Catholic leaders urge US Congress to protect funding

(Vatican Radio) Catholic leaders in the United States are calling on the US Congress to protect funding to housing and agriculture programs that serve poor and vulnerable people.

Two letters were written to difference committees in the Congress by Archbishop Thomas G. Wenski of Miami, chair of the Committee on Domestic Justice and Human Development of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), and Dominican Sister Donna Markham, president-elect of Catholic Charities USA.

They urged greater resources for programs that assist the elderly, people with disabilities, veterans and others afford housing.

“As Catholics, we believe that housing is a human right, and that society has a shared obligation to ensure that individuals and families have access to safe and affordable housing,” Archbishop Wenski and Sister Markham wrote.

In a separate letter, they urged Congress to “protect and fund programs that feed hungry people, help the most vulnerable farmers, strengthen rural communities and promote good stewardship of God’s creation.”