According to “Lobbying for the Faithful,” a report from the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops spent $26.6 million in 2009 on advocacy and outreach. The bishops, according to the report, were only beaten out by the $88 million spent by the American Israel Public Affairs Committee. Pew also reported that Catholic Relief Services, at $4.7 million, was the 19th biggest religious spender in Washington. The U.S.C.C.B. and C.R.S said the figures were grossly overstated. Alan Cooperman, associate director for research at the forum, defended the study’s methodology and pointed out that the report included caveats about organizations that in addition to advocacy work were also large social service or relief and development providers. Forum representatives are meeting with officials from both agencies to resolve the dispute and Pew plans to offer new figures in a revision of the report.
Bishops, C.R.S. Challenge Pew Figures
Show Comments (
)
Comments are automatically closed two weeks after an article's initial publication. See our comments policy for more.
The latest from america
Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelenskyy met inside St. Peter’s Basilica ahead of the funeral for Pope Francis on the morning of April 26.
Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re’s homily for the funeral of Pope Francis.
The day before he died, Pope Francis made one final circuit through St. Peter’s Square in his popemobile. “That’s my last image of him alive,” Gerry O’Connell remembered. “He drove among the people.”
Universities need to change. But Trump is attacking the wrong problems.