When we think about homelessness, we usually have an image of middle aged single men, usually with a drug or alcohol problem, sleeping on a New York City street. We normally don’t think about a family with children that simply cannot afford a New Jersey rent. Many 1-2 bedroom apartments rent for close to $2,000 monthly.
Figuring that a parent earns between $15 to $17 per hour, that doesn’t leave much for food, clothing, and care. Rents in New Jersey are not just high; they’re exorbitant. The programs established by the State to help people with rents are limited and do not address the heart of the problem – the fact that rents are high.
Evictions continue, even as winter comes, and they do not just occur in cities like Newark or Paterson; they occur in more suburban areas as well. We read about the Babe born in a stable because there was no room in the inn, but without a housing policy that addresses the root cause of homelessness, the story remains just that – a story we read on Christmas Eve.
Prayer for the Day
We feel the oncoming winter cold but we live in warm houses,
With heat and other amenities to take away the chill;
We hear about families unable to pay their rent, and wonder,
How is this possible in a country as wealthy as we are.
Rouse us, O God, and awaken us to the many who struggle,
As they try to have the necessities of life.
In the name of the One born in a stable,
Even Christ Jesus our Lord, Amen.
Thoughts for the Day
It is hard to argue that housing is not a fundamental human need. Decent affordable housing should be a basic right for everyone in this country. The reason is simple: without stable housing, everything else falls apart.
- Matthew Desmond, from Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City
Tackling affordable housing via land use planning won’t necessarily solve the problem.
- Kate Brown, Governor, Oregon
If there are any poor in your towns when you arrive in the land….do not be hardhearted or tightfisted toward them. Instead be generous and lend them whatever they need. Do not be mean spirited and refuse a loan because the year of release is close at hand.
Deuteronomy 15:7-9