Baptist Joint Committee Responds to Obama's Faith-Based Proposal
From the BJC press release:
While recognizing that many challenges will arise in the implementation of his proposal, BJC General Counsel K. Hollyn Hollman said many of the senator’s comments are reassuring. “The speech reflects a keen appreciation for the separation of church and state’s role to ensure religious liberty even while promoting partnerships between government and religious institutions,” Hollman said.You can read earlier posts here and here. Read Obama's speech here.Hollman noted, however, that one problematic aspect of the speech was its reference to direct government funding of houses of worship. Though Obama noted that federal dollars that go to houses of worship and community groups “can only be used on secular programs,” Hollman urged caution. “The Baptist Joint Committee would never recommend money going directly to houses of worship because of the risk of entanglement and the practical difficulties that may threaten the institution’s integrity. We think best practices, legally and practically, weigh heavily toward creating a separate corporate entity if a house of worship is inclined to seek government funding for services it provides.”