wfn.org | Five Denominations, NCC Declares FY2006 Proposed Budget 'Unjust'

["National Council of Churches" <cfouke@ncccusa.org>]

Five Denominations, NCC Join to Declare FY2006 Proposed Budget "Unjust"

Washington, D.C., March 8, 2005 - Five major U.S. denominations today joined
their voices to declare that the fiscal year 2006 budget proposed by the Bush
Administration is unjust.  All five are National Council of Churches USA
members, and the NCC joined them at a news conference here to say, "For the
most part this is a budget that ignores the needs of the poor, children and
the elderly."

The Episcopal Church, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, Presbyterian
Church (USA), United Church of Christ and United Methodist Church are part of
a broader faith community effort to shape a federal budget that gives
priority to the moral value of caring for society's most weak and vulnerable
members.  

FaithfulAmerica.org, the NCC's online advocacy community working for a more
just and compassionate nation, today issued "72+5=A Better Budget for
America." The campaign notes that in the FY2006 proposed budget, 72 percent
of the tax cuts benefit the wealthiest one-fifth Americans and 5 percent of
the tax cuts benefit the poorest two-fifths of Americans. The campaign asks
each FaithfulAmerica.org member for "72 seconds of your time and 5 of your
friends to help us reach our goal of a total of 72,000 signatures on a
Petition calling for a higher vision for our nation's budget."

"Let Justice Roll: Faith and Community Voices Against Poverty," a joint
campaign led by the NCC and Center for Community Change, issued a statement
last week, "A Vision of Hope and Justice," that the "federal budget should
reflect the values of equality, opportunity, and justice that honors the
poor, supports families, and builds strong, viable communities.  The Bush
Administration's FY2006 budget is morally misguided and misrepresents the
true values of the American people." "Let Justice Roll" is sponsoring a March
8 National Call-In Day on the Federal Budget.

On March 14, the NCC and The Interfaith Alliance will cosponsor a noon rally
at the U.S. Capitol's West Front to declare, "This budget does NOT reflect
our values."  Asserts their invitation to the rally, "Budgets are moral
documents, because they reflect our priorities.  Stand together with other
people of faith and declare that the Administration's proposed FY2006 budget
does not reflect our moral values."

Following is the statement by the NCC's Associate General Secretary for
Justice and Advocacy, the Rev. Brenda Girton-Mitchell, released at today-s
five-denomination news conference.

Rev. Brenda Girton-Mitchell
Associate General Secretary for Justice & Advocacy
National Council of Churches USA 
Statement on Budget

The National Council of Churches USA stands in solidarity with five of our
member denominations - The Episcopal Church, Evangelical Lutheran Church in
America, Presbyterian Church (USA), United Church of Christ and the United
Methodist Church - in declaring that the fiscal year 2006 budget proposed by
the Bush Administration is unjust. For the most part this is a budget that
ignores the needs of the poor, children and the elderly.

As Christians we are called to speak out against injustice. Jesus told us by
his words and actions that we are to bring good news to the poor, feed those
who are hungry, clothe those who are naked, care for the sick and visit those
who are imprisoned. Our faith compels us to stand boldly and firmly against a
budget that cuts programs such as food stamps, Medicaid, veteran's health
services and other human services in order to support military might, war
spending and tax cuts for the wealthy and corporations, as well as to
undergird the costs of a projected $427 billion deficit. 

Instead we propose a budget that reflects the words of the prophet Micah "to
do justice, to love kindness and to walk humbly with your God" (Micah 6:8).
That means that the federal budget that is approved should provide the poor,
families and communities with the tools to meet their basic needs such as
access to nutritious food and quality child care, accessible and affordable
housing, comprehensive and affordable health care, a fair and just tax system
and a liveable income.

In his State of the Union speech, President Bush said that a "society is
measured by how it treats the weak and vulnerable" and that "one of the
deepest values of our country is compassion." The National Council of
Churches USA strongly urges Congress to develop and pass a revised budget -
one that cares for the weak and vulnerable and is just, compassionate and
truly reflects the moral values of our nation.

-end-

The National Council of Churches USA is the leading ecumenical body in the
United States and includes 36 member churches - among them mainline
Protestant, historically African American, Orthodox and Peace churches -
which, in turn, have approximately 45 million congregants in more than
100,000 local congregations nationwide.

Media Contact: Rev. Leslie Tune, 202-544-2350 or 202-297-2191;
ltune@ncccusa.org 

More information at www.ncccusa.org