 Faith-based initiatives get presidential spotlight By Parker T. Williamson The Layman Volume 35, Number 2 Posted April 8, 2002
There, flanked by African-Americans whom he called “soldiers in the army of compassion,” Bush employed phrases drawn from Scripture to announce a renewed offensive in America’s war on poverty. Staging the speech The day began much like any other in the 4900 block of East Capitol Street. Residents of the dilapidated George Washington Carver Apartments walked through rusty gates designed to ward off neighborhood crime. Shuffling past boarded-up windows and graffiti-smeared walls, men in tattered garb headed toward a nearby intersection where Globe Liquors and a rap shop lured early morning clientele. Five truants chased a basketball between sidewalk and street, but paused momentarily when a Fox TV van parked beside St. Luke’s church and its technicians began adjusting a satellite dish on the van’s roof. Presidential invitees Soon, “soldiers” from other sectors of the city appeared, responding to a call from the White House. “I couldn’t believe it,” said Ruth Cleveland, a project assistant with the National Center for Neighborhood Enterprise. “When they said the president had invited us here, I wondered, ‘Why us, and why here?’” Like many of her associates, Ruth grew up in poverty. Neighborhoods like this served as her boot camp for her involvement in what would become the president’s newest war. Under the command of Robert L.Woodson, Ruth and her friends work with Washington’s most needy neighborhoods, organizing their residents into tax-exempt, self-help groups that are determined to lift themselves and their neighbors above the cycle of poverty. “The most effective poverty fighter,” said Woodson, when he introduced the president to his neighborhood workers, “comes from those who have experienced the problem. They share the same zip code with those whom they serve.” Woodson, whom Bush called a “social entrepreneur,” was invited to witness the president’s speech for a reason. Alliances with local groups like Neighborhood Enterprise form a core of Bush’s national welfare plan. The $16.6-billion annual block-grant proposal will allow states greater flexibility in their use of federal dollars, encouraging them to forge partnerships with non-profit, on-the-scene “soldiers.” Unlike a faceless government system, these groups do not view America’s poor as “a problem” to be managed, Bush said. “They see them as neighbors.” Partnering with ministries There’s no way to do this work from a distance, said “Apostle” Shirley Holloway, who leads “House of Help – City of Hope,” one of several faith-based ministries that was invited to share the president’s spotlight. “Meet Rick,” she said as she gestured to a well-dressed male walking beside her. “We found him sleeping in a car, and it’s been two years now since Rick gave up crack cocaine. That’s what we do: We take them in and love them until they can love themselves.” Rick smiled, quietly lifting the Bible that he had tucked under his arm. Governmental partnerships with faith groups receive special attention in the president’s national welfare plan. During his speech, Bush targeted several U.S. senators who were in the audience, encouraging them to deliver the derailed faith-based initiatives bill. “Get it out of the Senate. Send it to my desk,” he said, “and I’ll sign it.” Welfare and work Mecca Trotter-Roeser and her husband Douglas were among the president’s invited guests. Their ministry, “Save Our Youth,” motivates and trains inner-city youth for productive employment. Douglas finds young kids on the streets and invites them to play basketball. Building friendships on the court, he wins their trust and channels them to his wife, who encourages and trains them for employment. “When they get a job, they are so proud!” she said. Jobs play a pivotal role in the president’s national welfare plan. His proposal calls for raising the welfare recipient work requirement from 50 percent to 70 percent in 5-percent annual increments. “I think work ought to be the core of welfare reform,” he said. Blessing the tie that binds Syndicated columnist Mike McManus also was in the president’s St. Luke audience. Together with his wife Harriet, McManus is the architect of a nationwide movement among churches to reclaim and revitalize the institution of marriage. “Marriage Savers really works,” said McManus as he pointed to communities that have cut their divorce rate by an astounding 70 percent. The McManuses warn ministers not to function as “marriage factories,” but to require marriage training before they tie the knot. The church-based Marriage Savers program links “mentor couples” with the newly married, forging friendships that strengthen the marriage bond. McManus grinned broadly as he listened to the president’s speech for innovative initiatives that will strengthen marriage is a $300 million component in Bush’s national welfare plan. “The most effective way to improve the lives of children,” Bush said, “is to improve the stability of families.” The president expressed his admiration for single mothers who have a tough job and “do heroic work,” but, he added, “Their lives would be far better if fathers lived up to their responsibilities.” Government programs should not reward sexual relationships outside of marriage, said Bush, who has channeled up to $135 million into abstinence education. “Abstinence is the surest way – and the only 100-percent effective way – to prevent unwanted pregnancies,” he said. “When young people face a choice between self-destruction and self-restraint, the government should not be neutral … Stable marriage should be the central goal of a welfare system. We should help families get married and stay married – show [married] people how to treat one another with respect.” A moral issue Characteristically plain spoken, Bush eschewed the language of piety. But he made it crystal clear that he considers public welfare a moral issue. Quoting the late Vice President Hubert Humphrey, he said, “The moral test of a government is how it treats those in the shadows of life.” Referring to Scripture, he called on citizens of the nation to “love your neighbor as yourselves.” Present for the unveiling of the president’s welfare program were representatives of the Presbyterian Lay Committee, Good News, the American Anglican Council, representing renewal ministries in the Presbyterian Church (USA), United Methodist and Episcopal denominations. Reporters from official denominational news services were not present. |
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