I’m Tired of So-Called ‘Christian’ Family Values

I'M TIRED OF hearing politicians use “family values” as shorthand for a narrow and often misguided agenda. It is time to broaden and reclaim a truly pro-family agenda to protect and strengthen all families. Since at least the 1990s, the political and Religious Right have often claimed a monopoly on “family values.” Many Democrats have only exacerbated this trend with their reticence to frame their policies as pro-family. As a result, whenever we hear a politician talking about “family values” or “pro-family policies,” it’s shorthand for policies that restrict women’s autonomy or threaten LGBTQ+ rights.

Of course, outside of the world of politics, it’s obvious that people with widely divergent perspectives view the welfare of their family — whether biological, blended, or chosen — as the center of their lives. Protecting families should be a nonpartisan issue with bipartisan support, not another casualty of partisan extremism.

What would a holistic pro-family policy agenda require? As Christians, we have a responsibility for both the pastoral and political welfare of families. It is these intimate, human, familial relationships that generate our common good. True family values in politics should mean programs and policies that protect human dignity, help families thrive, and promote space for kids to grow and learn. As Christians, we stand for this kind of “family values” not to force our theological beliefs on others, but to stay faithful to scripture’s commands to love God and generously provide for our neighbors’ flourishing, protecting the most vulnerable regardless of whether they share our beliefs (see Matthew 22:36-40).

Pro-family policies provide effective, vital support to help lift families out of poverty and keep them out. Research shows that children thrive when their parents have the resources necessary to help all family members succeed. The U.S. Census Bureau reported that poverty increased by 59 percent between 2021 and 2022 — and child poverty more than doubled. These numbers are sobering, but not surprising. During the height of the pandemic, stimulus payments from the Trump and Biden administrations — particularly the expanded Child Tax Credit (CTC) in the American Rescue Plan — brought poverty down sharply in 2021. The expanded CTC lifted nearly 3 million children out of poverty with monthly payments to many families of $250 to $300 per child per month for the six months the policy was in effect. In 2022, the expanded CTC ended — and increased rates of child poverty followed.

Pro-family policies support parents and enable them to better care for their children. President Biden’s original “Build Back Better” agenda included several pro-family policies, though they were rarely framed or communicated as such. Unfortunately, most of these failed to pass the Senate. For instance, addressing often-exorbitant child care costs by making quality care affordable and accessible to all parents ensures that children have the care and attention they need while a parent is working. Incentivizing states to implement universal pre-K programs helps with child care costs and starts children from all income backgrounds on a path to educational success. Guaranteeing parents 12 weeks of universal family and medical leave enables parents to care for and bond with their new child. The United States falls far behind almost all other post-industrial economies in protecting and ensuring pro-family commitments. Opponents of expanding these programs cling to a concept that child care is a private matter and should be privately funded — but for a society to put families first means building infrastructure and providing funding so that all have access.

Pro-family policies ensure the health and well-being of mothers, babies, and young children. Let’s start with the Black Maternal Health Momnibus Act. This package of legislation would adopt a comprehensive, evidence-based approach to “course-correct the current flaws in our maternal, newborn, and child health care systems,” wrote Lauren W. Reliford, Sojourners’ political director. Mothers in the United States have higher rates of maternal mortality than do those in any other high-wealth nation. Black and American Indian/Alaska Native women are two to three times more likely to die from a pregnancy-related cause than are white women. These disparities are often blamed on racist tropes about Black poverty and family life; however, a Black mother with a college education is still at 60 percent greater risk for a maternal death than a white or Hispanic woman with less than a high school education. Addressing these fundamental issues will create a baseline system of care that benefits all women and children. Programs such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) provide a lifeline to families in preventing both hunger and malnutrition.

There is a positive, Christian pro-family agenda that reflects our deepest faith commitments. We all can bring these issues to the forefront of public discourse with greater vigilance and clarity this election year. We need elected officials committed to an expansive pro-family agenda.

Editor’s note: A version of this article first appeared on sojo.net on Sept. 21, 2023 as “This Is What a Faith-Based, Pro-Family Agenda Really Looks Like.”