Over $1 Billion Spent on Faith-Based Initiatives
According to the first-ever detailed tally of the dollars behind President George W. Bush’s Faith Based Initiative, the government gave more than $1 billion to faith-based organizations in 2003 alone
According to the first-ever detailed tally of the dollars behind President George W. Bush’s Faith Based Initiative, the government gave more than $1 billion to faith-based organizations in 2003 alone. The tally, obtained by the Associated Press (AP) on January 3, revealed that many of the groups that received the funds were not distinctly religious.
Specifically, faith-based organizations were awarded $1.17 billion in 2003, accounting for some 12 percent of the total $14.5 billion spent on social programs in five federal departments.
According to the associated press, many of the groups that received parts of the $1.17 billion were such that have “entirely secular missions” and “some organizations were surprised to find their names on a list of faith-based groups.”
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One such group Crisis Ministries, a homeless shelter and soup kitchen in Charleston, S.C.
"Someone has obviously designated us a faith-based organization, but we don't recognize ourselves as that," said Stacey Denaux, executive director of the group, to the Associated Press.
Another group was “You Gotta Believe!”, a Brooklyn-based group that finds homes for teenagers in foster care.
According to White House officials, the faith-based list included groups that either identified themselves as faith-based or groups which officials thought were religious, based on their names.
You Gotta Believe! Is intended to invoke a belief that there is a home for every child.
Nonetheless, the majority of the faith-based groups were indeed religious and/or spiritual.
TMM Family Services in Tucson, Arizona, which received $25,000 for housing counseling, boasts a picture of Jesus, quotes from the Bible and a cross on the wall.
"We believe that people being connected to the faith of their choice is important to them having a productive life," said Don Strauch, an ordained minister and executive director of the group, to AP. “Just because we take government money doesn't mean we back down on that philosophy."
However, Jim Towey, director of the Faith-Based Initiatives, said the administration has been clear to steer clear of groups that perform “religious activities” or proselytize.
"This is a culture change in the way government provides social services," said Towey to the AP. "There's always going to be a very delicate balance."
For more information, visit the White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives:
http://www.whitehouse.gov/government/fbci/
The state-by-state lists of grant recipients available at: http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/files/specials/interactives/wdc/faithbased/index.html?SITEAP&SECTIONHOME
