Elected leaders also need to step up to protect vulnerable people

by Chris Morton

Change is all around us, and it is demanding that our institutions like businesses and government change too.  As the economy continues to change, the amount of funding collected by our governments at all levels continue to decline.  Congress and the State Legislature are facing crippling debts, and there are voices from the community calling for cuts to programs and services.  Such voices are trying to help us live within our means, reminding us that the social contract that holds our communities together is not only in and through the government, but also includes civic organizations, not-for-profit agencies, and religious congregations.  In the midst of the conversation around government budgets  there are people, politicians among them, who are saying that “the churches” will simply have to step up their efforts.

Associated Ministries is a partnership of more than 600 congregations in Pierce County.  And what we see in Pierce County may be worth recounting:

·         In the past 12 months, the FISH Food Bank in Lakewood has seen an 86% increase in the number of people who are coming month-after-month seeking food so that the people in their household have enough to eat. 

·         There is a “No Vacancy” sign hanging out at all 40+ housing and shelter providers in Pierce County.

·         In our first 6 months, Access Point 4 Housing, the newly-established single-point-of-entry for people who are either homeless or at-risk of becoming homeless, has experienced a demand that is four times than what was projected when we first launched the program in February. 

In other words, religious congregations and faith-based organizations like Associated Ministries are already stepping up our efforts.  Yet, quite frankly, there is more that we can do.  And we are a creative people who can and will do more --- both because our faith, and because we are citizens in our communities. 

But let me be clear. All our best efforts can be wiped out with a single stroke of a pen by Congress. Take food, for example. There are 63,000 agencies like food pantries, shelters, and meal programs nationwide. If you took all the food provided by all of these agencies, it would add up to only six percent of the food from federal nutrition programs like SNAP (Food Stamps), WIC, and school meals. Cutting food programs by six percent would have a woefully small impact on reducing our budget deficit. 

Congress has already reduced funding to some of the most effective programs and services that support people experiencing poverty.  The Community Service Block Grants, Community Development Block Grants, Low-Income Heating and Energy Assistance Program, and the Emergency Food and Shelter Program all saw significant cuts for 2011, and more may be on the way.  Access Point 4 Housing continues to see a growing number of people who could remain in their home if they only had a little help this month for the rent, or utilities. 

This is why people of faith, in the tradition of the Hebrew prophets, are joining together to call upon government to ensure that the common good is good for everyone, including the people who are most often on the margins of our society.  Senator Patty Murray and her colleagues on the “Supercommittee” will deliberate how to reduce the federal budget deficit by $1.2 trillion. Senator Murray and her colleagues should do the right thing and craft a plan that reduces our long-term debt in a responsible way that preserves the common good by not only stopping harmful cuts, but by restoring funding to essential programs and services that have recently been cut. 

Just as difficult a task faces the State Legislature as they are convened for a special session to eliminate a projected $2 billion deficit.  As people of faith we implore all of the State Legislators to make certain that the government is doing its part to ensure that our communities are stronger for everyone.

Churches are stepping up their efforts. It’s time our elected leaders do the same.