There are plenty of issues facing Christian voters

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 08/03/2025 (256 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

“Will Musk and Trump go to hell for defunding the works of mercy?” That was the headline on a Religion News Service story this past week by Thomas Reese, a Jesuit priest and senior analyst at the service, about the administration’s cuts to the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

In the article, Reese suggests it could happen as the two defund and destroy funding for things Christians have traditionally called the seven corporal works of mercy — works that have been seen for centuries as hallmarks for Christians about what it means to be a follower of Jesus.

These works of mercy come from the book of Matthew, chapter 25. In the parable, Jesus says the righteous will be invited into the kingdom because they served the “least of these” — they fed the hungry, gave water to the thirsty, welcomed the stranger and ministered to the sick. Those who didn’t do those things were consigned to eternal punishment.

Trump and Musk, Reese said, are in the latter camp because they cancelled some 10,000 USAID-supported programs that fed, sheltered and cared for people around the world, including the sick and children.

“The cumulative result of these cuts will be the deaths of hundreds of thousands, if not millions, from starvation and disease,” said Reese. “Those who survive will suffer from the long-term effects of malnutrition and disease.”

Reese’s article made me wonder what other Christians are saying about the impact of Trump’s cuts on the most vulnerable people in the world.

Daniel Yang is director of Churches of Welcome at World Relief, one of the agencies impacted by Trump’s cuts. In a post, he said he is filled with “sadness and anger” and is asking God “what a holy resistance means.”

“We no longer can say the United States is a welcoming nation to refugees,” he said, adding the decision to close the borders to refugees “will cost lives.”

For years, he said, “empires have justified risking the lives of the poor and vulnerable so that its top echelon can lead and expand influence. That is the way of the empire.”

For him, any response needs to be rooted in the Great Commandment of Jesus to show love to everyone. “That is our holy resistance,” he said.

Also weighing in was the Council of Bishops of The United Methodist Church, who wrote a letter to Trump objecting to the suspension of U.S. foreign assistance programs.

“Our involvement in political systems is rooted in the Gospel imperative to love our neighbors, to do justice, and to care for the vulnerable,” they said. “As Christians, we believe that we are called to care for our neighbors, regardless of race, religion, status or nationality.”

World Relief, a Christian aid organization, also shared its concern. “The Church has long played a role in alleviating suffering, but we cannot do it alone,” it said. “Our government must uphold its commitment to protecting human dignity and aiding those in greatest need.”

The organization urged Trump and Musk to reverse the cuts so “life-saving humanitarian aid continues to reach those who need it most.”

For Caritas International, the Roman Catholic Church’s worldwide charity arm, the cuts will have a “catastrophic” impact in the developing world.

“The ruthless and chaotic way this callous decision is being implemented threatens the lives and dignity of millions,” it said, adding the cuts will “kill millions of people and condemn hundreds of millions more to lives of dehumanising poverty.”

Added Gregory E. Sterling, dean of Yale Divinity School: “Whether a person is American or from another country, whether they live next door or half a world away, whether they are our best friend or a complete stranger, Christianity compels its followers to care for them and to help them.”

Today in America, he went on to say, “this core Christian value is under threat, not from foreign enemies but from our own government.”

What was particularly alarming for Sterling was this destruction of USAID is being done with “the tacit (if not explicit) support of too many people who cite the Gospels as their guide.”

“All this by an administration that so far has enjoyed strong support among Christians,” he wrote, noting an exit poll in the 2024 election that found 72 per cent of white Christians voted for Trump, including 63 per cent of white Catholics and 82 per cent of white evangelicals.

“This level of support makes me deeply concerned that many will associate Christianity with this administration’s policies,” Sterling said, adding that many will be tempted to dismiss the Christian faith as a result.

Reading about what’s happening in the U.S., Canadian Christians might be tempted to be smug. But before they get too high-minded, they should remember that no Canadian government, Liberal or Conservative, has ever met the target of 0.7 per cent of GDP for aid — a target set in 1969 by former prime minister Lester Pearson and agreed to by western nations, including Canada.

And Pierre Poilievre, leader of the Conservative Party of Canada, has pledged “massive” cuts to Canadian foreign aid if he is elected prime minister.

This year, Canadians will be voting for a new federal government. When Christians in this country are marking their ballot, will the least of these — to use the words of Jesus — be on their minds? We will soon find out.

faith@freepress.mb.ca

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