Role of government in society

Great Blue Heron

Given the great budget impasse we've had here in Minnesota, which also reflects a similar state of affairs in Washington, one has to ask the big question.... What is the role of government?  Should it be only for defense and some basic infrastructure and public education needs?  What is its role in serving as a safety net for the poor, young, handicapped and elderly? A MinnPost article suggests that the vulnerable may get hammered by the upcoming Minnesota budget, "Groups serving poor and disabled worry about budget deal".

When infrastructure needs aren't properly monitored and met we see poorly maintained roads, and even collapsing bridges. The sick, unemployed, and elderly people suffer when adequate care isn't accessible through publicly subsidized support (i.e. taxes).  Sometimes those that don't receive adequate care can even cause harm to society, as is noted in an article in today's StarTribune, "Did the system fail a budding killer".

Great Blue Heron with morning sun

In days of old it was the role of family to care for those in need. Those without family support people could find themselves sold into slavery or begging for a living.  The breakdown of many families and the wide spread distribution of family members makes this approach to care giving impractical in the 21st century United States.  So, we have relied on government assistance: Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security, AFCD (aid to families with dependent children), Unemployment Insurance, etc.

Some suggest that religious institutions might take on the role of care providers.  I know from recent communication with the CEO of the Greater Minneapolis Council of Churches that they are in no way capable of taking on the huge role government plays in providing services.  In fact, they receive considerable government funding to provide supportive services to those in need, and receive only a very small portion of their budget directly from congregations.  The faith-based mentoring program for which I recently worked, Kinship of Greater Minneapolis, recently lost its federal funding to mentor children of prisoners.

So, if as many Republicans are suggesting that government dramatically reduce its role of providing "entitlement funding", how will care be provided to disadvantaged and vulnerable individuals?

Faith community's role in helping others in times of need

Gary Reierson

I attended the Greater Minneapolis Council of Churches' (GMCC) annual meeting earlier in the week.  Gary Reierson, the CEO and President reflected on the fact that they are working to do more with less.  Resources have diminished while the need for services has increased, with greater numbers of people of finding themselves unemployed, homeless and or hungry.  GMCC has a number of programs which engage people of faith to meet human needs.

GMCC's 2010 Annual Report

With the public's inability or opposition to raising taxes to provide a safety net to the vulnerable among us, it seems that the faith community is going to be looked upon to do more to respond to human needs.  One current example of this is the flooding taking place in Memphis, Tennessee.  I've heard that the faith community has taken the lead in sheltering and housing those impacted by the flood.  The American Red Cross, typically the first responder for situations such as this, has welcomed their intervention.

Looking at the role of the church in the future it may be wise to consider redefining its primary function from being a space for worship, to one for feeding the hungry, housing the homeless, nurturing infants and toddlers and providing counseling to people in their times of need.  Who knows, with the continued rise in health care costs, churches might even find themselves needing to serve as clinics for those under/uninsured.

A Minnesota Without Poverty, has a skit "Budget holes and hotdish", which speaks to the folly of trying to plug the serious financial needs of the state with church funding.