A Pastoral letter to Congress: Super Committee failure is an opportunity to change course
November 22, 2011 | See original post.
Today leaders of the United Church of Christ released a statement on the inability of the Congressional Super Committee to reach a compromise on a deficit reduction proposal.
Our Christian faith speaks directly to public morality and the ways a nation should bring justice and compassion into its civic life. Pointedly, our current fiscal debates, at their heart, are nothing less than a struggle for the soul of the nation and its moral conscience. When budget lines and tax dollars are valued over the lives of women, children, the elderly, and the disabled, it is time that we take a deep look at who we claim to be as a nation.
The failure of the Congressional Super Committee is just one symptom of two growing problems: the inability of our elected officials to put aside their ideological differences and serve the people they are meant to represent; and, perhaps more importantly, the tragic shift in our nation away from the basic understanding that we are all called to care for our neighbors.
In the words of General Synod 25, a just and good society balances individualism with the needs of the community. Our nation, as well as the people we have elected to represent us, have moved too far in the direction of promoting individual self-interest at the expense of community responsibility. The result has been a disregard for the common good.
As the Officers of the United Church of Christ, we are increasingly troubled by the brokenness we see in this world. It is our sincere hope and prayer that in the days and months following the Super Committee’s failure to reach a deficit reduction agreement, our leaders will find the moral strength to work for the common good.
Read the General Synod 25 resolution on the Common Good
As the federal government responds to the increased needs
created by these tough economic times, the budget deficit has grown. And so has
the accumulated national debt. In August, Congress voted to raise the debt
ceiling, allowing the federal government to continue to borrow money to pay its
bills.
In addition to raising the debt ceiling, the August
legislation, the Budget Control Act of 2011, made spending cuts and other
provisions to reduce federal deficits by $2.4 trillion over the next 10 years.
Half of these savings (about $1.2 trillion) were specified in the bill. The
other half, an additional $1.2 to $1.5 trillion, were to be determined by a
special Congressional Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction.
The 12-member Super-Committee, as it is called, failed in its mission of establishing a plan for deficit reduciton. Because of this large, automatic cuts will be triggered starting in
January, 2013.
Much work will be done to understand the proposed cuts that are coming in the next year. Stay tuned for updates.
- Please also consider hosting a forum where your
congregation can explore these issues using the discussion questions to guide the conversation.
