I used this project as an opportunity to reflect on the work of Reparations NOW NWA in the context of white evangelicalism in America and Northwest Arkansas.
Summary
- My thesis is that before white evangelicals can transform either America or Northwest Arkansas, we need to be transformed — we need to confess and repent of our culture (the behaviors and beliefs that people have in common) if we want to help solve racism.
- White evangelicals behave unjustly and believe falsely. White Christians have supported racist systems – namely slavery, Jim Crow, and New Jim Crow / mass incarceration — because we have believed racist stories – namely white supremacy
- Segregation maintains white evangelical support of racist systems — because racist systems work for white evangelicals and almost everyone we know, and because we know almost no one for whom they do not work, we do not oppose racist systems.
- Half-truths about American history maintain white evangelical support of racist systems — because we believe that racial injustice is the exception not the rule of American history, we do not oppose racist systems.
- Half-truths about the gospel maintain white evangelical support of racist systems — because we believe that Jesus came to earth to renew people not systems, we do not oppose racist systems.
- Racialization means that people have unequal experiences based on race. Racialization in Northwest Arkansas means that Black people experience it as a worse place than white people do. Examples of racialization in Washington County include: (1) the median Black household has about 50% of the income of the median white household (2) Black people are twice as likely as white people to be in poverty and (3) Black people are over-incarcerated at four times their share of the population.
- To understand white evangelical culture in Northwest Arkansas, I conducted a survey, interviews, and a case study. The purpose of the survey is to understand the beliefs of white evangelical individuals; the purpose of the interviews and case study are to understand the behaviors of white evangelical institutions. The hypothesis of the survey, interviews, and case study is that white evangelicals in Northwest Arkansas are like white evangelicals in America in that we behave unjustly by supporting racist systems.
- In summary – white evangelicals surveyed say they believe both interracial relationships and opposing racist systems are important to solve racism. The survey raises the question: Do white evangelicals mean what we say? Do we oppose racist systems?
- In summary – the interviews answer the question raised by the survey – Do white evangelicals oppose racist systems? – inconclusively. One of two churches studied (50%) noted actions in the commitment to opposing racist systems category; one (50%) did not.
- In summary – pastors of many white evangelical churches were willing to admit that racism is a problem; fewer (50%) were willing to commit their churches to anti-racist action; and fewer (25%) were willing to submit to accountability for their commitments at a cost of about 1% of their tithes. The case study answers the question raised by the survey – Do white evangelicals oppose racist systems? – relatively conclusively: many white evangelicals in Northwest Arkansas – regardless of what we say — support racist systems; few oppose them.
- Practically – to help solve racism, all white evangelicals who want to oppose racist systems need to learn from non-white people. Some of us need to leave white churches – taking our tithes with us.
Introduction
The purpose of this project is to establish a biblical foundation for city transformation and to describe how God’s people can build on that foundation in practice. The biblical what is from Jeremiah 29 where God’s people are told to seek the peace of the city we live in. The biblical why is from Luke 10 where God’s people are told to love God and neighbor. The biblical how is from Micah 6 where God’s people are told to do justice. Doing justice is the primary way God’s people in love of God and neighbor are to seek the peace of the city we live in.
God’s people are to seek the peace of whatever city we live in; however, how we are to do justice depends on when and where we live. How are God’s people to do justice in Germany in the 1940s? Rwanda in the 1990s? America in the 2020s? The answer depends on the problems of our time and place. The focus of this project is how white evangelicals can help solve racism because it is an urgent and important problem of our time and place. The thesis of this project is that before white evangelicals can transform either America or Northwest Arkansas, we need to be transformed — we need to confess and repent of our culture if we want to help solve racism.
Before white evangelicals can transform either America or Northwest Arkansas, we need to be transformed — we need to confess and repent of our culture if we want to help solve racism.
White Evangelical Culture in America
Culture can be defined as the behaviors and beliefs that people have in common. In Many Colors, Rah (2010) writes that culture is experienced individually and institutionally, and that individuals and institutions influence each other in a process of externalization, institutionalization, and internalization. Externalization happens when a person starts an institution and he or she influences its culture. Institutionalization happens when the institution has a culture independent of the person who started it. Internalization happens when a person joins an institution and he or she is influenced by its culture. This means that if we want to change a culture then we cannot merely change individuals because individuals are influenced by institutions – we need to change both individuals and institutions.
In Divided by Faith, Emerson and Smith (2000) define evangelicals as Protestant Christians who believe in the authority of the Bible, the importance of a personal relationship with Jesus, and the importance of sharing one’s faith. Ninety percent of American evangelicals are white. White evangelicals behave unjustly and believe falsely.
White evangelicals behave unjustly and believe falsely.
White Evangelicals Behave Unjustly
White evangelicals behave unjustly by supporting racist systems. In The Color of Compromise, Tisby (2019) defines racism as a system of oppression based on race and describes how white Christians have supported racist systems. In Unsettling Truths, Charles and Rah (2019) write that white Christians have supported racist systems – namely slavery, Jim Crow, and New Jim Crow / mass incarceration — because we have believed racist stories – namely white supremacy (a term Tisby (2019) defines as the belief that white people and culture are normal and superior).
Emerson and Smith (2000) use the term racialization – this means that people have unequal experiences based on race – to describe the effect of racism in America. An example of racialization is the Black / white wealth gap — the average Black household has 10% of the wealth of the average white household (Pew Research Center, 2016). Emerson and Smith (2000) compare how white and Black evangelicals understand racism and conclude that white evangelicals misunderstand racism.
When asked to explain the Black / white wealth gap most Black evangelicals blame racist systems (72% blame discrimination); however, most white evangelicals blame Black people (62% blame the motivation of Black people).
Emerson and Smith (2000) write that the explanations of white evangelicals have changed little in the last 100 years:
“Now, as then, the racial gap is not explained by unequal opportunity or discrimination or shortcomings of the society as a whole, but rather by the shortcomings of blacks. Now, as then, the types of explanations given have important implications for how the inequality is addressed.”
When asked how to solve racism both Black and white evangelicals agree that interracial relationships are important; however, white evangelicals are less likely to agree that opposing racist systems (working against discrimination; integrating churches; integrating neighborhoods) is important.
Emerson and Smith (2000) write:
“Like their forebears during Jim Crow segregation, who prescribed kindness toward people of other races, but did not challenge the Jim Crow system, present day white evangelicals attempt to solve the race problem without shaking the foundations on which racialization is built. As long as they do not acknowledge the structures of racialization, they inadvertently contribute to them.”
In The End of White Christian America, Jones (2016) writes that white evangelicals are highly segregated — 80% of white evangelicals have 100% white social networks. Segregation maintains white evangelical support of racist systems — because racist systems work for white evangelicals and almost everyone we know, and because we know almost no one for whom they do not work, we do not oppose racist systems.
Segregation maintains white evangelical support of racist systems — because racist systems work for white evangelicals and almost everyone we know, and because we know almost no one for whom they do not work, we do not oppose racist systems.
White Evangelicals Believe Falsely
White evangelicals believe half-truths about American history. In Many Colors, Rah (2010) writes that white evangelicals know American history from white perspectives but do not know American history from non-white perspectives. In Reparations, Kwon and Thompson (2021) write that American history is romanticized (American history is told from white perspectives and episodes that honor white people are emphasized) and erased (American history is not told from non-white perspectives and episodes that dishonor white people are de-emphasized). Half-truths about American history maintain white evangelical support of racist systems — because we believe that racial injustice is the exception not the rule of American history, we do not oppose racist systems.
Half-truths about American history maintain white evangelical support of racist systems — because we believe that racial injustice is the exception not the rule of American history, we do not oppose racist systems.
White evangelicals believe half-truths about the gospel. In When Helping Hurts, Corbett and Fikkert (2009) write that when asked why Jesus came to earth, most evangelicals answer something like to save us from sin so that we can go to heaven. The Bible teaches that God made man for relationships with God, self, others, and creation; and to make culture expressed in systems (Genesis 1-2). Sin cursed both people and systems (Genesis 3). Jesus came to earth to preach the gospel of the kingdom of God (Luke 4) and to renew all things – both people and systems (Colossians 1).
In Broken Systems, Broken People, Fikkert (2020) writes: “Nobody should better understand the comprehensive effects of the fall on both individuals and systems better than Bible-believing Christians, because the Bible talks about this. Unfortunately, something has gone wrong in American Christianity.” Fikkert (2020) writes that white evangelicals believe half-truths about the gospel – namely individualism (we believe that Jesus came to earth to renew people not systems) and pietism (we believe that Jesus came to earth to renew souls not bodies).
As with American history, white evangelicals know the gospel from white perspectives but do not know the gospel from non-white perspectives. Black Christians such as Frederick Douglass and Martin Luther King have rejected the white gospel for hundreds of years. Douglass (2016) wrote: “Between the Christianity of this land, and the Christianity of Christ, I recognize the widest possible difference — so wide, that to receive the one as good, pure, and holy, is of necessity to reject the other as bad, corrupt, and wicked.” And in his Letter from a Birmingham Jail, King (1986) wrote:
“In the midst of blatant injustices inflicted upon the Negro, I have watched white churches stand on the sideline and merely mouth pious irrelevancies and sanctimonious trivialities. In the midst of a mighty struggle to rid our nation of racial and economic injustice, I have heard so many ministers say, ‘Those are social issues with which the gospel has no real concern,’ and I have watched so many churches commit themselves to a completely otherworldly religion which made a strange distinction between body and soul, the sacred and the secular.”
Half-truths about the gospel maintain white evangelical support of racist systems — because we believe that Jesus came to earth to renew people not systems, we do not oppose racist systems.
Half-truths about the gospel maintain white evangelical support of racist systems — because we believe that Jesus came to earth to renew people not systems, we do not oppose racist systems.
Northwest Arkansas
Northwest Arkansas is a good place to live. Northwest Arkansas ranked #4 on the Best Places to Live report in 2021 behind Boulder, CO; Raleigh and Durham, NC; and Huntsville, AL. “Northwest Arkansas continues to be recognized as one of the top places to live in the country due to its incredible job opportunities, low cost of living and world-class quality-of-life amenities,” said Nelson Peacock, president and chief executive of the Northwest Arkansas Council. “In order to maintain this success, we must continue to invest in education, workforce development and infrastructure, and ensure there is adequate and affordable housing for our growing workforce. Most importantly, we must do everything we can to keep our community a place where all are welcome and included” (Doug Thompson, 2021).
Northwest Arkansas includes Washington, Benton, and Madison Counties, but in this project we will focus on Washington County. Census data shows that Washington County has a 2020 population of about 245,000. The population of the county grew 21% in the last ten years. The county is 70% white, 4% Black, 17% Latino, and 9% all other races. The median household income is about $50,000. Fifteen percent of people are in poverty. Eighty five percent of people in the county (25 or older) graduated high school and 33% graduated college. Washington County is growing faster than the country. The county is less diverse (more white and less Black) than the country. The median household income of the county is lower than that of the country. The poverty and graduation rates of the county are comparable to those of the country. (United States Census Bureau)
Racism in Northwest Arkansas
Recall that racialization means that people have unequal experiences based on race. Racialization in Northwest Arkansas means that Black people experience it as a worse place than white people do. Examples of racialization in Washington County include: (1) the median Black household has about 50% of the income of the median white household (2) Black people are twice as likely as white people to be in poverty and (3) Black people are over-incarcerated at four times their share of the population. (True Northwest Arkansas) (Wagner and Kopf, 2015)
In some ways racialization is worse in Washington County than in the country: (1) the Black / white income gap is wider in the county (about 50%) than in the country (about 60%) and (2) Black people are more over-incarcerated in the county (four times their share of the population) than in the country (three times their share of the population). (Pew Research Center, 2020)
In some ways racialization is worse in Washington County than in the country.
White Evangelical Culture in Northwest Arkansas
Recall that culture can be defined as the behaviors and beliefs that people have in common and that individuals are influenced by institutions. To understand white evangelical culture in Northwest Arkansas, I conducted a survey, interviews, and a case study. The purpose of the survey is to understand the beliefs of white evangelical individuals; the purpose of the interviews and case study are to understand the behaviors of white evangelical institutions. The hypothesis of the survey, interviews, and case study is that white evangelicals in Northwest Arkansas are like white evangelicals in America in that we behave unjustly by supporting racist systems.
Survey
I wrote a survey about racism in Northwest Arkansas and asked 100 people in downtown Fayetteville (the most populous city in Washington County) to complete it using a QR code that enabled people to complete a google form. Given the small percent of Black people in Washington County I also emailed the survey to members of the NWA NAACP using a link that enabled people to complete a google form. I received 50 responses (survey questions are shown in Appendix 1).
The survey shows that white evangelicals in Washington County are not highly segregated – the average social network of white evangelicals is 59% white; however, given that Washington County is 70% white, it is unlikely that white evangelicals who completed the survey are as integrated as they say they are.
When asked to explain the Black / white wealth gap neither white nor Black evangelicals blame Black people. Both white and Black evangelicals blame racist systems (white evangelicals are more likely to say that Black people have less education than white people; Black evangelicals are more likely to blame discrimination).
When asked how to solve racism white evangelicals are more likely than Black evangelicals to agree that interracial relationships are important. Both white and Black evangelicals agree that opposing racist systems is important (white and Black evangelicals agree that working against discrimination is important; white evangelicals are more likely to agree that integrating churches is important; Black evangelicals are more likely to agree that integrating neighborhoods is important).
In summary – white evangelicals surveyed say they believe both interracial relationships and opposing racist systems are important to solve racism. The survey raises the question: Do white evangelicals mean what we say? Do we oppose racist systems?
The survey raises the question: Do white evangelicals mean what we say? Do we oppose racist systems?
Interviews
I asked for interviews from six white evangelical pastors in Washington County, received responses from three, and have shown responses from two (the second and third pastors interviewed work for sister churches – their responses were therefore duplicative). I asked two questions: (1) What has your church done in the last 12 months to help solve racism in NWA? (2) What will your church do in the next 12 months to help solve racism in NWA? Understanding how white evangelical churches behave helps us understand what white evangelical people really believe – if white evangelical people really believe that opposing racist systems is important, and if we give money to white evangelical churches, then it is reasonable that white evangelical churches use the money we give them to oppose racist systems.
Importantly — I estimate that white evangelical people give about $30 million to white evangelical churches in Washington County annually and that the average white evangelical church in Washington County receives about $663,000 annually in tithes (estimates are explained in Appendix 2). This means – simply – that white evangelical churches have money to oppose racist systems.
Parenthetically — in Broken Systems, Broken People Fikkert (2020) describes two ways to oppose racist systems: we can (1) create just micro-systems and / or (2) work to change unjust macro-systems. An example of the former is The Witness Foundation who supports Black Christian leaders with a fellowship program that includes funding and training. An example of the latter is reparations legislation at the federal, state, or city level.
I categorized responses using Tisby’s (2019) ARC (Awareness, Relationships, Commitment) of racial justice. Actions were categorized under Awareness if they helped people grow in awareness of racial injustice; Relationships if they helped people grow in interracial relationships; and Commitment if they helped people grow in commitment to opposing racist systems (by either creating a just micro-system or working to change an unjust macro-system).
I then calculated how committed the church is to the category. If the pastor did not mention opposition to actions in the category, then it received two (2) points; if the pastor mentioned opposition to actions in the category, then it received one (1) point; if the pastor did not mention actions in the category, then it received zero (0) points.
Church A
When asked what church A has done in the last 12 months and will do in the next 12 months to help solve racism in NWA pastor A noted actions in the Awareness and Relationships categories but not in the Commitment category.
In the Awareness category — pastor A noted a racial reconciliation training that was led for church staff and elders. He said that the training caused a “ruckus” and that some people left the church because of it. When asked to explain the content of the training pastor A said that church staff and elders were asked to watch movies about the history of racial injustice in America. He said:
“I love them but at the same time it was pretty graphic stuff about all the injustices and how white people have treated Black people and everything like that she should have just left all that off…because she wanted them to eat the whole thing rather than just bite size and chew on it a while and then let’s have a conversation about it, you know.”
I calculate the commitment of church A to Awareness at one (1) because of the opposition to the training.
In the Relationships category — pastor A noted that church A has diverse staff and elders. He said that three Black elders “represent the Black community” (about one-third of the church) and four white elders “represent the white community” (about two-thirds of the church):
“They come to the altar rail every Sunday…during our worship to be able to pray with people. And for me to stand there on the front row and watch as white people come to the Black person to have him anoint their head and pray over them, it just moves me, and to see vice versa, so we are trying to demonstrate the equality and the brotherhood that we have in Christ.”
Pastor A also noted that church A is sharing testimonies and gave an example. He summarized the story of a Black church member who – when he was young – witnessed his uncle kill his father and mother. When he asked his white neighbors for help, they refused. The young man was filled with hate for his uncle and white people until his grandfather – who was a pastor – helped him to forgive. Pastor A said:
“That needs to be heard and I’m going to start letting it be heard right here in our community that will help move people toward – there are real issues, real issues – but the table, I keep saying the table – that’s where we’ve got to be to get some of these things worked out.”
I calculate the commitment of church A to Relationship at two (2); pastor A did not mention any opposition to actions in this category.
Pastor A did not note actions in the Commitment category – church A does not seem to be enabling people to grow in opposing racist systems. I calculate commitment of church A to Commitment at zero (0).
Church B
When asked what church B has done in the last 12 months and will do in the next 12 months to help solve racism in NWA pastor B noted actions in the Awareness, Relationships, and Commitment categories.
In the Awareness category — pastor B noted racial reconciliation trainings that were led for church staff. He said:
“We had planned a five-week workshop and so one of our pastors made it mandatory for all our active ministry people. And I appreciated that but I think there was a lot of passive resistance to that because you know there’s a certain aspect in which as white people we just don’t want to talk about race.”
I calculate the commitment of church B to Awareness at one (1) because of the opposition to the training.
In the Relationships category — pastor B noted that the church has a racial reconciliation task force that meets monthly and that most task force members are people of color. Pastor B also noted that the church has had potlucks and purchased food from Latino-owned businesses to help church members experience other cultures. He said:
“COVID has hindered us but we see the light at the end of the tunnel to be more communal to do more potlucks to invite more people to share their unique dishes with us and to celebrate because that’s where culture is. Culture is wrapped up in food and expressions of worship and those kinds of things…You enter somebody’s culture by eating their food. You enter somebody’s culture by allowing them to give expression to faith that is conducive to how they celebrate.”
I calculate the commitment of church B to Relationship at two (2); pastor B did not mention any opposition to actions in this category.
In the Commitment category — pastor B noted that the church has invested money in black people with The Witness Foundation and plans to invest money in Black people with a historically Black college that is connected to the church’s denomination. Pastor B emphasized the importance of empowering black leaders and not exacerbating black / white power imbalances when investing money in Black people. He said:
“The challenge for us is how do you navigate racial reconciliation without reinforcing economic disparities as the condition for your help. In other words how do you enter mutual relationships with people as opposed to simply engaging with people of color who are in financial need and then you give to them which you know can sometimes reinforce rather than reconcile disparities. So how do you empower?”
I calculate the commitment of church B to Commitment at two (2); pastor B did not mention any opposition to actions in this category.
In summary – the interviews answer the question raised by the survey – Do white evangelicals oppose racist systems? – inconclusively. One of two churches studied (50%) noted actions in the commitment to opposing racist systems category; one (50%) did not.
The interviews answer the question raised by the survey – Do white evangelicals oppose racist systems? – inconclusively.
Case Study
Seeking a more conclusive answer — I studied how pastors of eight white evangelical churches in Washington County responded to the racial injustices of 2020 – namely the murder of George Floyd — in the context of (1) The Christian Community’s Response to Racism (2) NWA United and (3) Reparations NOW NWA.
Pastors of four white evangelical churches in Washington County joined The Christian Community’s Response to Racism (CCRR) – a live discussion between white and Black pastors — in the summer of 2020. One of the pastors who joined said: “I want to thank all that joined us in this rich conversation around the church and racism. My prayer is that it was enlightening and is causing a deeper conversation around race and will draw us to action.” CCRR required pastors to admit that racism is a problem but did not require them to commit their churches to anti-racist action.
Pastors of six white evangelical churches in Washington County joined NWA United (NWAU) – a statement of unity and commitments agreed to by white and Black churches — in the fall of 2020. One of the pastors who joined said:
“Celebrating the collaboration of churches, organizations, and individual Christians throughout Northwest Arkansas as we stand and work united in the gospel against racism for justice! If you belong to Jesus we invite you to be a part of the movement toward repentance and restoration trusting in a Resurrected Jesus who tore down the dividing walls of hostility who calls a diverse people his own and who promises to make all things new.”
NWAU required pastors to commit their churches to anti-racist action but did not require them to submit to accountability for their commitments. Of the four pastors who joined CCRR, two (50%) chose to join NWAU; two (50%) chose not to.
Pastors of two white evangelical churches in Washington County joined Reparations NOW NWA (RNWA) – an invitation to fund Black Christian leaders in Northwest Arkansas with The Witness Foundation an expression of repentance for white racism – in the winter of 2020. One of the pastors who joined said:
“We are excited at [our] church to support this work of reparation. Racial justice will not be resolved simply through effective relationships with people of color… the real issue is will we use our resources and will we leverage our relationships to empower people who are marginalized creating opportunities for people who might not find them on their own. That’s why we are excited about this work and that’s why I want to encourage you as you are able to join with us… Together we can be part of raising up a new generation of people of color who can be a voice that will lead us in the way. We desperately need these voices.”
RNWA required pastors to submit to accountability for their commitments. I started RNWA and asked the eight white evangelical churches who joined either CCRR or NWAU to help me raise $50,000 to fund Black Christian leaders in Northwest Arkansas with The Witness Foundation in 2021. If each church receives $663,000 annually from members (i.e. tithes) then raising $50,000 required $6,250 of each of them or about 1% of their tithes. Of the eight white evangelical churches who joined either CCRR or NWAU, two (25%) chose to join RNWA; six (75%) chose not to.
In summary – pastors of many white evangelical churches were willing to admit that racism is a problem; fewer (50%) were willing to commit their churches to anti-racist action; and fewer (25%) were willing to submit to accountability for their commitments at a cost of about 1% of their tithes. The case study answers the question raised by the survey – Do white evangelicals oppose racist systems? – relatively conclusively: many white evangelicals in Northwest Arkansas – regardless of what we say — support racist systems; few oppose them.
The case study answers the question raised by the survey – Do white evangelicals oppose racist systems? – relatively conclusively: many white evangelicals in Northwest Arkansas – regardless of what we say — support racist systems; few oppose them.
Conclusion
Emerson and Smith (2000) conclude that because white evangelicals misunderstand racism “white evangelicalism likely does more to perpetuate the racialized society than to reduce it.” My study of white evangelicals in Northwest Arkansas supports Emerson and Smith’s conclusion. Before white evangelicals can transform Northwest Arkansas, we need to be transformed — we need to confess and repent of our culture if we want to help solve racism.
Practically – to help solve racism, all white evangelicals who want to oppose racist systems need to learn from non-white people. Some of us need to leave white churches – taking our tithes with us. Jones (2020) concludes:
“The disruptive experience of current trends – particularly demographic change and the exodus of younger white adults from Christian churches over the last few decades – may provide motivation for change. But at this late point in our history, real reforms may arise only from the ashes of the current institutional forms of white Christianity.”
Appendix 1
I asked two questions about racism: (1) Why does the average Black household have 10% of the wealth of the average white household? (a) because most Black people have less ability than white people (b) because most Black people have less motivation than white people (c) because most Black people have less education than white people (d) because of discrimination. (2) What are very important ways to solve racism in NWA: (a) get to know people of another race (b) work against discrimination (c) work to integrate churches (d) work to integrate neighborhoods.
I asked two questions about race: (1) Please describe your race: (a) white (b) Black (c) Latino (d) other. (2) Please think of up to seven people with whom you discussed important matters in the last six months. Please describe the races of the people you wrote down: (a) white (b) Black (c) Latino (d) other. I used these questions to determine how segregated people are.
I asked one question about religion: Please describe your relationship to church pre-covid: (a) I attended a conservative Protestant church (b) I attended a liberal Protestant church (c) I attended a Catholic church (d) I did not attend a Christian church. I used this question to determine whether people are evangelicals – I categorized people who attended conservative Protestant churches as conservatives or evangelicals.
Appendix 2
Thirty three percent of white people surveyed are evangelicals. The 2020 white population of Washington County is about 172,000 people. If 33% of white people are evangelicals, then there are about 57,000 white evangelical people in Washington County. The average household in Washington County has 2.5 people in it; therefore, there are about 23,000 white evangelical households in Washington County. The median white household income is about $53,000; therefore, total white evangelical annual income is about $1.2 billion. If half of white evangelical households in Washington County give 5% of their annual income to white evangelical churches in Washington County, then white evangelical churches in Washington Country receive about $30 million annually from white evangelical households.
If the average white evangelical church has 250 white households, if the annual income of each white household is $53,000, and if each white household tithes 5% of their annual income, then the average white evangelical church receives $663,000 annually from white households.
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