Serving Bread

I recently updated my status on Facebook to read: “Will pastors preach RE measures in this election like last time? Is budget reform more/less/as important as gay marriage & abortion?”

I didn’t realize (though pleasantly surprised) I would be inviting a range of responses. Names have been changed (except mine).

Amy: it’s interesting how certain issues are thought to be relevant to Christians and others aren’t. But anything that affects people – especially young, vulnerable, oppressed people – are close to God’s heart and I think we need to be more involved on everything. Not in a “If you don’t agree with me, you’re not a Christian” kind of way but in a thoughtful discussion of values… REAL and COMPLETE values, not just abortion/gay marriage.

Jeff: I hope pastors teach people to learn to think for themselves… and yes, budget reform is less important than abortion.

Amy: Well, it depends upon what the budget is for. If health services for the poorest children are being cut, or even school lunches are being cut, you are not helping the “least of these” as Jesus commands. (and yes, I have had students who only eat at school so school lunches are essential).

Jeff: It’s not like budget reform is being pitted against abortion this election… Eddy was using a tactic that people like to use to simplify and marginalize Christian voters. I was simply answering his question directly. Abortion > Budget Reform. That’s not to say budget reform isn’t important. It absolutely is. My preference is for pastors to teach about Jesus from the pulpit. How he did care for the “least of these” and how he cared for the poor. But allow the congregation to come to their own conclusion. Nothing bugs me more than to hear about churches that have a large ballot posted up w/ “check marks” showing what “true Christians” should be voting for. Some things are cut and dry in my book, budget reform is not.

Amy: I agree with the large ballot and check marks. I mean that they shouldn’t be there.

Eddy: I’m not sure what you mean that i was using a tactic to “simplify and marginalize Christian voters.” I’m just pointing to the fact that certain topics and issues have been dubbed as “christian.” Like you said, some things are not cut and dry and all the more reason for pastors to provide ethical frameworks when considering how we spend taxpayers’ money and how we allocate our budget. Personally, I don’t know how to rate one issue over another. If cuts to education (for example) lead to more unwanted pregnancies and an increase in abortions, then I’d think twice how I’d cast my vote.

Melissa: As a liberal and an atheist, can I just say that I find your conversation interesting and I especially like your last point, Eddy, because I hope it is something that people of diverse opinions can find common ground on.

Jeff: I don’t necessarily think that budget cuts lead to more unwanted pregnancies. That’s quite a leap. Washington DC public schools spend close to $17K per student (the most BY FAR in the US). And DC is by far one of the poorest performing districts in our country. The issue is much larger than money. But like Melissa above, it is very important to find common ground and have intelligent debates. We definitely cannot rely on our media and local politicians to provide us with unbiased information. We have to educate ourselves. I apologize for accusing you of using “tactics”, but I get sick and tired of people labeling Christian voters as people that only care about Gay Marriage and Abortion. I for one am surrounded by a lot more well rounded people than that.

Jake: interesting conversation, all. Amy, i appreciate your obvious concern for the least of these, but i disagree that cutting the budget for health services or school lunches to poor children automatically means that one isn’t looking after them. there are other, arguably more effective ways to care for and empower the poor than to delegate those tasks to the government. one could argue that making the poor the responsibility of the government is an abdication of the church’s responsibility to care for the poor.

Eddy: (By the way, I’m just giving an example about how budget decisions have moral implications and wasn’t making a political statement–at least not in the comment) I’d hate for Christian voters to be labeled as caring for any single issue–and though you are surrounded by folks who are more well rounded than that, I think the jury is still out on whether “Christian voters” want to be more than a few “moral” issues. And even within some of those issues, one can have various responses to an issue (say gay marriage) and find his or her convictions in the Bible. Reality is, I’m pretty jaded by how prominent evangelical Christians approach the political process. And back to my status update–I’d love to see more Christian leaders provide ethical frameworks on how to think about fiscal policy (than just tout a generic line of what “real Christians” should be voting for)

Amy: Jake, I absolutely agree with your last statement. But since the church is not doing it and there is real need as far as hunger, etc. in the US, someone needs to do it. And it’s not being done effectively. Also, re: budget cuts and DC schools – you can’t judge from how much is spent on students unless you know what it is being spent on. For example, if we took all the money being spent on standardized testing (it’s really expensive) and put it toward mental health services for children, we’d be much, much better off.

Jeff: I’m lovin’ this! Thank you all for this fun discussion. It’s been the highlight of my evening! Maybe we could all meet in a dark alley someday and settle it for good!

Andrew: so i’m late to the party. but Jeff, you hate when churches tell folks what true Christians should vote for… except when it comes to abortion? for that – it’s cut and dry?

Jeff: Very late to the party. Regardless, where did I say that I was ok w/ churches telling people to vote a certain way regarding abortion? I just simply said that the issue is more important than budget reform. I don’t think churches should be telling people how to vote on any issue… I would never condone it. I have my convictions on abortion, and it didn’t come from the pulpit.

Andrew: i love you.

Jeff: I love you too?

Jim: DHHS reported in 2005 that children who come from impoverished homes (where income is <15K), have a 22x greater chance of being victims of sexual abuse than children who come from homes where the income is over 32K.  From a social Darwinist’s perspective, this would be symbolic of failures of the poor. From a Christian’s perspective, a failure of community. Community comes in the form of church outreach and social services provided by non-profit and govt entities. Budget cuts almost unfailingly adversely affect children: cuts in foster care provision, in WIC programs, in day care subsidies. Budget reform, then, plays a vital role in providing the very real and necessary programs that protect the best interests of children. To Eddy’s point, the over-emphasis of the evangelical right on gay marriage and abortion overlooks so many other important things that are integral to a strong community and Christ-centric church.