Evangelical leaders urge Bush to address poverty

sermonindex Jan 25, 2005

Seventy-six leaders from across the evangelical Christian spectrum have petitioned President Bush to make antipoverty efforts a priority as he begins his second term.Their letter, delivered to the White House on Martin Luther King Day, argues that evangelical concerns are not limited to abortion and family issues. Its prime author was Ron Sider of Philadelphia, chairman of Christians for Faith-Based Initiatives and a professor at Eastern Baptist Theological Seminary.The statement urges Bush to pledge "to make the necessary improvements in the next four years so that all Americans who work full time responsibly will be able to escape poverty and enjoy health insurance."The Bible, it said, teaches that "God measures societies by how they treat the people at the bottom."The letter furthers a document, also authored by Sider, that the National Association of Evangelicals adopted last year advocating "economic justice."Signatories of the letter include progressive evangelical figures, dozens of heads of Christian schools, and the leaders of several conservative denominations, including the Assemblies of God.

dixierain Jan 26, 2005

It is my understanding that the President already has made that pledge."Making Healthcare More Affordable President Bush believes all Americans should have access to affordable, high-quality health care. Rising health care costs impose a burden on families and small businesses and put coverage out of the reach of many Americans. Many businesses – particularly small firms – are struggling with these rising costs. According to the Census Bureau, 45 million people lack health insurance coverage, including 8.4 million children. The President has proposed a comprehensive, consumer-driven plan to address the problems of rising health care costs and uninsurance. His plan includes Health Savings Accounts (HSAs), Association Health Plans (AHPs) for small businesses, civic groups and community organizations, tax credits for low-income families, medical liability reform, and electronic health records for all Americans within 10 years. The President’s plan will help reduce the rising cost of health care while improving quality and safety. It will provide new and affordable health coverage options for all Americans – targeted to those who need it most: low-income children and families and employees of small businesses and the self-employed." http://www.whitehouse.gov/infocus/economy/index.html

sermonindex Jan 26, 2005

Dixierain, I looked and looked and searched, and I found that an HSA account can be funded to 2,600 for an individual....thats good, its a tax free account, and thats good, if you have the extra $2,600 to sock away. I looked up AHP's and thats another interesting proposal, but its geared more towards the small business owner. The people that really really need health insurance, health care are po' folk, very very po' folk. I seen them seeking medical care. In Los Angeles, we have one county hospital called Olive View, and when I minister to homeless, and they need medical care, Olive View emergency room is the only place we can go. When you get into that room, its crowded to the rafters, and the majority of the folks in there are brown-skinned, and probably illegal. I know illegal immigration is one of those issues the GOP likes to hang their cowboy hats on, But the Holy Spirit told me He's bringing the Mexican/Central American mission field up to the prosperous cities of Norte Americano.I encourage anyone hard of heart, and a slave to the political dictates of the GOP to take a field trip to the Emergency room at Olive View, and look deeply at the children, and begin to walk as Jesus did. Before I got saved I used to rail about universal health care, or "socialized" medicine as I called it. But God is so good, and has delivered me from all of hard heartedness.As I was just driving around I heard on the radio that president bush just asked for $80 billion for the war in iraq.feel free to write me if you're ever in Los Angeles and wanna go to Olive View. I'll never forget the time the Holy Ghost had me read Isaiah 58 in that emergency room. It changed my walk so very much. Try it some time.on a closing note, I feel a bit of conviction, because I've had idea about a year ago, about soliciting various doctors, pediatricians, gp, ob/gyn's, mental health professionals to donate time blocks of care to a non for profit and then to deduct the valued amount of services from their tax burden and then the ministry do the intake, etc etc....but I have yet to act...so.....There IS something more I could do.