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eNews for Faith-Based Organizations
August 7, 2009
Editor: Stanley Carlson-Thies
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Access Past Issues of the E-News
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ An archive of current and past eNews for FBOs can be accessed HERE.
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Six Months Along . . .
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Last February 5th, President Obama launched his version of the federal faith-based initiative with a White House announcement about the renamed Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships, an executive order modifying some elements of the Bush initiative, and comments at the National Prayer Breakfast.
In what ways will this version 3 of the initiative differ from the Bush effort? (Version 2 was the extensive collection of legal reforms, institutional innovations, and pilot programs under President Bush; version 1 took place during the Clinton administration, with the enactment of Charitable Choice provisions and the creation of the HUD Center for Interfaith and Community Partnerships.) It is too soon to be sure.
The new Advisory Council for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships is busy, with multiple task forces working on a set of priority issues, including how to improve the federal faith-based initiative itself. The Council and its task forces include strong advocates of a robust role for faith-based organizations but also critics of the developments of the past dozen years.
A very positive early note, as mentioned in the May 20, 2009, edition of this eNewsletter: the Strengthening Communities Fund (the new version of the Compassion Capital Fund), which was designed entirely by this administration, maintains the "level playing field" church-state standards of the Bush administration (the Equal Treatment regulations) and the Clinton administration (Charitable Choice).
An ingenious innovation: the unwieldy short title, "HHS CFBCI," for the HHS Center for Faith-Based and Community Initiatives has been replaced by the much more pronounceable short title of "HHS Partnership Center."
Key challenges for the Obama faith-based initiative:
1. Improving, without disrupting, the extensive initiative already in place.
2. Maintaining the level playing field rules that have created a welcoming environment for faith-based organizations, despite the powerful forces in the party that favor a return to extreme church-state separationism.
3. Continuing the reforms that make federal funds and federal support more accessible to secular and faith-based grassroots groups--trusted and passionate organizations located where the needs are--despite the temptation in grantmaking to stress experience as a government partner and large numbers of clients.
4. Drawing faith-based and community-based groups closer to policymaking to gain their insights, but without converting them into mere "transmission belts" intended to gin up support for administration objectives.
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White House OFBNP Website ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ It isn't so easy to stumble upon, but the White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships does have a website. The site includes a page entitled "Preserving Our Constitutional Commitments and Values" that links to resources on the level playing field standards (including the Equal Treatment regulations). It has a list of state faith-based liaisons. It also includes a page listing the agency Centers for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships (not all have been renamed yet) with contact information, including links to their webpages.
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Faith-Inspired Volunteering
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The Corporation for National and Community Service recently announced its Volunteering in America 2009 report (a website provides an overview of findings, a listing of research results, and access to the data). As a Christian Post article by Jennifer Riley on the report notes, more than a third of Americans who volunteered in 2008 "served with or through a religious organization." Moreover, "[v]olunteers who served through faith-based organizations were also more likely to continue serving year after year than volunteers of any other type of organization." The article quotes Nicola Goren, acting head of CNCS, as saying, "Nonprofits looking to expand their reach and impact may find it beneficial to work more closely with religious organizations in their communities, especially in these tough economic times." For more unconventional insight into who volunteers and donates for which causes, read Arthur Brooks' book, Who Really Cares (2006). |
Marriage Redefinition and Religious Freedom
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ In a National Journal Online article, David Gauvey Herbert notes that "as a wave of Northeast states has legalized same-sex marriage in recent months, they've carved out a range of legal protections for religious organizations." Unfortunately, he, along with many activists on both sides of the disputes, portrays these protections as trade-offs--a sop for religious conservatives in order to win marriage redefinition. That's the wrong view and approach. Religious freedom is a high constitutional value. Lawmakers are required to safeguard it--not to use it as a bargaining chip. Marriage redefinition conflicts with centuries of religious conviction. Lawmakers and judges ought to use their full energy and best efforts to protect religious exercise and religious organizations if they insist that the government must redefine marriage.
Constitutional law experts Carl Esbeck, Thomas Berg, Robin Fretwell Wilson, and Richard Garnett have spearheaded the initiative to get protective language into marriage redefinition laws. Links to their letters and memos (and to additional letters by Douglas Laycock, Marc Stern, Andrew Koppelman, and Michael Perry) are collected here.
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Resources
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Stanley Carlson-Thies, "For a Passing Grade, Healthcare Reform Needs More Cs" (health care reform must respect conscience and religious freedom), a Capital Commentary. Will be available soon in audio form as a KDCR Plumbline commentary.
Peter Steinfels, "Despite a Decade of Controversy, the 'Faith-Based Initiative' Endures," New York Times, August 1.
Richard Garnett, "Do Churches Matter? Towards an Institutional Understanding of the Religion Clauses," Notre Dame Law School Legal Studies Research Paper No. 08-17 (forthcoming in Villanova Law Review).
Thomas Berg, "Religious Organizational Freedom and Conditions on Government Benefits," University of St. Thomas School of Law Legal Studies Research Paper No. 08-35 (forthcoming in Georgetown Journal of Law and Public Policy).
A collection of essays on the constitutionality of faith-based prison units, including James Davids, "Putting Faith in Prison Programs, And Its Constitutionality Under Thomas Jefferson's Faith-Based Initiative," Ave Maria Law Review, Spring 2008.
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For further information:
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e-mail: info@IRFAlliance.org
website (under construction): www.IRFAlliance.org
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What is IRFA?
The Institutional Religious Freedom Alliance works to safeguard the religious identity, faith-based standards and practices, and faith-shaped services of faith-based organizations across the range of service sectors and religions, enabling them to make their distinctive and best contributions to the common good.
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