 2003; Lunn et al 2001; Lyons & Nivison-Smith 2006; Lyons & Passey 2005; Olson & Caddell 1994; Park & Park 2004; Reed & Selbee 2001; 2002; Regnerus et al 1998; Schiff 1990; Schlegelmilch et al 1997a; Sokolowski 1996; Sullivan 1985; Tiehen 2001; Van Slyke & Brooks 2005; Zaleski & Zech 1992; 1994). I notice you made no attempt to address the fact that none of your cites demonstrated what you claimed. > [@](#): > > Deliberately misrepresenting the literature undermines the likelihood that you might present a meaningful, or even accurate, answer. I have made no misrepresentation, of course - you are merely trying to pretend that things are other than they are. Regards, Shodan ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2009, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-atheist-service-organizations-that-help-the-poor-and-homeless/521221/54 "2009-12-16T16:22:15Z")
> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#): > > I think there’s a lot of pressure in some religious groups to project oneself as happy whether it’s true or not. Please produce a cite to show that this is a major factor in anonymous surveys. Regards, Shodan ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_Robson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gary_robson/32/3448_2.png) [@Gary\_Robson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_Robson)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2009, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-atheist-service-organizations-that-help-the-poor-and-homeless/521221/55 "2009-12-16T16:25:33Z")
[moderating] I thing the GQ portion of this thread has been as answered as it’s going to get, so I’m moving the thread over to Great Debates rather than trying to push it back on track. [/moderating] ---
**Author:** ![C3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/c3/32/3108_2.png) [@C3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C3)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2009, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-atheist-service-organizations-that-help-the-poor-and-homeless/521221/56 "2009-12-16T16:55:53Z")
[Foundation Beyond Belief](http://foundationbeyondbelief.org/node)…started by Dale McGowan, who wrote _Parenting Beyond Belief_ and _Raising Freethinkers_. ---
**Author:** ![horhay\_achoa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ccd318/32.png) [@horhay\_achoa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/horhay_achoa)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2009, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-atheist-service-organizations-that-help-the-poor-and-homeless/521221/57 "2009-12-16T18:06:07Z")
[http://www.phillycor.org/service.php](http://www.phillycor.org/service.php) This is the larger, antional organization. > **[Homepage - United CoR](https://unitedcor.org/)** > > This is an example page. It’s different from a blog post because it will stay in one place and will show up in your site navigation (in most themes). Most people start with an About page that introduces them to potential site visitors. It might say... I would guess many of the local chapters have this sort of thing, but I did not look ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2009, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-atheist-service-organizations-that-help-the-poor-and-homeless/521221/58 "2009-12-16T18:26:51Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > Please produce a cite to show that this is a major factor in anonymous surveys. > > Regards, > Shodan Please produce cites to show that all the studies you quoted were anonymous surveys. ---
**Author:** ![Taverner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e8c25b/32.png) [@Taverner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Taverner)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2009, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-atheist-service-organizations-that-help-the-poor-and-homeless/521221/59 "2009-12-16T19:47:01Z")
> [@astro](#): > > I was in Rotary the other night listening to a presentation by a local Methodist pastor about his multiple outreach programs for the homeless and disadvantaged individuals and families, and how many of the local churches (not just Methodist) support this effort with funds and facilities. > > I’m not very religious, but I have to admit the time and effort he and his supporters put into this outreach effort was very impressive and spoke well of their caring and humanity. Are there any predominantly atheist organizations that do this sort of thing? Not that I know of - but there is definitely a need since so many of the Christian ones simply brainwash the recipients ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Fight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/90ced4/32.png) [@Cat\_Fight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Fight)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2009, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-atheist-service-organizations-that-help-the-poor-and-homeless/521221/60 "2009-12-16T20:02:25Z")
According to Richard Dawkins (saw him talk, but I think he also mentioned it in his latest book), registering an atheist or agnostic-identified charity is near impossible. I’d be happy with just non-religious charities, though I do give to some of them. I don’t like the idea of my money going to developing countries with strings attached. And while I drop a few bucks in the Salvation Army pots because I feel bad for the freezing bell ringers, these are the same people who told my college class that atheists, Jews and gay people are going to Hell. For the most part, I prefer to donate my time. I tend not to wear my tee with ‘God’ crossed out, though. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-atheist-service-organizations-that-help-the-poor-and-homeless/521221.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-atheist-service-organizations-that-help-the-poor-and-homeless/521221.md?page=4)