IRFA’s Letter to President Obama Print PDF

Written by IRFA | 01 March 2010

Today, IRFA sent a letter to President Obama and to his Director of the Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships, Joshua DuBois. The letter, signed by diverse group of faith-based leaders, , urges the President to maintain the “level playing field” rules that have been developed over three administrations.  The letter responds to one sent to President Obama by the Coalition Against Religious Discrimination (CARD) which asked him to place various restrictions on faith-based providers, including removing their freedom (which they currently have in most federal programs) to consider religion when selecting staff.   Read the letter here.

UPDATE: Faith-Based Advisory Council Has Announced It Will Present Its Recommendations to the White House on March 9 Print PDF

Written by IRFA | 09 February 2010

The Advisory Council will take its final votes on its six task forces’ recommendations during conference calls on Thursday, February 25, 4-6 pm EST, and Friday, February 26, 2-4 pm EST. The public is invited to listen to the deliberations. Use the following number: 800-857-8628 and passcode: 9789555. (A recording of the calls should be available at that number after the calls have been completed.)

These final recommendations are the culmination of nearly a year of work by the taskforces and focus on reforming the faith-based initiative, global and domestic poverty, climate change, interfaith cooperation, and strengthening fatherhood.

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Reporters Look to IRFA President for Religious Freedom Views Print PDF

Written by IRFA | 01 March 2010

In her February 15th Religious News Service article, “White House Faith Office Answers Critics”, Adelle Banks quotes Stanley Carlson-Thies’ assessment of changes in the federal faith-based initiative under President Obama:  ”’There is a broad stability in the way things are done—not that everybody is happy about that,’ said Stanley Carlson-Thies, who helped Bush open the original faith-based office and serves on a task force advising the new one.”

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IRFA Message Gains Traction Print PDF

Written by IRFA | 08 February 2010

IRFA President Stanley Carlson-Thies is quoted in a recent Washington Post story on President Obama’s version of the federal faith-based initiative.  Carlson-Thies, identified in the story as one of the architects of the Bush faith-based office and as currently serving on a taskforce of the President’s Advisory Council on Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships, contrasted the approaches of the two administrations:  “There had been a clear reaching out to faith groups, he said, but now the attitude is:  ‘We’re the government, doing wonderful things, YOU can come join US.’  The operation is less visible now, Carlson-Thies says.  ‘People say, “Oh, what happened to that faith-based initiative?”

 

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ADVICE TO THE PRESIDENT

The federal faith-based initiative, extending back into the Clinton administration, has always been about improving the government's relationship with private organizations--secular and faith-based, large and small--that serve needy people and communities. It has involved many program innovations, organizational changes, and reforms of rules. At the center has always been action to ensure that faith-based organizations can collaborate with government programs without having first to suppress or hide their religious identity and faith-shaped practices.

President Barack Obama has promised an expanded and improved faith-based initiative. At a minimum, his initiative must not backtrack on the gains that have been made to ensure equal opportunity for faith-based organizations to participate in federally funded programs.

Equally important, the President should work with Congress to ensure that other federal rules and regulations--in areas that do not necessarily involve government funds, such as accreditation, employment rules, and tax-exempt status--are fair to faith-based organizations, safeguarding their religious identity and characteristics.

For the Coalition to Preserve Religious Freedom's advice to candidate Barack Obama,  go here .