First Unitarian Universalist Church of Houston’s work with The Metropolitan Organization (TMO) was featured, April 16, on an article published by the Houston Chronicle.
The published copy of this article can be found at: houstonchronicle.com
Copy of said article:
Bible teachings counsel us to suspend rent during the coronavirus pandemic [Opinion]
Families across Houston and across the country are hurting. Millions have already lost their jobs, and economists are forecasting that the unemployment rate will hit at least 30 percent in the coming months. The pandemic’s widespread economic disruption is bringing massive food and housing insecurity. Many people are already making the choice between buying food and paying their rent. Eighty-five Harris County families attested to their own food and housing insecurity in a virtual town hall hosted by The Metropolitan Organization (TMO).
The CARES Act provides for mortgage forbearance for federally backed mortgages. Homeowners and landlords can forego payments to their lenders for up to twelve months. The payments are to be tacked onto the end of the loan without penalty. This relief will prevent millions of homeowners and landlords from losing their homes and rental properties through foreclosure during this health emergency. To avoid a massive foreclosure crisis, mortgage lenders must embrace their key role and facilitate forbearance for homeowners and landlords.
The CARES Act provides no similar relief to renters. Businesses are eligible for rent relief in the form of grants and loans. Families are only offered a delay in the eviction process and protection from landlords charging them fees or penalties for non-payment of rent. This means that if they fail to pay rent throughout the pandemic then they will face eviction as soon as it is over.
The CARES Act does create a Coronavirus Relief Fund to allow cities and counties to respond to their urgent needs. Harris County will receive over $800 million from this fund. At least $100 million should be used for rental assistance and other resources needed by families who will not receive funds from the CARES Act.
Suspending rent throughout the course of the pandemic would guarantee housing security for renters. At the end of the pandemic, renters should not owe their landlords anything for missed rent payments or face retribution for non-payment of rent. Landlords who have federally backed mortgages can defer their payments until it is over. Landlords who do not can receive relief through a Small Business Administration Disaster Loan.
The suspension of rent, and the forgiveness of any debts related to its non-payment, is a profoundly biblical idea. We find it in the Hebrew Bible, in Leviticus 25:8-55 God gave Moses extensive laws that are to govern the “year of jubilee,” a period when all debts were forgiven, and property was to be widely redistributed throughout the community. In Deuteronomy 15:1 we encounter a text that reads, “Every seventh year you shall practice remission of debts.”
These laws were meant to remind people that “the land is Mine” (Leviticus 25:23) and that we are all temporary residents on the Earth. Therefore, the text teaches “you must provide for the redemption of the land” (Leviticus 25:24).
If there ever was a time to be inspired by such biblical lessons, it is now. Suspending rent and forgiving debt, heeding the scriptural injunction for a jubilee, will provide security for millions of families. It will also help to slow the spread of the virus. And that will benefit not just them but all of society. We invite religious leaders across the community to join our call. We pray that public officials will heed it. It’s time for jubilee!
Fr. Albert Zanatta, Rev. Dr. Colin Bossen, Rev. Carissa Baldwin-McGinnis, Rabbi David Segal and Rev. Edward C. Jones, III are clergy who work with The Metropolitan Organization.