Faith and compassion can guide communities through 2026

Willie Wilson argues that faith and compassion can help people recover from a difficult year and notes that a failure to extend Affordable Care Act subsidies could sharply raise health costs and reduce coverage for many in Illinois.

We are leaving a year the author describes as difficult for many, marked by rising costs, higher taxes, lost businesses and personal losses. The writer draws on a personal history as a sharecropper from Louisiana and as a business owner who faced $76 million in debt and says faith helped him persevere. He links that faith to a wider call for compassion in responding to hardship. The piece also raises policy concerns about health and nutrition programs that affect vulnerable people. Key points: - The author says 2025 brought economic strain, higher prices and an unpredictable business climate that led some small businesses to close. - He recounts a personal business crisis of $76 million in debt and describes relying on faith during that time. - The article reports that Congress’s failure to extend Affordable Care Act subsidies may lead to large premium increases in Illinois and that proposals in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act could reduce Medicaid coverage and cut Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits. - The writer invokes religious and civic teachings, including Romans and I Corinthians and a Martin Luther King Jr. reference, to argue for compassion, unity and leaders who prioritize people over weapons. Summary: The author emphasizes that faith, hope and compassionate action are needed to respond to economic and policy pressures that affect families and communities. Undetermined at this time.