I attended my first press conference late this afternoon. Lancaster Interchurch Peace Witness is hosting “An Evening with Jim Wallis,” emceed by Jim Wallis, of course. Jim Wallis is, for those of you who may not know, the Editor-in-Chief/Executive Director of Sojourners Magazine and author of “God’s Politics: Why the Right Gets It Wrong and the Left Doesn’t Get It.” Mr. Wallis will be spending the next few days in and around Lancaster City speaking out strongly against Washington budget cuts/decisions that will - if enacted - negatively impact our country’s social welfare system and hurt the poorest among us. Mr. Wallis held the press conference in the refectory of Lancaster Theological Seminary, where I am a second year M.Div student, of course. So, I made sure I was there … and early. I didn’t want to miss the opportunity to briefly speak to Jim Wallis face to face, and take a few photos.

The Issues Driving Jim Wallis

Mr. Wallis, during the press conference, came out strong against people of faith (Evangelical Christians) who have misguidedly made abortion, homosexuality, and intelligent design THE main issues during a time of un-just war, mass military and civilian injuries/death, and the cumulative poverty sustained and created by the unfortunate conglomeration. He also spoke frankly about the Bush administration and its own misguided economic practices of tax-breaks for the wealthy during a time of war (Congressional leaders still plan $70 billion in new tax cuts for the wealthiest among us). These tax breaks would occur in spite of simultaneous and substantial cuts levied against social welfare programs such as food stamps. Mr. Wallis made his own position regarding the federal budget explicitly clear: “A budget can be moral or immoral.” I would agree. A budget that includes the cutting of programs meant to aid the poor, while offering tax cuts in the billions for the wealthy, during a time of unjust war, is as an immoral act as there ever could be, if not terrible governance. People of faith should not go quietly into the night while our government enacts legislation to support such a social travesty.

The House Budget Reconciliation Bill

What really has Jim Wallis so up in arms? Well, it something called the House Budget Reconciliation Bill, which was actually passed in mid-November 217-215.

TomPain.com, a progressive news source, summarizes the bill nicely: “Just how its supporters are able to reconcile the House package—with its drastic, even draconian cuts—against their rhetoric of “compassionate” conservatism remains to be seen. The House bill will cut food stamps for over 300,000 working families, at a time when the government reports millions more Americans experiencing “food insecurity” for the fifth straight year. It will increase drug costs and raise co-payments for millions of Medicaid beneficiaries, even as 45 million Americans lack health insurance and rely on the program. And it will increase federal student loan costs an average of $5,800 per student, despite skyrocketing tuition costs. The bill would also cut $4.9 billion for child support enforcement, $577 million for foster care and $732 million for supplemental security income for the disabled.”

A Time For Civil Disobedience

There will be a prayer vigil for a moral budget Wednesday, December 14, from 8:00AM to 12:00PM, in Washington D.C. There is a bit of a disclaimer on the Sojourners web site: “This peaceful act of prayer is likely to result in arrests for those who are willing, but not everyone who joins us is required to get arrested.” Sign up at Sojourners!

My Own Conclusions

I respect Jim Wallis a great deal. I agree with his message and mission. In a time of government gone mad, I do believe that “people of faith” should put aside the petty differences, unite, and become a strong voice for weak and needy among us. True religion is nothing more …