Prairie Purrs
12-02-2003, 07:22 PM
Here are some excerpts from an online chat with James Towey, White House Deputy Assistant to the President and Director, Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives. The full text can be found here:
http://www.whitehouse.gov/ask/20031126.html
Colby, from Centralia MO writes:
Do you feel that Pagan faith based groups should be given the same considerations as any other group that seeks aid?
Jim Towey
I haven't run into a pagan faith-based group yet, much less a pagan group that cares for the poor! Once you make it clear to any applicant that public money must go to public purposes and can't be used to promote ideology, the fringe groups lose interest. Helping the poor is tough work and only those with loving hearts seem drawn to it.
* * *
Rob, from Chicago writes:
Why can't my Muslim brothers and sisters participate as easily in this Administration's faith based initiatives? Most of the people I know who have any association with the Muslim faith are being harrassed, not helped or supported, at this time.
Jim Towey
Muslims are welcomed to participate in this initiative. The issue isn't whether a group believes in God or not but whether their program works. So the faith-based initiative isn't faith-specific. I think America needs to do all it can to avoid religious rivalry and competition -that is the beauty of our heritage of pluralism.
* * *
So, basically, this jerk is assuming that Wiccans and other Pagans lack "loving hearts" and are only interested in promoting ideology? And he's suggesting that Muslims don't believe in God?
As a Wiccan, I'm offended and I'm angry. I know many Pagans who do a great deal of charitable work--and I don't know any who do that work as an excuse to promote their religion. In fact, I don't know any Wiccans who evangelize or recruit non-Wiccans. So, in essence, we have a high government official who (1) doesn't understand the first thing about Pagan religions and (2) has basically announced his intent to discriminate against Pagan groups in handing out government funding.
And he may be giving lip service to an "open door" policy for Muslim groups, but do you really expect fair treatment from someone who thinks that Muslims don't believe in God? Just what standards do you think he'll use to determine whether a program "works"?
Looks to me like this administration is going to use their faith-based initiatives program as an excuse to line the pockets of right-wing, fundamentalist Christian organizations at the expense of taxpayers and the First Amendment.
http://www.whitehouse.gov/ask/20031126.html
Colby, from Centralia MO writes:
Do you feel that Pagan faith based groups should be given the same considerations as any other group that seeks aid?
Jim Towey
I haven't run into a pagan faith-based group yet, much less a pagan group that cares for the poor! Once you make it clear to any applicant that public money must go to public purposes and can't be used to promote ideology, the fringe groups lose interest. Helping the poor is tough work and only those with loving hearts seem drawn to it.
* * *
Rob, from Chicago writes:
Why can't my Muslim brothers and sisters participate as easily in this Administration's faith based initiatives? Most of the people I know who have any association with the Muslim faith are being harrassed, not helped or supported, at this time.
Jim Towey
Muslims are welcomed to participate in this initiative. The issue isn't whether a group believes in God or not but whether their program works. So the faith-based initiative isn't faith-specific. I think America needs to do all it can to avoid religious rivalry and competition -that is the beauty of our heritage of pluralism.
* * *
So, basically, this jerk is assuming that Wiccans and other Pagans lack "loving hearts" and are only interested in promoting ideology? And he's suggesting that Muslims don't believe in God?
As a Wiccan, I'm offended and I'm angry. I know many Pagans who do a great deal of charitable work--and I don't know any who do that work as an excuse to promote their religion. In fact, I don't know any Wiccans who evangelize or recruit non-Wiccans. So, in essence, we have a high government official who (1) doesn't understand the first thing about Pagan religions and (2) has basically announced his intent to discriminate against Pagan groups in handing out government funding.
And he may be giving lip service to an "open door" policy for Muslim groups, but do you really expect fair treatment from someone who thinks that Muslims don't believe in God? Just what standards do you think he'll use to determine whether a program "works"?
Looks to me like this administration is going to use their faith-based initiatives program as an excuse to line the pockets of right-wing, fundamentalist Christian organizations at the expense of taxpayers and the First Amendment.