If the Republicans in Congress want to root out waste, fraud, and abuse, in government and government spending, they can start with the time spent on their immoral policies that fail to serve the common good.
Disasters have a way of erasing all markers of division and bringing people together revealing the best of our shared humanity.
If Republicans in Congress wanted to demonstrate that indeed all lives mattered to them they would not be making drastic cuts to Medicaid, the largest insurance provider in the country.
It is important to keep in mind that scripture will always have a surplus of meaning and room for multiple understandings and interpretations as this living word continues to speak a fresh word to ever changing realities. Still, core values of caring for the weak and vulnerable, the poor and hungry, the orphan and oppressed persist along with the call to be stewards of creation and of our lives, money, and possessions. These are all matters that extend beyond the personal dimension of our lives and into the public square.
I do believe that constructive conversation on the morality of public policy can happen in a variety of forums from faith and civic groups to family dinners, even on social and mass media platforms. But these discussions can only happen if the people engaging in the conversation are committed to working toward the common good for all from the grounding of shared moral values.
