OPINION:
In Jesus’ ministry of caring for the poor he did not expect the masses to earn what was shared. He gave “hand-outs” freely and there was no hoarding — the hungry took what they needed and there was more than enough (“Faith leaders skew Bible to oppose SNAP reform,” Web, April 19).
Churches, food pantries and charitable organizations provide one bag of groceries for every 19 bags that Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) delivers to households. That’s 95 percent of the food that helps low-income families, the working poor and the most vulnerable members of our society eat. The SNAP “gravy train” is less than $1.50 per meal.
In a wealthy capitalist society, taxation and safety-net programs are how we care for “the least of these” (Matthew 25:40). Government bridges the gap when capitalism falls short. Both are flawed, man-made systems, but they are what we have to work with. As Christians, we strive to make them reflect the New Creation as much as possible.
Jesus was not about “common sense,” but rather the common good. Christianity is about our brothers and sisters as much as it is about our personal relationship with Christ. We are not “fake Christians” protesting the Farm Bill with “so-called Christian arguments.” In fact, we are not arguing at all. We are appealing to people of good will — especially on Capitol Hill — to hear and respond.
And we stand with our fellow Muslim and Jewish anti-hunger advocates, solidly grounded in the same core values. As it turns out, feeding the hungry is universally holy. And making it harder for the hungry to access food in a land of plenty is just plain sinful.
QUINCY HOWARD
Government relations fellow
NETWORK Lobby for Catholic Social Justice
Washington
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