Food Network: Four Ways to Feed the Hungry
The second thing Jesus asks of us is even easier—prayer. Just as Jesus called on the Creator to bless his offering, we too must never cease calling upon our God to bless and multiply our simple offering. We must continue to trust in the power of our Lord even as we place ourselves in the service of our sisters and brothers. It is not an either/or but a both/and mission.
The third step is perhaps the most difficult. It harkens back to Jesus’ original command to feed the hungry ourselves. (See Mt 14:16.) Go out among them, look into their eyes, and feed their hunger. Part of the struggle is simply finding the time and energy to do our part. Another part of the struggle is the confrontation with the scope of the problem and the overwhelming feeling that we can do little to change it. Mother Teresa was often asked, “How can one person make a difference with so many suffering people?” Her simple yet profound response, “Do the thing that is in front of you.” This is all that is required of us. God does not expect any of us to eliminate hunger single-handedly, but we are to care for the Lazarus on our doorstep. Almost every city has food pantries and soup kitchens, and most are in need of volunteers. Giving a little of ourselves allows us to be part of the solution. Not only is such ministry a great service to others, it is good for the soul. It is an eye-opening experience that not only reveals the magnitude of the problem with all its layers of complications, but bids us to say, “There but for the grace of God go I.”
Many have been creative in responding to Jesus’ fourth step. Inspired by Mother Teresa’s advice to do the thing in front of you, Ohio Congressman Tony Hall helped launch a program to do just that. Just as Jesus had the disciples gather the twelve baskets of scraps, a group in Dayton started a gleaning program. Gleaning comes from the command of our God to leave a remnant of the harvest for the poor (Lev 19:9–10; Deut 24:19–21). This group gathers leftover food that would otherwise go to waste and takes it to those who are hungry. Some stores were so inspired they began giving first fruits rather than table scraps.
The St. Patrick Center in St. Louis, Missouri, opened a restaurant staffed by cooks, waiters, and busboys who were formerly homeless. The restaurant attracts diners by asking local celebrities to serve as honorary maitre d’s.
Others have taken it a step further by adopting the old adage, “Give someone a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach someone to fish and you feed her for a lifetime.” Many governments, corporations, and groups are working to assist local people in the production of food. Some of these people have only their time and backs to give. They join organizations like the Peace Corp or the National Guard and offer a few years of their lives in service of their sisters and brothers, doing what is placed before them. Others are highly specialized with unique skill sets, like Dr. Linda Winston, a molecular biologist who could no longer ignore the images of starving children in sub-Saharan Africa. She helped pull together other scientists, founding EarthCovenant, who in turn partnered with Redemptorist Father José Collado and Caritas International in Niger to increase organic farming in West Africa, where the major threat is desertification, which robs soil of its fertility and structure. EarthCovenant is helping local people produce food without the use of chemical fertilizers, pesticides, or genetically altered seeds.