The faith-based initiative asks religious organizations to carry a heavy load. Providing a social safety net is the relatively easy part. Religious groups are also being asked—and are asking themselves—to build the social bridges that strengthen America’s civil society.
President Bush has urged large corporations and foundations to join government agencies in offering grants to faith-based organizations, adding that the private entities should rewrite their rules if they don’t allow funding of religious charities.
“I believe all of us . . . ought to allow religious organizations to compete and function on an equal basis, not for the sake of faith but for the sake of results,” he told about 1,200 people gathered March 9 for a national conference in Washington sponsored by the White House Office of Faith-based and Community Initiatives.