As deliberations begin on the 2011 federal budget, ELCA advocacy staff wrote to members of Congress urging a number of priorities "that transform lives of poverty and hunger, and protect creation."

The letter acknowledged the "unprecedented challenges" facing the country and outlined Lutheran principles to guide congressional discussion.

Those included concern for people living in poverty; sufficient, sustainable livelihood for all; intergenerational responsibility for God's creation; and "putting our country back on solid fiscal ground."