Action, not just words

The war on poverty [Feb. 2012, p. 1] was first-rate. I was particularly pleased that you profiled examples of Anglican action to counter root causes of poverty and homelessness. It was encouraging to read of the efforts by Anglicans to join forces with other groups to address the rich-poor gap and to hold governments accountable.In the diocese of Toronto, we are mobilizing Anglicans and others to meet with provincial politicians and urge them to support a minimum-wage increase, a housing benefit for low-income tenants and the indexation of social assistance rates. We often hear back from politicians. We are also urging our provincial government to consider fair, modest tax increases to finance the measures we advocate. We’ve also published a theology of taxation reflection paper. Our experience is that most politicians appreciate engaging in dialogue with us. Recently, a Conservative politician told an Anglican delegation: “Everyone talks about poverty, but Anglicans are actually trying to do something.”