Religious Communities Succeed Where Social Programs Fail
Reagan Campbell /
Under Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s New York City, 16 people experiencing homelessness froze to death in a single brutal winter weekend—found across Manhattan, Brooklyn, and the subway system. These tragedies occurred despite the mayor’s $100 million affordable housing campaign, which promised 200,000 new homes, and New York City spending roughly $3 billion in fiscal year 2025 on homelessness-related services.
The failures highlight a troubling reality: Government programs can provide aid, but they often fail to change lives.
Poverty, homelessness, broken families, and addiction have long plagued American communities. Policymakers have attempted to solve these problems through government intervention and social programs. These programs may provide temporary relief to families across the country, but the root of the problem remains neglected.
Because the programs are administered through bureaucratic systems, they tend to treat people as cases to be managed rather than individuals to be restored. Social programs can unintentionally erode personal accountability and often lack personal investment and support.
This is why religious communities succeed where social programs fail: Government aid manages needs while religion changes behavior. True change is not imposed—it is chosen. When people accept accountability for their decisions, they can alter the course of their lives.
Religion treats aid as part of a community, not as a handout. When a congregation offers support, it does so within a relationship that expects growth, contribution, and accountability.
Change Happens in Community
James, a single father of two from Ranger, Texas, was struggling to make ends meet while facing unemployment and the daily challenges of raising his children alone. Desperate for help, he turned to St. Rita’s Church for assistance, as Catholic Charities Fort Worth reports.
At Catholic Charities Fort Worth, James enrolled in a program designed to provide financial assistance and equip him with the tools and guidance needed to navigate his challenging circumstances.
Perhaps the most important part of the program was the support network it offered—especially Dina, his program navigator.
“Sometimes he would call me crying,” Dina said, “but I felt like those were breakthroughs for him because he had somebody to at least, you know, confide in and not judge him. I think it gave him confidence and courage to know that somebody was there with him, walking that path with him.”
Catholic social services demonstrate how religious communities pair material assistance with emotional support. In 2024, the network of Catholic Charities agencies across the country served more than 28 million meals and provided emergency housing services to nearly 295,000 people.
Pope Benedict XVI taught: “The State which would provide everything, absorbing everything into itself, would ultimately become a mere bureaucracy incapable of guaranteeing the very thing which the suffering person, every person needs: namely, loving personal concern.” He emphasizes that true help and lasting change are rooted in love.
Ironically, churches are both communal and individual. As members grow and encourage others, they themselves are transformed.
The Need for Accountability
Government aid is built on eligibility, not community. People often receive benefits without a clear expectation of change, which can contribute to cycles of dependency rather than progress.
Temporary Assistance for Needy Families was created to promote work and self-sufficiency, but over time, its reach and incentives have weakened. In the 1990s, this program replaced the traditional welfare system. Since then, the share of families in poverty receiving cash assistance has declined dramatically.
Today, only 20 out of every 100 families in poverty receive Temporary Assistance for Needy Families support. Although work participation requirements exist, the national average work participation rate in the program was just 37.4% in 2023.
Because benefits are tied to eligibility and compliance rather than personal growth, accountability becomes procedural instead of relational.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints demonstrates how combining material assistance with accountability can help individuals move out of hardship. In 2024, the church spent $1.45 billion on humanitarian aid and welfare programs. The church has stated that its welfare program “is not only a way to help members in temporarily difficult circumstances, but also stresses self-reliance as a way of life, including education, health, employment, family home production and storage, family finances, and spiritual strength.”
Accountability paired with practical skill-building helps individuals escape difficult situations rather than remain trapped in them.
The LDS Newsroom shared Charlene Cummings’ firsthand experience with the welfare program. Having faced childhood abuse and living with a diagnosed mental illness, Charlene recently moved from a group home into her own apartment.
She credits her independence to the care and guidance of her local church community. Church members helped her develop practical skills like budgeting, savings, and meal planning. When financial gaps arose, the Church provided food and financial support. “The Church has become the family I’ve never had; they’ve taught me things I’d never learned,” Charlene said.
This is due to the LDS church’s emphasis on self-reliance.
Some may argue that government programs are essential because they provide large-scale, legally mandated, and widely accessible support. Yes, social programs can offer meaningful assistance to many people. However, religious communities often deliver aid in ways that are more personal, relational, and adaptable than bureaucratic systems, particularly when it comes to fostering long-term change.
In essence, social programs primarily provide material needs. While this may offer temporary relief, it does not create a sustainable path toward long-term success. Religious communities, however, offer the essential combination of love, accountability, and material support that leads to genuine progress.