The Virginian-Pilot
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When the General Assembly convenes next week, two religious groups will be pushing legislators not to solve Virginia's budget problems by cutting programs for the poor.
"We know we have to protect the social safety net," said the Rev. Douglas Smith of the Virginia Interfaith Center for Public Policy.
The Virginia Catholic Conference will likewise lobby against cutting Medicaid, housing assistance, aid for the disabled or "anything that would serve people on the margins," said Jeff Caruso, the organization's executive director.
Meanwhile, The Family Foundation will back legislation letting state trooper chaplains pray according to their faith beliefs. A new policy in 2008 instructed the chaplains not to invoke specific deities in public prayers offered at government events.
"Expunging our Judeo-Christian heritage from the public square seems in vogue in the 21st century," lamented Victoria Cobb of the Foundation.
The three groups are among the most active faith-based lobbying groups at the General Assembly, which begins its 2009 session on Jan. 14. The groups have a range of legislative priorities that don't always overlap.
The VCC is the public policy advocacy arm of the state's two Catholic dioceses. The Foundation has strong evangelical support, while the VICPP has an interfaith constituency.
During this year's session, the Interfaith Center is advocating for a law that would regulate lenders who secure loans with a borrower's car title. Smith said such loans now carry extreme interest rates and should instead be capped at 36 percent.
Borrowers who default on the loans lose their vehicles, which can hurt families, he said. "If someone repossesses your car, you can't get to school, get to work."
Better access to health care for families and children, energy-efficient state government buildings, restored civil rights for convicted felons and a death penalty moratorium also are concerns of the Interfaith Center.
The Family Foundation will push legislation mandating positive mention of marriage in existing public school classes on family life, Cobb said.
The group also wants the state to support school choice by allowing tuition tax credits for lower-income families, and tax credits for businesses' contributions to public or private scholarship funds.
As it did last year, Cobb's group will push to require ultrasound exams for women seeking abortions, and try to eliminate state funding of Planned Parenthood. It also will oppose any bills expanding gambling or adding sexual orientation to the law providing hate crime protection, she said.
The Virginia Catholic Conference, as is often the case, is allied with the Foundation in opposing state funding for Planned Parenthood or abortions. It also endorses promoting marriage in family life education.
But the Catholic Conference will align with the Interfaith Center in backing regulation of car title loans and opposing expansion of crimes that can incur the death penalty, Caruso said.
It also will support Medicaid eligibility for legal immigrants who have been residents for five years.
Steven G. Vegh, (757) 446-2417, steven.vegh@pilotonline.com
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Mind your own house hold affairs...
What Cobb and others need to do is mind their own house hold affairs. Until the Christian religion returns to the true legacy left by Jesus, no one should entertain these people. It's funny that Christians complain of being attacked for their beliefs, but when I read this article, is it any wonder why? I don't see atheists, Muslims, Jews, and Pagans trying to theocratize the US. Christians are the last people on earth I would nominate to be the moral police!
The government needs to govern in the best interest of all, not cater to the whims of these people...
what is this all about?
"It also will oppose any bills expanding gambling or adding sexual orientation to the law providing hate crime protection, she said."
Am I reading this correctly that sexual orentation that is other than "straight" would not be protected under the law as a hate crime??????
correction
"Most liberal [strawmen that the radical right argue against exclusively] are appalled to find out Jefferson held church services in the Captiol the entire 8 years he was president."
In truth many of the most vocal of the radical right are lying manipulative hate-mongerers and xenophobes who wish to impose a Christian based fascist state and will essentially do anything to achieve that end. Jefferson purposely kept his religious views largely private (allowing the Jefferson bible) in part to shield him from hate-filled Christian zealots. You so-call (I use "so-called" to differentiate you from the good and honest majority of Christians) Christians can lie, disemble, bully and manipulate till your make believe judgement day but that won't make your invisible man in the sky or your zombie jesus real. And by these impoverished means you'll never convince the rational majority that your fairy tales have substance. Avowance of christianity is a polite fiction for many of us that is largely and rightfully abandoned when real world concerns are considered. Only a fool would accept a law passed down from a imaginary "god" via an all too real man.
Freedom FROM Religion
It is good to see some Christian groups finally supporting the poor and needy. Jesus would be proud. It is sad to see these same groups are trying to impose their religious beliefs such as all pregnant women should be forced to give birth.
On the Constitution discussion. The Constitution does not recognize God or religion. The oath of office does NOT include putting the left hand on a religious book nor does it include the phrase 'So help me God' at the end of the oath. The Constitution does say that '...no religious Test shall be required..' to hold public office. (Article VI) Loyalty to the Constitution was required..loyalty to religions was discouraged. Our founding fathers knew from the Church of England and the Catholic Church how dangerous religions are in government.
philipt43623, oops!
That was hardly loving and one more demonstration of the spiritual vanity that pervades.
We need all budget cuts possible
Poor people did it to themselves. Medicaid, old people didn't work hard enough. Religion causes more problems that good. If you baught a car you cant afford ride a bike. Pull money from your churches and fund which you whine about. Do you know why divorce is expensive? Because its worth it! US should have a child limit like china. A woman not long ago had 14 children and died. I wonder how much it Tax payers. Back in the day people had big familys for extra workers, now its stupidity.
"History revisionist love to
"History revisionist love to leave out context." CORRECT ! Jefferson was in France when the Constitution was drafted. He disqualifed himself as an expert on the Constitution for that very reason ! His phrase was taken from a letter to some Bapitsts,it was never in the Constitution nor policy. Revisionists have been dishing up this same myth for too long now. Even the Virginian Pilot didn't want me posting that fact. They erased my post where I mentioned it.
BTW,Congress asked George Washington to declare a national day of prayer the same day the 1st amendment was passed (Sept 24 1789)
Context omitted...
History revisionist love to leave out context..
Oh, you mean like the first part of that sentence, where Jefferson said "I contemplate with sovereign reverence that act of the whole American people which declared that their legislature should “make no law respecting an establishment of religion.."
Which was of course
No, it was in vogue hundreds of years ago when Jefferson wrote about the wall of separation and among the Deists that formed this country.
Which was of to reassure the Danbury Baptist Association, a group very much like the ones here, that the government would not place limits on religious expression. Those limits are exactly what the complaint is about. History revisionist love to leave out context.
Faith based initiives
A friend was working on a project but couldn't do it because enough information wasn't available electronically, you'd have to request it from the orgs. He was looking to database all of the receivers of faith based init money, and who sits on the boards. Here is what he was looking for, and evidentially this goes on. People will belong to multiple orgs, and sit on the boards of multiple orgs, and collect paychecks. This way they can apply for different funding under different names, and collect more money. For instance, sit on the board of 8 faith based initiative orgs, collect $40K as a board member from each, that's $320,000 a year from the taxpayers in your pocket. He was finding that this seemed to be happening quite a bit. Lots of room for easy money, it's almost worth setting a few of them up!