The command to Christians to care for the poor is crystal clear throughout scripture from beginning to end. This is why many believers have expressed horror at President Donald Trump's near-closure of USAID, the country's international development arm, which had a $40bn annual budget ostensibly for humanitarian aid.
Those who work with the poorest of the world warn they will be seriously harmed. They have even challenged the church to make up the difference with private donations.
Yet following revelations that government departments have supported radical leftist ideologies, gay rights and abortion around the world, and even political organisations in the US and abroad, other Christians have shown support for the new administration's actions.
Recent revelations
Trump has paused all foreign aid until reviewed and approved, saying that public money has been spent on partisan or political ends under previous administrations. "For decades, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has been unaccountable to taxpayers as it funnels massive sums of money to the ridiculous — and, in many cases, malicious — pet projects of entrenched bureaucrats, with next-to-no oversight," said an official statement from the White House in early February. "Under President Trump, the waste, fraud, and abuse ENDS NOW."
This statement cited numerous examples: $70,000 for production of a "DEI musical" in Ireland, $47,000 for a "transgender opera" in Colombia, $32,000 for a "transgender comic book" in Peru and $2 million for sex changes and "LGBT activism" in Guatemala.
It also alleged that supposed humanitarian aid has supported terrorists, been linked to the Wuhan lab, and funded contraception.
"USAID is a criminal organization," wrote Trump's head of government efficiency, Elon Musk, on X, the media platform owned by the billionaire. "Time for it to die."
The Trump administration also plans to decimate USAID's staff numbers, although it faces a legal challenge.
Impact on the poor
There are claims of direct harm to emergency aid already. About 500,000 metric tons of food worth $340 million is in limbo, in transit or storage, as humanitarian organisations wait for approval to distribute it, according to Marcia Wong, a former senior USAID official, Reuters reported.
The ACT Alliance, a body that represents faith-based development charities, said in a statement: "These sweeping and harmful policy decisions have significantly limited many of our members' ability to maintain programmes and serve vulnerable families who need critical services."
The group did not address the allegations of waste and political bias made against USAID.
Controversial political payments
However, ideological extremism in US Government aid is not new, nor warnings that this hurts the poor it is supposed to help. Former USAID official Max Primorac warned in 2023: "The Biden administration has subordinated US foreign policy to its radical domestic social agenda and [is] grossly misusing foreign aid as a taxpayer-funded vehicle to promote abortion, gender ideology, and climate fanaticism that is catapulting Africa towards deeper and deeper poverty," he told The Daily Signal. "The administration is making thinly veiled threats to [sub-Saharan] Africa about continued critical programme support.
"In effect, they are tying future lifesaving aid to forcing Africans to dispense with their traditional family values. Such blackmail should have no place in our foreign assistance programmes."
Details of this kind of Western pressure on poor countries are given in the book "Target Africa: Ideological Neocolonialism in the Twenty-First Century" by Obianuju Ekeocha, a UK-based Nigerian pro-life activist.
When Trump restricted government funding of abortion abroad in 2017, Marie Stopes International said it led to a £60m shortfall. The 'LGBT Vision for Action,' that supported gay rights around the world began during Barack Obama's administration, and Biden expanded the donations to gender ideology in 2023 through the 'LGBTQI+ Inclusive Development Policy'.
The Center for Family and Human Rights said in 2023 that it had found individual government grants for LGBT causes worth more than $3.7bn over three years, and $478m more for 'transgender' activities, when searching public records.
The House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Brian Mast has also just announced it found a number of highly controversial payments from the US government, including what he says was $15m for condoms to the Taliban and $446,700 to promote the expansion of atheism in Nepal through the State Department.
Perhaps most importantly, many of the poorest countries are opposed to the West's attempts to impose liberal sexual values onto their societies. It has even been described as a 'new colonisation' by African Christian leaders.
On the ground reports
Trump's defunding has prompted furious debate and some very different first-hand accounts of USAID.
"A few years ago some friends of mine returned from S. Africa and told me how they were appalled to see USAID staffers promoting transgenderism in, I kid you not, the squatter camps of Johannesburg," wrote Christian Post journalist Brandon M Showalter on X. "Those poor people needed clean water but were getting cross-sex hormones instead."
This witness, Clint Thomas, said he was horrified to see how US tax dollars were being spent when he visited the slums of South Africa: "The beautiful African people we met with and ministered to that week didn't need or care about 'transgender services,'" he wrote. "They were trying to find their next meal and make it through the next cold African winter night. Talk to anyone who is struggling for survival on an empty stomach and you'll quickly learn how unimportant 'transgender services' offered for 'free' from the US government are to them.
"It's high time that Christians and all people of goodwill stand up to and resist this radicalism and gross misuse of aid dollars both at home and abroad."
Yet many say they have witnessed US aid supporting the poorest.
"Destroying USAID will not make the government more efficient," said Matthew Loftus, whose X bio says he practises medicine in Kenya. "Doing so will take away food and medicine from poor people. Attempting to destroy it wholesale rather than reforming and focusing it is simply a cruel wish to let other people die."
He continued: "I work at a Christian mission hospital. USAID funds the organization that ensures our hospital gets drugs. People in our hospital hear the Gospel every day. That's not a leftist agenda."
Furious debate
These conflicting accounts and perspectives were reflected in many discussions on social media. Left-wing commentator Dr Krish Kandiah said on X: "The dismantling of USAID is an act of vandalism. We must speak up for the world's poor."
However, such views were challenged by those concerned of the nature of USAID's activities.
"I am surprised that Christian leaders are ready to support an organisation that seems to spend its money pushing leftist ideology across the globe with $millions of US tax payers money," said Karl Faase, chief executive of Christian media outlet Olive Tree Media on X.
Others challenged the Church to step up.
"If USAID really does get closed down, will Christians who supported the shutdown then give generously to help those affected - the poorest of the poor in our world?" wrote retired president of World Vision USA Rich Stearns on X.
"There's a lot of misinformation out there," he continued. "The vast majority of the funds are benefiting the poor. I know many of the organizations doing the work and they are saving lives and helping people out of poverty. Closing USAID is throwing the baby out with the bath water."
Making up the shortfall
The challenge from Stearns to Christians to give more to the poor raises the question of alternatives to government funding such as development charities, although their willingness to uphold traditional Christian ethics is not always clear.
Loftus recommended African Mission Healthcare for Christians concerned about the effects of the Trump decision. He also encouraged Christians to visit poorer countries and build relationships with people working there when considering where to donate. But short term missions need to be carefully executed so as not to do harm to poor communities.
Nonetheless the Church may need to consider alternatives to government aid.
"I am on the board of http://shepherdsgate.org and we take zero government funding," said Vijay Swamidass in response to Stearns on X.
"Most of the donations are from individual Christians. I know others as well. Government funding is not essential."
Heather Tomlinson is a freelance Christian writer. Find more of her work at https://heathertomlinson.substack.com or via X (twitter) @heathertomli
