It is not hyperbolic to describe the current state of our society as one of the most tumultuous times in our country’s history. More and more, working class and poor families are finding it harder and harder to get by: wages for the working class have stagnated, jobs are more precarious, the richest few own more wealth than ever, and healthcare is becoming an increasingly expensive luxury instead of a basic human right.
As clergy and people of faith, we feel called to serve the people struggling most, both in our congregations and beyond. With Holy Week and Easter still on our minds, siding with those who are struggling is particularly poignant, as Christians marked the resurrection of Jesus, who sided with the poor and marginalized, and as Jews commemorated God liberating them from slavery in Egypt.
Unfortunately, we have found our political leaders to be increasingly hostile towards the concerns of the many to benefit the finances of the few. The most recent, and one of the most egregious, examples has been the persistent attacks on access to healthcare for the most vulnerable people in our communities. After failing to directly undermine our already thin health insurance system last year, in December Congress passed one of the biggest tax breaks for rich corporations ever: $1.6 trillion over the next 10 years. President Trump made it clear how Republicans intend to make up this budget shortfall in his proposed budget: steep cuts to Medicare, Medicaid, and the Affordable Care Act, along with most other social safety net programs.
In Missouri, our access to Medicaid is already one of the lowest in the nation and our neighbors and loved ones have suffered attacks on Medicaid at the state level. These cuts are paid for by the stress and pain and lives of million-plus children, seniors, and people with disabilities that depend on Medicaid to survive.
These attacks on healthcare access for the most vulnerable people calls to mind a poignant passage from the Gospel, as found in Matthew 25: 31-45. The scripture tells how when Jesus returns, he will judge both the righteous and the wicked on how they treated him in their lives. When both groups ask, “Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?” He will answer, “Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me, [but] whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.”
Our Republican members of Congress have been particularly eager to support these inhumane cuts, having voted yes on every ACA repeal bill, voting yes and offering public support for these tax cuts, and refusing to take seriously the concerns of the thousands of constituents who have contacted them via phone calls, staff visits, protests, and sit ins over the past year. These choices elevate the profits of the few over the needs of the most vulnerable of us, of “the least of these” among us.
In their capacities as members of Congress, they have a unique opportunity to ensure the way we spend the immense wealth of our nation reflects the call for Christians to serve the people above profit. As fellow Christians, and as voting constituents, we implore our members of Congress to look to the teachings of Jesus and consider how their choices affect the least of these among our society.
Rev. Darryl Commings, Bethany Way Fellowship
The Rev. Jon Stratton, Trinity Church
Tommie Pierson, pastor of Greater St. Mark’s Family Church
Ruth Ehresman, MO Jobs with Justice
Jack Lipin, Sts. Joachim and Ann Care Service
Rev. Carleton Stock Presbytery of Giddings-Lovejoy
The Rev. Michael G. Dunnington, All Saints and Ascension Episcopal Church
Sharon Orlet, spiritual director
Flora Fazio, Sts. Joachim and Ann Care Service
Rev. C. Jessel Strong, African Methodist Episcopal Church
Deacon Kevin J. McGrane Sr., Episcopal Diocese of Missouri
Sister Carla Mae Streeter, Aquinas Institute of Theology
The Rev. Deacon Dayna Jewson, St. Luke’s Episcopal Church
The Rev. Dr. Dan Handschy, Rector, Church of the Advent
The Very Rev. Kathie Adams-Shepherd, Christ Church Cathedral
The Rev. Dr. Francis X. Ryan, Jesuit Hall
The Rev. Jill V. Seagle, St. Thomas/Holy Spirit Lutheran Church
The Rev. Joshua K. Brecht, Good Shepherd Lutheran Church
Rev. Jeffrey Lindgren, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
The Rev. Dr. Martin Rafanan, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
The Rev. Rebecca Ragland, St Paul’s Episcopal Church
The Rev. Mark Kozielec, St. Mark’s Episcopal Church
Rev. Paul A. Beins, retired
Rev. Dr. Tom Schoenherr, retired
Rev. Judith A Conoyer, retired
The Rev. Teresa Mithen Danieley, Episcopal Diocese of Missouri
The Rev. Gregory Eidell, Holy Cross Lutheran Church
Rev. Rodrick Burton, Pastor, New Northside Missionary Baptist Church
