Statement By Samaritan's Purse On USAID Grant For Relief Work In El Salvador

Samaritan's Purse
Tuesday, 6 March 2001

A recent New York Times article (March 5, 2001) featured work being done by Samaritan's Purse (an international Christian relief organization headed by Franklin Graham) in the country of El Salvador. The article raised questions about the appropriateness of federal funding of work performed by a religious organization such as Samaritan's Purse. Following are the facts and position of Samaritan's Purse on this matter.

1. In recent years, Samaritan's Purse has received a relatively small amount of government funding through the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). For example, last year the entire Samaritan's Purse budget was $135 million, of which $3.9 million (2.9%) was from USAID.

2. Anytime Samaritan's Purse does receive federal funds, they are used strictly and exclusively to fund the purchase of building materials and other such relief supplies, and are never used to fund any of our direct Christian ministry, whether it be evangelism, Bibles and Christian literature, or any other kind of spiritual program.

3. The use of USAID grants are strictly monitored, and our financial records are routinely audited to ensure absolute compliance with federal guidelines with such funding.

4. USAID has never questioned or challenged our use of federal grants in El Salvador, Honduras, Kosovo, or any other country where we have received government funds. Even The New York Times article contains no charge that we have failed to adhere to these federal guidelines.

5. Ironically, while USAID has made a commitment of $257,000 for various components of Samaritan's Purse's ongoing work in El Salvador, as of today they have not funded this grant, meaning that none of the work in El Salvador described by The New York Times was funded with USAID dollars—not one nickel.

6. We fully support existing federal guidelines that prohibit the use of federal dollars to fund religious work such as evangelism, Bible distribution, church construction, etc. However, if USAID is interested, for example, in funding bricks and mortar for the construction of houses in the aftermath of an earthquake or hurricane, we would gratefully accept such funds.

7. Samaritan's Purse makes its physical aid available to anyone on the basis of need and never requires participation in any religious programs as a condition for receiving relief.

8. Finally, as a Christian relief organization, we remain wholeheartedly committed to ministering to both the physical and spiritual needs of hurting people around the world. We will never cease to tell those we work with that God loves them and cares about their body, heart, and soul. If the United States Government (USAID) were ever to ask us to modify or surrender our distinctively Christian identity as a condition for financial aid, we would graciously but quickly decline any such assistance.

For more information, or to contact Samaritan's Purse, see their website at: www.samaritanspurse.org