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Earning to Give Guide - Christians for Impact
webchristiansforimpact.org·christiansforimpact.org/earning-to-give-guide
This resource is from a faith-based effective altruism community and is primarily relevant to EA/career strategy discussions rather than AI safety; it has minimal direct relevance to AI safety or alignment topics.
Metadata
Importance: 12/100guidance documenteducational
Summary
A comprehensive guide from Christians for Impact explaining the 'earning to give' career strategy, which involves choosing higher-paying careers and donating a significant portion of income to effective charities tackling pressing global problems. The guide frames this approach through a Christian lens, drawing on biblical teachings and historical Christian philanthropists, and explores the benefits, downsides, and practical career considerations of this path.
Key Points
- •Earning to give means pursuing higher-earning careers not for personal gain but to maximize charitable donations to high-impact, funding-constrained organizations.
- •The guide integrates effective altruism concepts (cause prioritization, neglected problems) with Christian theology and scripture on generosity.
- •Even ordinary incomes in developed countries can fund significant good when donated to highly effective global charities.
- •The guide acknowledges both benefits (leverage, flexibility) and potential downsides of the earning-to-give path.
- •Targeted at Christians seeking to align career choices with faith-driven impact, bridging EA and religious communities.
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| Earning to Give: The EA Strategy and Its Limits | -- | 63.0 |
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Earning To Give Guide — Christians for Impact
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Earning To Give Guide
Written April 14 2025
Est. 15-20 min read
Table of Contents
What is earning to give?
Where is the idea from?
Christian earn-to-givers throughout history
How much good could you do?
Benefits of this career strategy
Any downsides?
Career considerations
Givers in our community
Additional resources
What do we mean by earning to give?
A career strategy where you make a positive impact with your career by donating a significant portion of your income to effective charities working on pressing global problems , rather than by working on those problems directly.
Here’s what it typically involves:
Choosing higher-paying jobs: Where two opportunities have similar fit for you, take into account the additional good you could by earning more.
Donating a large share of income to effective charities: What counts as large can vary, and some focus on capping how much they spend rather than using a percentage.
Supporting high-impact causes: Prioritising donations to effective, funding-constrained organisations tackling major, neglected global problems .
While you might take this path by founding a company or working in finance to maximise donations, you can seek to do the same in many other careers too . Donations from residents of developed countries with even ordinary incomes can stretch very far. Thus, many, perhaps even most, of our readers can participate in earning-to-give in some meaningful way.
Where does the idea of giving come from?
The Bible
2 Corinthians 9:7 (Cheerful Giving)
“Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.”
Luke 6:38 (Sermon on the Plain)
“Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”
Matthew 19:21 (Parable of the Rich Young Man)
“Jesus answered, ‘If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.’”
Matthew 25:14-30 (Parable of the Bags of Gol
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