Laypeople, clergy and organizational leaders can urge Congress to protect programs vital to vulnerable people as well as to protect the country’s economic security by e-mailing their elected leaders or signing on to a letter prepared by the Coalition on Human Needs.
The letter calls upon Congress to promote the common good, protect those in need, and rebuild the economy. It applies four principles to budget decisions Congress will grapple with in the coming months: protecting people who are vulnerable and live in low income; promoting job creation; increasing revenue from fair sources; and seeking responsible savings by targeting wasteful spending in the Pentagon and in areas that do not serve the public interest. The apostle Paul reminds Christians in Philippians 2:4 to look out for the interests of others. It is appropriate to encourage government leaders to protect the vulnerable people and the common good so that all may have the abundant life God promises.
Individual laypeople are welcome to speak out by sending an e-mail to their Representative or Senators. And clergy can add their voices online.
Those authorized to sign on behalf of a national, state, or local organization can join the North Carolina Council of Churches and others by signing today to show their support for vulnerable people. Churches and other faith communities, faith-based and secular community organizations are all welcome to sign.
The more individuals and organizations who support it, the more powerful the campaign can be. Clergy are encouraged to sign during August. The deadline for organizations and laypeople is Sept. 10.
–Sandy Irving, Volunteer Program Associate
It’s going to be a difficult task considering the coming spending cuts due to the federal deficit. Clearly we cannot continue on the spending path we are on. The needy will need help to get on their feet so we have to get smarter with how we spend our federal dollars. We need to find ways to get people to become less reliant on the government. Are Pre K programs really necessary? Should we continue to fund National Public Radio? Do we really need to continue giving large sums of money overseas?