Loading...
Loading...
Click here if you don’t see subscription options

The federal budget crunch should not be eased by cutting programs that help the poor, refugees and the unemployed in the United States or those struggling in developing nations, warned church leaders. “In a time of economic crisis, the poor and vulnerable are in greater need of assistance, not less,” said Bishop Stephen E. Blaire of Stockton, Calif., chairman of the U.S. bishops’ Committee on Domestic Justice and Human Development, in a letter to Congress on Feb. 14. A second letter from Ken Hackett, president of Catholic Relief Services, and Bishop Howard J. Hubbard of Albany, N.Y., chairman of the Committee on International Justice and Peace, noted cuts of up to 26 percent of funding in programs for international assistance this year, but only 2.6 percent in cuts for the overall budget. “Shared sacrifice is one thing,” said Hackett and Bishop Hubbard; “it is another to make disproportionate cuts in programs that serve the most vulnerable.” The Rev. Larry Snyder, president of Catholic Charities USA, urged policymakers to improve government efficiency before resorting to cuts.

Comments are automatically closed two weeks after an article's initial publication. See our comments policy for more.

The latest from america

Archbishop Wenski of Miami and some 25 Knights of Columbus saddled up their motorcycles to pray a rosary at the entrance of Alligator Alcatraz, the migrant detention center recently opened in the Florida Everglades.
Federal agents stage at MacArthur Park Monday, July 7, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)
The U.S. church will have to contend with “deportation on steroids“ as the Trump administration adds vast new capacity to Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Kevin ClarkeJuly 21, 2025
Pope Leo XIV has extended his vacation at Castel Gandolfo by two days. How does he relax? And what have other popes done with their downtime?
Colleen DulleJuly 21, 2025
Pope Leo XIV marked the 56th anniversary of man’s arrival on the moon Sunday with a visit to the Vatican astronomical observatory in Castel Gandolfo and a call to astronaut Buzz Aldrin.