Land, others urge Bush to fight poverty

By Tom Strode - Feb 15, 2005 - comment

ERLC President Richard Land has joined a diverse group of evangelical leaders in asking President Bush to strengthen his effort to overcome hunger and poverty in his second term.

“A dramatic reduction in poverty, both here and abroad, would honor our Lord who called us to feed the hungry and clothe the naked,” the Jan. 17 letter said. “It would also be a wonderful legacy for you to leave with the American people and indeed the world.”

The letter said the United States ranks last among developed countries in governmental aide to combat worldwide poverty.

“Our nation has fallen far short of the increases in health and development assistance that you proposed,” the letter said. “The richest nation in history can and must grasp the opportunity to lead.”

While the leaders said their faith-based organizations would seek to heal the “poverty of the soul,” they said such agencies could not solve “poverty of the wallet” by themselves. They called on Bush to place his administration on record in seeking to assure Americans “who work full time responsibly will be able to escape poverty and enjoy health insurance.”

They urged the President not to allow effective, government, anti-poverty programs to be cut.

Among those signing the letter were Ronald Sider, president of Evangelicals for Social Action; speaker and author Josh McDowell; Jim Wallis, executive director of Sojourners; Todd Bassett, national commander of The Salvation Army; Thomas Trask, general superintendent of the Assemblies of God, and David Neff, editor of Christianity Today. Presidents of more than 30 Christian colleges or seminaries also signed the letter.

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