More on our Lenten meat fast

At David Creech's suggestion, many of us ELCA World Hunger staff have gone vegetarian for Lent. (He explains why in previous posts, like yesterday's.) Admittedly, I'm on the "vegetarian lite" plan - only abstaining from meat on Wednesdays and Fridays. But even so, and even only a week into it, the experience has been educational for me.

I've never attempted to be vegetarian, but nor am I especially carnivorous. In fact, I find nothing appetizing about a steak or a roast; big slabs of meat kind of gross me out. At the same time, I really like most vegetables. I eat vegetarian meals regularly, though not exclusively, simply out of preference. So I didn't think skipping meat two days a week would be particularly difficult - or even different - and I liked the reasons for doing it. I agreed to participate without hesitation.

And this is where the role of meat in my life and culture began asserting itself. I myself had no hesitation about an experiment in vegetarianism. Not so my family. I am the primary meal-maker in the house, and there was swift resistance to the idea of several weeks of a vegetarian menu. Not keen on preparing different food for myself and them, we agreed on the two-day-a-week plan. Lesson one: there is social pressure for me to eat meat, even in my own home. Or maybe especially there, since unlike a restaurant, we don't each get exactly what we want every meal. My choices are tied to the choices of others.

I'm also learning that meat can be difficult to avoid. Compared to much of the world, meat here is cheap and plentiful, and therefore ubiquitous. It is on offer everywhere I go, and often, it's no more expensive than non-meat choices. Last Wednesday, I consciously looked for vegetarian choices on a menu and discovered that there weren't many. Lesson two: meaty meals can be easier to obtain than vegetarian ones. There's a cultural expectation and incentive to eat meat every day.

Then there's the challenge of remembering what day it is. It was sheer luck that I didn't eat meat yesterday. At lunchtime, I opened the refrigerator and saw some leftover soup. I considered it, but decided that a leftover beet burger sounded better, so I had that instead. It wasn't until I started thinking about dinner that I realized it was Wednesday and I almost ate Southwestern Chicken soup for lunch. Lesson three: when you live surrounded by a wide variety of plentiful food, it's easy to be careless about what you eat.

All of this awareness in only a week! It'll be interesting to see what else we learn - both individually and as a group - by the time Easter rolls around.

-Nancy Michaelis

Hunger Rumblings will periodically highlight the work of organizations that received financial support through an ELCA Hunger Education/Advocacy grant in 2008. We hope you are as inspired by these stories of our faith in action as we have been!

Tour de Revs – 100 Days for Hunger and Wellness
www.tourderevs.org
2008 ELCA World Hunger Education Grant Recipient

The 2008 ELCA Hunger Education/Advocacy grant was used to plan for the 2009 Tour de Revs Bicycle Ride, and to create a promotional DVD and other printed materials. From May 13 – August 20, three ELCA pastors from the West Virginia/Western Maryland synod will ride over 13,000 miles on a bamboo bicycle built for three to increase awareness of world hunger and generate financial support for the ELCA World Hunger Appeal. Tour de Revs will be making stops at each ELCA synod, the 2009 ELCA Youth Gathering and the ELCA Churchwide Assembly.

A prologue ride was taken to all the congregations of the West Virginia-Western Maryland Synod in September, 2008, with much success. In the evenings, most churches hosted a dinner and invited the community, resulting in contributions to ELCA World Hunger of over $2000 (some of those funds were also matched by Thrivent Financial for Lutherans). The prologue ride received a lot of press, allowing many people outside the Lutheran church to learn about ELCA world hunger efforts through local and state newspaper coverage. We expanded our audience further by posting a promotional DVD on YouTube where it has been viewed over 1,100 times, and by creating a group on Facebook that has gained over 200 members.

Two of the three Tour de Revs pastors were at Camp Luther, the synod’s youth summer camp. Interest in the ride and in hunger issues became a secondary part of the camp experience. Some campers gave much of their money brought from home to World Hunger instead of buying treats at the camp store as they had originally intended. At the end of the week, over $2000 had been raised – an amount made even more significant and touching given the average camper age was 13.

Tour de Revs and the grant from ELCA World Hunger have caused many churches in the WV-WMD synod to rethink their commitment to ending world hunger and increase their giving to ELCA World Hunger. One church indicated a planned increase in ELCA World Hunger giving of 400% for 2009! We hope that by the end of the Tour de Revs ride many more congregations around the country will respond in as generous a manner.

Connie Twedt
Tour de Revs

posted by Erin Cummisford

"I am resolved" resources

• I wrote an article about my 30-year journey to get Christmas gift-giving “right” for the December issue of Lutheran Woman Today magazine (visit www.tinyurl.com/SusieSays). This article won't be featured on the LWT Web site until December, but you can get a sneak peak. The online version doesn’t include the picture, so I’m sharing it here. My dad took this picture of me with my mom, my first book of prayers, and my beloved stuffed cat [un]creatively named “Kitty.”
• There are many resources to help "keep the reason for the season" during Advent and Christmas, notably Whose birthday is it, anyway? by our friends at Alternatives for Simple Living.
• Don't forget the Pentecost (see pages 2, 3, 10) and the Advent--Easter (see pages 3, 4, 5) editions of ELCA World Hunger's Congregation Connections
• The current issue of ELCA World Hunger's Top 40 Resources catalog highlights our Christmas card, resources connected to ELCA Good Gifts and God's Global Barnyard, and other gifts-and-giving helps.

Thankful blessings,
Sue Edison-Swift

ELCA on the Travel Channel

The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) is currently running two ads on the Travel Channel. You can view them here. According to the ELCA News Service:

"'We hope that through television, billboards and printmedia, members of the
ELCA will be equipped to own and tell this church's story, the story of what God
is doing in us and through us for the sake of the world,' Bangert said."

We in ELCA World Hunger especially like these two ads because in addition to telling what it means to be Lutheran, they also demonstrate that there are many ways to approach the problem of hunger. Again, from the ELCA News Service:

"One television spot -- "Hope" -- shows a woman quizzing her daughter as they
walk along a road near Yeumbeul, Senegal. It highlights Senegal Lutheran
Mission, which teaches women how to start their own businesses.

The other spot -- "Dignity" -- opens with workers setting tables in a fancy
restaurant. The "restaurant" is actually Trinity Lutheran Church, Bismarck,
N.D., and volunteers are preparing a banquet for homeless neighbors."

I've written before about the importance of girls education to reducing poverty and hunger. Teaching women how to start their own businesses falls along the same lines and addresses the 3rd Millennium Development Goal: Promote gender equality and empower women. Poverty is disproportionately prevalent among female-headed households. In many places, patriarchal societies make it difficult for women to own property, find work, or participate in decisions that effect them. Thus marginalized, they lack the means to provide for themselves or their children.

On the other hand, women who are able to earn their own incomes have more choices and greater ability to lift themselves out of poverty. What's more, this ability typically spills over to their children. Educated women are better positioned to tend to their children's health and educational needs, thus raising a future generation that is also healthier and more skilled. Beyond education, women with their own income have greater access to resources, and more power in their communities. The work the ELCA is doing in Senegal and other places to help women start their own businesses is critically important to ending hunger.

The ad about serving a meal to homeless neighbors is another part of the fight to end hunger. Education is critically important, but when you're hungry right now, simply eating is top priority. Without adequate food and nutrition, people are more vulnerable to illness, lack the calories to physically move through the day, and are less able to concentrate. Is it any wonder that hungry people are unable to work and, without work, unable to pay for shelter? In such cases, food aid is just as important as longer-term solutions like education. Again, the work of the ELCA is critically important to ending hunger.

It's a lot to think about during that next commercial break.

-Nancy Michaelis

LWF global food book is ready to pre-order

Food for Life: Recipes and Stories on the Right to Food

(North American version)

Global recipes, stories, and table blessings from the Lutheran World Federation

$14 plus shipping; available for pre-order

AF order number 978-6-0002-2174-4

Use this collection of recipes, stories, and table blessings to prepare global dishes for your family and congregation, and to highlight the Lutheran World Federation and ELCA World Hunger.

The global recipes, adapted for North American cooks, are categorized by the agricultural cycle (dishes for growing, planting, harvesting, and "hungry" seasons); the religious cycle (dishes for religious celebrations and observances); the life cycle (dishes for important days like birthdays, weddings, and funerals); and daily life (breakfast, lunch, dinner, desserts and snacks). This highly anticipated book, co-produced by the LWF, the ELCA, and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada, will be ready to ship by October 1, 2008.

Pre-order your copies by visiting www.augsburgfortress.org/elcahunger or http://tinyurl.com/69w8qh

Resources, Resources!

As promised, I am going to write a brief bit about two exciting new resources coming your way!

Two weekends ago, members of the ELCA World Hunger staff and a few knowledgeable and spirited hunger leaders from around the country met at Lake Chautauqua Lutheran Center in picturesque, upstate New York for a creative retreat. The retreat was held to brainstorm content for two new ELCA World Hunger resources—the name, which I’m sure will be catchy, is yet to be determined. I had the opportunity to attend as a participant and as the (ever-faithful and diligent) note taker!

Here's a picture of the group!









The two resources are meant to provide an adaptable, practical, easy-to-use, intergenerational, answer to the question:

“I’ve been asked to present for [insert your amount of time here] about world hunger to [insert your audience here]. What can or should I do?”

As concerned advocates for poverty ministries and world hunger, many of us are asked to present for an allotted amount of time to many differing audiences, be it the church youth group or at an adult forum during coffee hour. These two resources will be designed to help you organize that time! The resources will be unveiled at the upcoming ELCA World Hunger Leadership Gathering in Lakewood, Colorado, July 31-August 3, 2008.

Now that I’ve sold you on the purpose, you might be asking, “What topics are these resources going to address?” These first two, which will most likely be part of a series, will address two important topics:

What is ELCA World Hunger?
What is the connection between climate change and world hunger?

The first is fairly self-explanatory. It will help you to articulate key facts about world hunger and the work that ELCA World Hunger is doing with a “take away” to truly inspire your audience. The second resource will begin to address some of the important connections between climate change and world hunger.

To begin familiarizing yourself on connections between climate change, hunger, and poverty, please see the links below.

“Summary for Policy Makers,” by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, Work Group II.
http://www.ipcc-wg2.org/

“Adaptation 101: How climate change hurts poor communities-- and how we can help,” by Oxfam America.
http://www.oxfamamerica.org/newsandpublications/publications/briefing_papers/adaptation-101/Adaptation-101.pdf

Happy learning!

Climate Change and World Hunger

Two nights ago, CNN aired coverage of former Vice President and Nobel Laureate Al Gore’s endorsement speech of Sen. Barack Obama in Detroit, Michigan. Given Gore’s involvement in climate change work, he spent some time building the case that, indeed, “we need to change our policies on climate change.” He focused on what future generations might say when they look back and review our actions. Mr. Gore is quoted,

“I want [future generations] to look back on this historic year and ask: how did Americans in 2008 find the moral courage to rise and successfully solve a crisis that so many said was impossible to solve? How did they find the strength to change?”

I think it is interesting to consider a simple change from “Americans” to “Lutherans” or “Christians” or maybe even “Peoples of Faith.” In ELCA World Hunger and the ELCA Washington Office, we accept the scientific data that the Earth’s temperature is rising. We realize that people living in poverty, who may also be located in some of the world’s most vulnerable countries, are already seeing substantial impacts from global warming. We recognize that there are concrete connections between hunger, poverty, and climate change.

In a time such as this, I think we, as citizens, are fortunate because we have two, mainstream party presidential candidates, Sen. John McCain and Sen. Barack Obama, who both recognize and care about climate change. The candidates have different approaches to working against the problem, but both are thinking about it!

Similarly, I think we, as ELCA Lutherans, are blessed to have a church that is actively engaged in the discussion about climate change. We are blessed to have a prophetically concerned voice in Bishop Mark S. Hanson, who, in his April 2007 Earth Day statement said, “The poor and hungry of the earth are most vulnerable to rising sea levels, the spread of infectious disease, extending areas of drought, and other impacts of rising temperatures, many of which are already occurring.”

Perhaps, when the 7th or the 1000th generation looks back to our time, they will see intentional care for God’s creation and all of God’s children. Change will not be easy or quick, but it certainly seems to be dawning on the horizon. It is an exciting time to be alive and engaged in God’s good work and in God’s world!

Stay tuned for next week when I “reveal” exciting information about a new ELCA World Hunger resource, relating to climate change and hunger, for all of you hunger leaders and peace and justice workers out there!

For more information:

The ELCA Washington Office Advocacy Page on Environment
http://archive.elca.org/advocacy/issues/environment/default.asp

Sen. John McCain’s Climate Change Site
http://www.johnmccain.com/Informing/Issues/da151a1c-733a-4dc1-9cd3-f9ca5caba1de.htm

Sen. Barack Obama’s Energy and Environment Site
http://www.barackobama.com/issues/energy/

The solution lies within the problem

I did a Web search recently, typing in phrases like “definition of hunger.” It was interesting in the vast worldwide Web the lack of coherent information I found on such a broad topic. I received the obligatory links to Merriam-Webster.com and other encyclopedic or dictionary-based sites, but only one source (at quick glance) led me past a one- or two-line description of what hunger is.

I discovered a report entitled “The Concept and Definition of Hunger and Its Relationship to Food Insecurity” by David H. Holben, PhD, RD, LD on the Web site of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS). The NAS is an honor society of distinguished scholars—many of whom are Nobel Prize winners—doing scientific and engineering research to increase our general welfare. It was born during the Civil War and signed into existence by President Lincoln with the Act of Incorporation. Its research is valued so highly by the U.S. government that Congress and the White House have issued legislation and executive orders to reaffirm its unique role.

This report cites such definitions of hunger as “the uneasy or painful sensation caused by a lack of food” or “the recurrent and involuntary lack of access to food.” These definitions are not groundbreaking. But what strikes me is the lesser-discussed definition of hunger within the circles we walk: “a strong desire for something.”

Sometimes the solution lies within the problem.

Making the news again lately are the dirt cookies that people in Haiti eat because of the rising cost of food and people’s growing inability to afford it, turning to government protest and acts of desperation. So what is it in us that hungers to combat this problem? If we have a “strong desire” to end world hunger, then we cannot help but be hungry ourselves: hungry for justice, hungry for socioeconomic changes, hungry for progress in the movement to end world hunger once and for all!

Among those who work to end this pandemic, it is a fine line to walk to say we, too, should be “hungry.” But if we aren’t, then the people we advocate for will be.

--Aaron Cooper is Writer-Editor for ELCA World Hunger

How much of your budget do you spend on food?

I've been reading lots of interesting statistics recently. Combine them and they become sobering very quickly. An example:

From The New York Times: Indonesians spend 50% of their budgets on food, Vietnamese spend 65%, Nigerians spend 73%. The poorest fifth of American households spend 16% of their budgets on eating.

Here are some statistics from The World Bank: Global food prices are up 83% in the past year and a half or so, 36 countries are experiencing food security crises, and prices are expected to remain high through at least 2009.

So what happens when you put those facts together? What's a community to do when they already spend over half of their income on food, and the costs nearly double? Riots are one of the answers, a way of demanding help from governments and the attention of whomever is listening.

It makes me glad to be living in America. We certainly have our share of problems, and we can't be proud of how many of our citizens live in poverty and with food insecurity. But as recession looms (or arrives?) and we look to our government, they give us an ecomonic stimulus rebate check. I know it doesn't solve all of our problems, and arguably creates new ones. I know it doesn't reach everyone. But the majority of us are still eating, and many of us are still eating very well. I am grateful that my government is both able and willing to respond to an economic downturn.

The ELCA Conference of Bishops recently pledged to tithe their economic stimulus rebate checks to ministries that serve people living in poverty. I think this is a great idea! The intent of the checks is upheld; the money is injected back into the economy so that goods and services are purchased, so that people keep their jobs, earn paychecks, etc. In maintaining the economy, we strive to avoid the conditions that lead to riots. And if those of us who are able donate some or all of our rebates to poverty-related ministries (like ELCA World Hunger!), the money can be put back into the economy by organizations and people with more urgent needs than our own.

Food Force

One of the purposes of ELCA World Hunger is to help people learn about hunger and its root causes. And it seems to me, if we can teach people when they're young, so much the better! They will grow up with a better awareness of the world and their role in it. Which is why I think Food Force is such fun!

Food Force is a free computer game produced by the United Nations World Food Programme. It introduces a couple of causes of hunger, and spends time explaining some basics about the work of international aid organizations. All of this is done by making the player a member of a relief team responsible for getting food to hungry people in a fictional location. It's intended for kids ages 8 to 13, and I can easily see how it would be a hit with that age group. It's a bit too basic to really draw in older kids and adults, but having said that, I think most any age group would have fun with it once. I know I both enjoyed it and learned some things! And any age group could use it to open deeper discussion about causes of hunger, the nature of aid, and the roles of relief and long-term development.

Another thing I really like is the web site that goes with it. In addition to the game, there's information about hunger in the world, real anti-hunger initiatives, nutrition, and support for teachers who want to use Food Force in the classroom. Admittedly, I'm not sure kids are going to spend much time with the additional information, but for parents and teachers who want to create more depth and structure around a Food Force experience, it's really helpful.

So if you've got some time to kill this weekend, check it out! Just don't do it tonight from 8 to 9 p.m. - it's Earth Hour and you ought to turn your computer off along with your lights!

Earth Hour

Looking for something you can do to help the planet and make a statement about resource consumption? Turn off all of your lights on March 29 from 8:00 to 9:00 p.m. It's Earth Hour!

Earth Hour started in 2007 in Sydney, Australia, where residents and businesses (including the iconic Opera House) turned off their lights for one hour. According to the Earth Hour web site, the result was the equivalent of taking 48,000 cars off the road for a year!

This year the effort is going global. There are thousands of people from all over the world who have signed up to turn off their lights. Won't you join me?

The raising of our neighbor, Lazarus

The Gospel text for Sunday, March 8, "The Raising of Lazarus," is found in John 11:1--45. This has been one of my favorite texts for years, ever since I edited an LWT article. The author* wrote something along the lines of "Jesus saved Lazarus from premature death. Unlike Jesus, Lazarus will die again. As followers of Jesus, that's our challenge, too...to save our neighbors from premature death.

Until that day, this text spoke to me about what Jesus could do (raise people from the dead) and what Jesus was about to do (head to Jerusalem and the cross). Now, when I hear this passage of Scripture I also hear a reminder of what I can do. I am response-able for helping to save my neighbor from premature death.

Premature death: One child dies every five seconds from hunger-related causes. The average life expectancy of a female in Zimbabwe is 37 years; the average life expectancy of a female in the United States is 80 years.**

Life-saving difference: Literacy programs teach parents how to read, and scholarship programs help their children attend graduate from primary school and beyond; wells and reservoirs bring life-giving water to whole communities; animal and agriculture projects help families put food on the table and money in the bank. ELCA domestic hunger grants help congregations, organizations, and ministries help neighbors close to home meet today's needs and build a better future.

Response-able: We can give generously to the ELCA World Hunger Appeal. We can send advocacy e-mails. We can donate our time and volunteer. Throughout the year we can link our congregations to ELCA World Hunger and Disaster Response.

With God's grace and spirit: Our eyes open to the needs around us. Our arms open to embrace neighbors we'll never meet. Our hearts open to care about the people behind the statistics. Our imaginations open to see the possibilities of God. Our hands open in service and generosity.

*I believe the author to be the Rev. Phyllis Kersten, but my sources are unavailable for confirmation.
**The appendices at the back of Bread for the World Institute's annual reports are a great source for statistical information.

St. Luke's (Muskegon, MI) gets a star on the calendar

How fun! Visit the link the link below to see how St. Luke's Lutheran in Muskegon, Michigan has "webbified" the ELCA World Hunger 40-day plus calendar for congregational use during Lent. Thanks to Phil O. for passing this information on; feedback on resources is very helpful! Share what's working (or not working) in your congregation by posting a comment here or sending an e-mail to hunger@elca.org Blessings! Sue-s

This Lent we are using the 40 day plus calendar with the offering banks. We are using the recommended table prayers at our church meals each week and have incorporated it into our website (http://www.stlukesnortonshores.com/html/40_days_world_hunger.html) It has been well received and a great tool.
St. Luke's Lutheran Church
Muskegon, Michigan

3rd World Farmer

I found another interesting (and free!) hunger-related game on the Internet. It's called 3rd World Farmer. It's not particularly new, so you socially-minded gamers out there are probably rolling your eyes at this post. But as one who doesn't find the time to hang in the gaming world, I'm enjoying this discovery.

Well, maybe enjoying isn't the right word. The game simulates life for a family of African farmers. You make decisions about what crops to plant, equipment or livestock to buy, whether to pay for school and medicines, etc. Then you're told how your decisions turned out. Armed with that information, you tally up your household's money, equipment, and health, and you make new decisions for the next year. On the whole, there's lots of bad news and it's kind of frustrating. Yet I found I wanted to keep trying. Hope springs eternal, after all.

I learned about the game on gamepolitics blog, and as the author wrote, "It's not fair and it's not fun but perhaps that is the point." The creators (university students in Copenhagen) suggest using it to start discussions, and I can easily see how it could! They also suggest using it to spur action. I think it could do that, too.

Do you need a drink?

I had two opportunities to reflect on "going to the well" this weekend. On Saturday a good friend and I spent the day at the "Global Luther" conference held at Northwestern University. I followed most of the academic presentations and panels and my notes reflect aha moments, questions, and flashes of inspiration. The agenda allowed good breaks for lunch and dinner, and my friend and I made good use of them in Evanston. I arrived home after 10 p.m., feeling refreshed.

Sunday morning I served as lector at church...and the Gospel lesson, about the Samaritan woman who encounters Jesus at the well, was read by Pastor Kristi (narrator), Alpha (Jesus), and me (the Samaritan woman). It was a renewing service from start to finish.

Going to the well. Life-giving water. In the middle of hard, good work, sometimes we forget to take a drink. Sometimes we don't realize that we are parched.

For me "going to the well" meant attending a conference outside of my work life, having lovely meals with a friend, and soaking up the Spirit during Sunday morning worship. What does it mean for you? Are you in need of a drink?

Where is she tonight?

I spend some time most every week at the library. In the past month or so, I've noticed a homeless woman who seems to be spending quite a lot of time there, too. She's always in the same chair, with a couple of small bags in the chair next to her. Most days, she also has three or four books on the little table that swings from the arm of her chair. Last week, she was walking around in her stocking feet as her boots dried next to the baseboard heater. I remember thinking that it looked like a fairly pleasant way to spend the afternoon - probably a welcome respite. But then again, I thought, what do I know?

When I was at the library today, she was there too, with her nose in a book, just like me. It was 41 degrees or so outside at the time, positively balmy for Chicago in January. But now, at 9:30 p.m., my outdoor thermometer says it's 7, and with the windchill, I'm sure it's well below zero. The poor weatherman on TV is looking miserable as the snow blows sideways around him. And I'm sure he's only out for a few minutes!

I wonder where my fellow-reader is right now. These are the Chicago suburbs. There's not a series of warming centers like in the city. I know Journeys from PADS to HOPE offers shelter around here, as do PADS organziations throughout the suburbs. I hope she's able to get to one - or has some other warm place to go. And as I think about her, I'm 1) really grateful for my own warm house, 2) really glad that PADS is one of the organizations my church supports, and 3) fervent about my work with ELCA World Hunger, which is so dedicated to addressing root causes of hunger and poverty. No one should have to wonder where to find heat on a night like this.