The widespread emergence of religious organizations devoted to philanthropy in New York City began with the revival of Protestantism in the early 19th century. The reemergence of Protestantism encouraged its followers to provide spiritual and material aid to those in need, and evangelicals responded by establishing a number of benevolent organizations, such as the American Tract Society and the American Bible Society, which were dedicated to the distribution of the scriptures, and the American Sunday School Union, which labored for the establishment of Sunday schools in rural areas. Other Protestant groups founded homes to shelter and care for orphans, widows, unwed mothers, the disabled, and the unemployed. Groups of other religious denominations, including Catholics and Jews, soon followed accordingly and established their own charities, shelters, societies, schools, and missions.

Despite their denominational affiliations, several religious organizations also supported interdenominational work so as to provide as wide-reaching a benefit as possible. While much of the highly-publicized philanthropy in 19th-century New York was the work of wealthy private citizens, such as Peter Cooper, John Jacob Astor, and Charles Pratt, religious organizations were instrumental to the burgeoning of philanthropy in the city, as their members, many of whom were women, conducted their roles as teachers, nurses, social workers, and missionaries for very low wages.