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Local is Global: #NoPlasticsforLent

The Word

“And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.”

Hebrews 10: 24-25

Local Is Global, too.

If you have found yourself overwhelmed by the scope and scale of the climate crisis, you are in very good company. A problem that spans the atmosphere, oceans, and the body of every living being on the planet is overwhelming. The good news, though, is that a problem that is so relentlessly global also has to be local.

The Long Haul

Pra. Andrea Baéz from Argentina spoke to us on the Second Sunday of Lent about her community’s seventeen years-long work to protect their environment from toxic mining run-off. Everything that Pra. Baéz had to say showed a deep love for her people and the ecosystems around her home in the city of Esquel, and at the same time brought an awareness and concern for everyone and thing downstream of her own community, all the way to the Atlantic coast. Her work protecting Esquel and the province of Chubut is also work protecting people many miles away, and even around the globe as she keeps toxins out of migrating fish who would carry them all the way across the ocean.

Community action to protect the climate, Minneapolis, 2019

Every Action Matters

There is no local climate action which is not also global, it’s the nature of the beast. That’s a hopeful thought for me. No one acting alone is up to the task of addressing the climate crisis, and no one’s work is insignificant. Wherever you are, however you begin, your work matters to the whole.

As Hebrews tells us, we are made to work together, to be together, to “stir up one another to love” and “not neglect to meet together”.

You are not alone. Your Lenten practice, your consumer choices, your political organizing makes a bigger difference than you can know. Thanks be to God.

Discussion questions:

  • What seemed most relatable from Pra. Andrea’s story? Least relatable?
  • How does the text from Hebrews encourage or challenge you today? Who has “stirred you up” to love? What communities encourage you when you feel overwhelmed?
  • What climate solutions have you been curious about? Passionate about? Intimidated by? What seems like a tangible step toward sustained climate action that you can take on/foster?
  • Andrea’s spirituality is fed by the collective action of her community taking care of one-another. How might your spirituality be fed by caring for creation?

 

Baird Linke is a candidate for Word and Sacrament Ministry with the ELCA, studying at Wartburg Theological Seminary. He’s passionate about ecotheology and good food. He lives in Minneapolis, MN and tries to spend as much time outside and moving with his dog as he can.

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Vaccine confidence guidance

Vaccination hopes, fears and falsehoods are around us in this time of heightened anxiety. A new resource, “‘All in’ Against COVID-19: FAQ and Guide to Supporting Vaccine Confidence for Faith and Community Leaders,” released March 1, 2021 by The Partnership Center, Center for Faith-based & Neighborhood Partnerships of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), was among those highlighted during a Faiths4Vaccines Roundtable Discussion in which ELCA advocacy staff participated.

“Many people in this country do not trust either the government or the medical establishment. They fear that this might be an experiment or somehow the government intruding on this. I’ve even heard people say that they’re afraid that a chip is going to be inserted in their arm when they get the vaccine. That’s not true,” says Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton in a Feb. 28 video. “The vaccine is safe, it’s effective, and it’s being made available to many, many, many people. So, I need you to talk to folks in your congregations… to convince them that this is safe, that it’s effective, and it will make it easier for us to return to life in person. …Be well, dear Church.”

The FAQ section of “’All in’ Against COVID-19” is reproduced here, and it can be downloaded and reviewed in its entirety from HHS.gov, including annotated citations. The Partnership Center lists other resources for your review.


‘All in’ Against COVID-19: FAQ and Guide to Supporting Vaccine Confidence for Faith and Community Leaders

 

Step One: Get and Share the Facts

COVID-19 and Risk Factors
  • COVID-19 most commonly spreads between people who are in close contact with one another (within about six feet or two arm lengths).
  • People with an “asymptomatic infection” (not feeling sick or showing symptoms) can spread the virus to others.
  • COVID-19 vaccines may keep you from getting seriously ill, or dying, should you become infected with the virus.
  • Older adults are at a greater risk of hospitalization or death if diagnosed with COVID-19.
  • Long-standing, systemic health and social inequities have put many people from disproportionately affected racial and ethnic groups at increased risk of getting sick and dying from COVID-19.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) About Vaccines

Vaccines train our immune system to recognize the virus that causes COVID-19 and make cells to fight it. With vaccines, we can build immunity to a disease without getting the disease.

Herd immunity means that enough people in a community are protected from getting a disease because they’ve already had the disease or because they’ve been vaccinated. Herd immunity makes it hard for the disease to spread from person to person, and it even protects those who cannot be vaccinated, like newborns or people who are allergic to the vaccine.

Some people get temporary side effects like fever, headache, or a sore arm after they take the COVID-19 vaccine. Side effects are usually mild and last only a few days. Side effects occur when the body is building protection against the virus.

You cannot get COVID-19 from any of the COVID vaccines now in use nor from those being tested in the United States as none of them contain the live virus that causes the disease.

Clinical trials showed that the vaccines are 94-95 percent effective, meaning they prevent 94-95 of every 100 vaccinated individuals from getting COVID-19.

A vaccine reduces the likelihood that you will get infected, so you’ll be less likely to infect others.

A small number of people have had allergic reactions, called anaphylaxis, after getting a COVID-19 vaccine; but they were treated and have fully recovered. The CDC provides recommendations on what to do if you experience an allergic reaction after getting a COVID-19 vaccination or any other vaccine.

Scientists are studying variants of the virus that cause COVID-19 to see whether existing vaccines will protect people against them. You can track US COVID-19 cases caused by variants.

People of color who get COVID-19 are at much higher risk for severe cases of and even death from the disease. It’s important that they are vaccinated as soon as possible, especially seniors of color.

As larger supplies become available, more people will be able to receive the vaccines. Most adults should be able to get the vaccine later in 2021. Stay tuned to the vaccine program in your state/county by using the locator or through your state or local health department to find out when, where, and how vaccines will be available in your community.

Scientists are still reviewing this question. We don’t yet know how long natural antibodies in people who have had COVID-19, or antibodies created as a result of vaccines, will be effective.

We don’t know how long the vaccine protects people, but clinical trials are actively investigating this. What we do know is that among people who were vaccinated in clinical trials of the vaccines now available, 94 to 95 people out of 100 did not get the disease.

Vaccine doses purchased with U.S. taxpayer dollars and are being given to the American people at no cost. Vaccination providers can be reimbursed for vaccine administration fees by the patient’s public or private insurance company or, for uninsured patients. No one can be denied a vaccine if they are unable to pay a vaccine administration fee.

Yes! Experts need to understand more about the protection that COVID-19 vaccines provide in real-world conditions before they recommend that we stop wearing masks or avoiding close contact with others. In the meantime, it will be important for everyone to continue using all the tools available to help stop this pandemic.

    • Wear a mask over your nose and mouth
    • Stay at least six (6) feet away from others
    • Avoid crowds
    • Avoid poorly ventilated spaces
    • Wash your hands often

 

Step Two: Get Vaccinated

There is a limited supply of COVID-19 vaccines currently available; however, the supply will continue to increase in the weeks and months ahead. It is expected that most of the American population will have access to the vaccine by fall 2021.

  • When can I get a vaccine?

CDC makes recommendations for who should get the vaccine first, then each state makes its own plan of distribution. http://bit.ly/VaccFacts-5

  • How much do I have to pay?

Vaccines are free to the public. http://bit.ly/VaccFacts-6

  • Where can I get a vaccine?

Use the CDC’s vaccine locator or contact your state or local health department to find out when, where, and how vaccines will be available in your community. http://bit.ly/VaccFacts-7

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Lenten Reflection 3: What Will It Take to End Hunger?

Justice

“The direct service of providing filter pitchers and the organizing work of bringing demands to our alderpersons, health department and mayor all lead us back to the font, where we stand with people at the holy water that makes us God’s children and sends us out to serve God’s justice.”

 

If we don’t listen carefully to Jesus’ words, we might think of him as meek and mild-mannered, the patient and perfect willing sacrifice, who admonishes his followers to turn the other cheek and go the extra mile. Some might even think we are called to be docile and, at times, subservient. In many forms of American Christianity, believers are encouraged to acquiesce to their circumstances, to accept their lot in life with, if not good cheer, at least indifference. In fact, for some Christians, protest or rage must be reserved only to chastise “sinners” for their “immoral” ways.

If there is a story from the Gospels that challenges this picture of Jesus and Jesus’ followers, it may be the story from this week’s reading of Jesus clearing the temple in Jerusalem. The man who would stand reserved before Pilate here is described by the author of John’s Gospel as angry, wielding a whip and overturning tables. Clearly, even for the normally peaceful Son of God, there are some things that are too much to bear in silence.

The temple was the center of worship for the community in Jesus’ time. Here, the faithful would gather for holy days, as Jesus did in the story, or to offer the required sacrifices. The temple was also a center of commerce, with merchants selling wares to travelers outside the court. Because Roman money bore the likenesses of Roman leaders, it could not be used in the temple and needed to be exchanged to pay the temple tax, a fee assessed on all who entered.

There is some debate about the fairness of the moneychangers. While some writers claim the moneychangers were greedy or predatory, others note that, in general, the moneychangers at the temple dealt fairly with their customers. In any event, they were a necessary fixture at the temple, as were the merchants selling animals for sacrifice. Wealthy Jews would purchase sheep or cattle whereas working-class or poor Jews would opt for cheaper animals, such as doves. To say that the system was necessary is not to say that it was fair. Even if the moneychangers did not engage in outright exploitation, the temple tax was especially felt by people living in poverty, for whom even a half shekel would have been more than they could afford. When added to the cost of sacrificial animals, the financial burden for people in poverty was high.

What drove Jesus to fashion a whip and erupt in anger was not the mere presence of commerce — after all, both the tax and the animals were necessary — but the unequal burden borne by the very people for whom the temple should have been caring. What inspired Jesus’ rage was not the temple or trade but the way these two systems combined to leave people in need at a disadvantage, day in and day out. This injustice is simply too much for anyone to remain docile. Docility in the face of injustice is complicity.

Still today, an unequal burden continues to be fostered by systems and structures that leave many communities bearing the marks of injustice — sometimes in the very bodies of the people.

We’ve known for decades the dangers associated with lead, a metal that for many years was used in plumbing and paint. This hazardous metal can cause severe, long-term effects, including stunted brain development, anemia and kidney damage. As older pipes corrode, lead can seep into drinking water, and particles from paint in older homes can be inhaled. It can become part of the very water we drink and the air that we breathe, making it hard to keep adults and children safe. Over the last decade, lead contamination has been found in water systems in Flint, Michigan, Newark, Detroit, Baltimore, Chicago and many other cities, both large and small. It has been found in homes, hospitals and schools and has been recognized as a national problem across the United States.

But that is not to say that the burdens of unsafe water are shouldered equally by all communities. As the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have found, African American children are nearly three times as likely as white children to be exposed to lead. Some studies have found the prevalence of lead poisoning in some Black and Latino neighborhoods to be as high as 90%, which means that as many as nine in 10 children have tested positive. Children living in poverty are also at higher risk, with higher rates of exposure and fewer means to address lead poisoning to prevent long-term consequences. This can create a vicious cycle. Families living in hunger and poverty are more vulnerable to environmental risks that can lead to high health care costs, illnesses that keep adults home from work, and developmental delays that can inhibit children’s education — the very stressors that contribute to long-term, generational hunger down the road.

At Hephatha Lutheran Church in Milwaukee, Wis., a city with high rates of both poverty and lead exposure, leaders are working hard to keep children safe. The church, with support from ELCA World Hunger, provides lead-free kits with water filters, tape and mops. The tape can cover lead paint that is chipping, and the mops clean up dust from the paint so that children don’t inhale it. The church also helps adults learn about the dangers of lead.

But filters, tape and mops can go only so far. The issue of lead — and the crisis of unsafe water, more generally — is an issue of justice. Environmental policies, housing regulations and health care access are all woven together when it comes to keeping people safe from lead poisoning. That’s why Hephatha also worked with neighbors to start an advocacy group to talk with legislators about keeping the community safe. At a deeper level, access to clean water is not just a matter of what comes out of our taps but what goes into our laws. It’s about the community we live in and not just the water we drink.

Pastor Mary Martha of Hephatha links this work to the calling of the church. Advocacy and education “[lead] us back to the font, where we stand with people at the holy water that makes us God’s children and sends us out to serve God’s justice.”

In the Gospel reading, Jesus recognizes the necessity of institutions such as the temple and commerce. But he also believes these same institutions should be held accountable for how people in need experience them. In Milwaukee, God is at work through a community driven by hope that things can change — and guided by the wisdom that what we need is not just clean water but justice.

As we continue in our Lenten journey, learning about the tools we will need to share in God’s work of ending hunger, the story of God at work in Milwaukee reminds us that the future we seek is a world where “justice will roll down like waters” — clean, safe, lead-free and life-giving waters accessible to all.

Reflection Questions

  1. Think, share or journal about a time when you felt that something was unfair or that you were at a disadvantage. How did you react? What did you do to try and change the situation? What powers resisted attempts at change?
  2. Jesus’ display of anger in the temple is often categorized as righteous anger or anger over mistreatment, insult or the malice of another. When can anger or even rage be a productive emotion?
  3. How can you identify anger that is helpful and not harmful? How can you use anger in a productive way, to help your neighbors in need?
  4. Where is there a need for justice in your community? What will a “just world” look like in your neighborhood?

Prayer

Gracious and loving God, at the font you wash us in water and the word, and name us all your beloved children. With that love, inspire our prayer, work and generosity, that all people may have an abundance of clean, safe water. Amen.

Learn more and follow ELCA World Hunger’s 40 Days of giving throughout Lent by visiting ELCA.org/40days.

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March 7, 2021–What Belongs?

Jeremy Serrano, Concord, CA

Warm-up Questions

  • Do you have symbols that are important to you? If so, what are they?
  • What do those symbols mean to you?
  • How do you show they are important?

What Belongs?

Some people watch the Super Bowl to see the best football teams play each other, but for others it is all about the commercials. The 2021 broadcast was no exception. One commercial from a car company hit all the right points for many in the audience, yet left others feeling uneasy. 

It begins with a wide shot of a long road and man driving down it. After a few seconds of light music in the background, a voice says, “There’s a chapel in Kansas standing on the exact center of the lower forty-eight. It never closes. All are more than welcome to come meet here in the middle. It is no secret that the middle is a hard place to get to lately.” As sweeping shots of Americana imagery glide across the screen of wheat fields, trains, and houses (all with the car companies product in them, of course), the voice continues, “We just have to remember the very soil we stand on is common ground, so we can get there. We can make it to the mountaintop through the desert, and we will cross this divide. Our light has always found its way through the darkness. And there’s hope on the road up ahead.” It is as feel good as a commercial can get, drawing on a sense of collective nostalgia for small town rural America. 

This commercial has some beautiful and touching imagery, and the sentiment behind the speaker’s words is worth pondering. However, for the Christian, there is one image worth questioning. A panning shot inside the chapel shows a lectern with candles in the corner of the room, and, on the back wall, a map of the United States painted as the American Flag. Over the map is a black cross. The two symbols are conjoined as the main focus of the worship space. 

Discussion Questions

  • What does the American flag mean to you?
  • What does the cross mean to you?
  • Do we risk conflating American citizenship with our faith when we mix national symbols with religious ones?

Third Sunday in Lent

Exodus 20:1-17

1 Corinthians 1:18-25

John 2:13-22

(Text links are to Oremus Bible Browser. Oremus Bible Browser is not affiliated with or supported by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. You can find the calendar of readings for Year B at Lectionary Readings.)

For lectionary humor and insight, check the weekly comic Agnus Day.

Gospel Reflection

We tend to think of Jesus as more tame and subdued than the author of John shows in today’s lesson. Nevertheless, Jesus enters the temple just before the celebration of Passover and shows that not everything belongs in a worship space. Jesus’ visceral reaction to the sellers and money changers—driving out the animals, pouring out the money collected, turning over the tables—indicates what he feels is appropriate in that space. Just in case his actions are unclear, he says “Take these things out of here! Stop making my Father’s house a market place!” (John 2:16, NRSV).

The main people involved are the money changers. They are a for-profit group who exchange foreign coins into local currency. Worshippers need to buy the animals for the prescribed ritual sacrifices of the temple, and so their services are much needed. 

The timing in John’s gospel is just before the Passover. The celebration of Passover is a multi-day festival which remembers the time God “passed over” the houses of the Israelites during the last of the ten plagues on the land of Egypt (Exodus 11-12). Passover has been one of the most important holidays for the Jewish people since the time of Moses. 

The setting of Jesus’ outburst is the temple. The temple was more than just a local church in a neighborhood; it was the epicenter of Judaism at the time. The Temple was the center, not only of worship and music, but also of politics and society.  It was the central place of both celebration and mourning. But, most important, God promised that it would be the dwelling place of God among the people.

Jesus’ wrath is not directed against those participating in or leading worship, but against those detracting from it. As evidenced by Jesus’ actions and words, he views the money changers and sellers as desecrators of the temple. Jesus says, “ Stop making the house a market place!” (John 2:116b).

Jesus’ prophetic action calls for the worship of God to not be an activity married to commerce. In this action, he shows that some things are not useful for worship, nor is everything that we do in our places of worship worthy of being there.

What incensed some of the 2021 Super Bowl audience with the car commercial was the presence of national symbols in a worship space. Two thousand years ago Jesus used an important holiday to show that not everything is acceptable in the worship space, even if it is useful. In the synoptic versions of this story, Jesus says, “My father’s house shall be called a house of prayer.” Jesus shows that the people working in the temple forgot to make the main thing the main thing.

Discussion Questions

  • Are there any symbols or activities that don’t belong in a Christian worship space? Why not?
  • How do we decide what symbols and activities belongs in the worship space?
  • Do you think Jesus would cleanse any of our churches?  If so, what would he cleanse?

Activity Suggestions

  • While you are online this week, notice where national symbols and religious symbols are intertwined. Pray for both our nation and the Church. 
  • Take a moment to read the ELCA resource, “Are Flags Appropriate in church?”
  • In worship this Sunday, identify as many symbols you can in worship, including clothing, images, and statues.  Look up what those symbols mean. Or call your pastor and talk to them about it.
  • Imagine designing a worship space for your community with only 5 items or symbols.  What would you choose and why?

Closing Prayer

Holy God, you sent Jesus to guide us in all things related to our faith and lives in you.  Show us those things that bring you glory and give us wisdom, through your Holy Spirit, concerning the things that need to be cleansed from us and our communities today. Amen. 

 

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A Letter of Solidarity from Brazil

In the spirit of accompaniment,  ELCA companion church Igreja Evangélica de Confissão Luterana no Brasil (IECLB) sent a gift to Lutheran Disaster Response to support our response to the winter storms in Texas. The following excerpt is from a letter written by Mauro B. de Souza, the vice president of IECLB to Gustavo Driau, an ELCA regional representative for Latin America and the Caribbean. We are grateful for the generosity and companionship of IECLB. 


Dear Gustavo,

We believe the world is turning dark and cold every day. Darkness and cold are brought not only by climate change or the COVID-19 pandemic, but mostly by oppressive systems that make people believe individualism, selfishness, and hatred are the best ways to solve problems. The Church of Jesus Christ does NOT buy into that. Instead, we believe solidarity, communion, and togetherness should be our only possible response. That is what we have been witnessing in the work of the ELCA and its working units around the world.

Jesus says, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” Following Jesus brings the possibility, the invitation, and the opportunity to be light. At the IECLB, we want to be the light in whatever we do. Of course, we fail more often than not. But we keep on trying.

We many know what it know it means to have no access to running water in Brazil. But it is hard for us to imagine what it means to have frozen water pipes. We just cannot imagine people dying from cold.

The resources we send are accompanied by our prayers. We hope people in need and suffering may feel a little warmer. We hope they know they are not alone.

As a partner of the ELCA, the IECLB has many times over been blessed by all kinds of resources. Right now, we feel we can offer this support. Like other Latin American churches, we want to be seen as small candle lights, shining and pointing to Jesus Christ.

Long story to say: May God bless your work and help the people in need in the cold of Texas. May God strengthen us all so that hearts get warmer and warmer, all over the world.

Sincerely, in the name of the Presidency of the IECLB,

P. Dr. Mauro B. de Souza, Vice-President

 

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Lenten Reflection 2: What Will It Take to End Hunger?

Honesty

“For [God] did not despise or abhor the affliction of the afflicted; [God] did not hide [God’s] face from me, but heard when I cried” (Psalm 22:24).

 

When Kamini Dhurvey was just a child, her mother died and her father remarried. Her stepmother abused Kamini, and her father did not step in to protect her from his new wife. Unprotected and unsafe, Kamini left home when she was older and eventually found a place to rent and a job in a small shop.

Even out on her own, she did not feel safe. Kamini feared that the landlord who owned her residence would hurt her. The security she tried to find in leaving home eluded her. Through a door-to-door survey, Kamini learned about Naari Shakti, a project of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Madhya Pradesh in India supported in part by ELCA World Hunger. Naari Shakti works for gender equality through advocacy for women’s rights, provides training in tailoring and computer skills, and offers emergency medical support to girls and women in vulnerable situations. The project also provides housing assistance and psychosocial support to those who need it.

At the Naari Shakti project office, Kamini found a safe space to tell her story and people who would welcome her. With counseling and support from the project, she was able to leave the place she was renting and move into a hostel for girls. The project later arranged for Kamini to stay in a women’s rehabilitation center, where she is living and pursuing her studies.

Before Kamini moved to the rehabilitation center, project staff tried to contact her father. But her father told the staff that he no longer wanted anything to do with her and that it was up to her to live her life as she wanted. She was no longer welcome in her father’s home. With nowhere else to go, Kamini has found a home at the center. The Naari Shakti program provides her a safe place to live, books and additional support for her education.

Around the world, 690 million people face hunger, and each of them has a story to tell. Hunger is rarely just a matter of lacking food. Rather, it is often a pernicious and persistent symptom of much deeper pain, of much deeper need. Unfortunately, stories like Kamini’s are not uncommon. For women and girls around the world, abuse, violence and inequality lie behind the higher rates of hunger they face. Globally, women are 13% more likely than men to experience food insecurity and almost 27% more likely to be severely food insecure. They are also more likely to be victimized by violence, more likely to do work with little or no pay, and less likely to have access to credit to start a home or business.

If we are going to end hunger, we have to start by being honest about the stories of pain, exploitation, injustice and violence that lie behind it. We must start with honesty about what hunger is and what it is not.

Hunger is not accidental. It is the result of inequality, marginalization and injustice that inhibit one’s ability to access the resources one needs to live.

Hunger is not merely the physical sensation of going without food. It is an insidious reality that affects the whole person — physically, emotionally, psychologically and socially.

Hunger is not merely a calculation of calories. It is a measure of the extent to which a person is constrained in the pursuit of their own well-being.

Ending hunger means being willing to enter into the sometimes painful stories of neighbors in need. It requires that we accompany one another down difficult roads with honesty about what we may find. Lent commemorates Jesus’ journey to the cross and thus demands of us honesty about the death-dealing pervasiveness of sin that would crucify truth in order to silence it. This makes Lent an appropriate season to consider what it will take to arrive at the vision of a just world where all are fed. Lent, after all, is about honesty. In this season, we are called to be honest about the depths of our sin, including the many ways that we, as the church, have fallen short in meeting the needs of our neighbors. Lent is about being honest with ourselves and with others about the depth of need in our world.

And Lent is also a season to be honest about the God who calls to us. In the psalm for this second week in Lent, the psalmist rejoices that God “did not despise or abhor the affliction of the afflicted … [nor] hide [God’s] face from me, but heard when I cried” (Psalm 22:24). In the Gospel story of Jesus’ transfiguration, we hear the voice of God echo over the mountain: “This is my Son, the Beloved; listen to him!” (Mark 9:7).

The honesty to which we are called compels us to confront the pain of the world with a vision to transform it. Both the pain of the world and the vision to transform it are clear in the stories of Kamini’s life and the Naari Shakti project. It is the difference between the father who rejects her and the God who welcomes her. To know ourselves as claimed, named and welcomed by God is an act of truth-telling about who we really are — and how much that may differ from who the world thinks we can be. Abuse and rejection are part of Kamini’s story, and accompanying her means being honest about that. But they aren’t the whole of her story, and accompanying her means being honest about that too.

The honesty formed by faith compels us to tell the truth about hunger — and the truth about the God who promises its end. God’s promise of a just world where all are fed pulls us into the world to confront sin in all its forms, refusing to hide from affliction and yet refusing to let affliction be the end of the story for ourselves, our neighbors or our world. It is the honesty of an Easter people, who can deny neither the reality of the cross nor the reality of the empty tomb. To end hunger, we will need to be honest with ourselves about both.

Reflection Questions

  1. How have you experienced or felt God sustaining your strength in challenging circumstances?
  2. What are some things you hunger for other than food (such as companionship, love and acceptance, or justice, clean air and water)? Does your community provide these things? How might you and your community better provide things that feed people in mind, body and spirit?
  3. In the Naari Shakti project, Kamini found the resources she needed to develop her strengths and make meaningful choices for herself and her future. How does your church create opportunities for neighbors to develop their strengths and make meaningful choices for themselves and your community?
  4. What kind of honesty will it take to end hunger in your community? Where is there a need for truth-telling and truth-seeking when it comes to the challenges you and your neighbors face?

Prayer

Gracious and loving God, through the power of the cross and the glory of the empty tomb, you bring us the truth of your love for us and for all people. Help us to live into that truth and to share it with the world. Amen.

Learn more and follow ELCA World Hunger’s 40 Days of giving throughout Lent by visiting ELCA.org/40days.

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Cut child poverty in half? It could happen

By Ryan Cumming, ELCA Program Director for Hunger Education*

The United States is one of the wealthiest countries in the world, and its economy is by far the largest. Yet, the U.S. has one of the highest rates of child poverty among developed countries, according to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, in 2019 (the most recent year for data), 14.4% of children – about 10.5 million children – in the U.S. were living in poverty. This is tremendous progress from 2010, when 22% of U.S. children were living in poverty.

God richly provides for our daily bread — the earth can produce enough to feed everyone. Yet many still go hungry. As members of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and through our gifts to ELCA World Hunger, we commit to pursuing a world of justice where all are fed. There is much to be done, and new federal proposals about refundable tax credits may be a sweeping policy change that could do more to lower childhood poverty than any other policy measure available.

 

Tax Credits and Poverty

A refundable credit is a tax credit that is refunded to the taxpayer no matter the amount of a taxpayer’s liability. Current examples with refundable tax credit features are the American opportunity tax credit, Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and Child Tax Credit (CTC).

While public safety net programs such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) or Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) often get more attention, refundable tax credits actually have a larger positive impact on poverty. In fact, the U.S. Census Bureau estimates that refundable tax credits lifted more than three times as many people out of poverty than SNAP and TANF combined.

There are a lot of reasons for this, especially the reality that SNAP and TANF have strict eligibility requirements and often provide benefits that aren’t sufficient to lift many people’s income above the poverty threshold. But even taking this into account, it’s difficult to overstate the positive impact that refundable tax credits, especially the EITC and the CTC, have had.

In 2019, refundable tax credits helped 7.5 million people avoid poverty in the U.S. Tax credits also reduced child poverty by nearly 5.5%. This means 4 million children in the U.S. were prevented from falling into poverty because of these provisions alone.

When combined with EITC that many states provide, the impact is even larger. The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP) estimates that these refundable tax credits, taken together, lifted 10.6 million people out of poverty, including 5.5 million children, and helped make another 17.5 million people, including 6.4 million children, less poor in 2018.

The tax credits also impact some of the root causes of long-term risk of poverty. Tax credits like the EITC and the CTC have been linked to a lowered risk of low birthweight for babies, a greater likelihood of a pregnancy going full-term and an increased likelihood of breastfeeding.1 **Low birth weight is a significant predictor of infant mortality and increases the risk of negative health and economic outcomes even into adulthood.2 Other research has found that increases in tax credits can raise student test scores, increase the probability of attending college, raise future earnings, and improve the quality of students’ future neighborhoods.

In short, it is difficult to exaggerate the positive impact refundable tax credits can have on children, families and communities now and well into the future.

 

How Do Refundable Tax Credits Work?

Refundable tax credits allow workers to deduct a certain amount from their annual income tax and then receive a portion of that amount back if the credit is greater than the tax that they owe. In essence, a worker can claim a credit on their taxes and then receive a refund on a portion of that credit. Thus, they have two functions: rewarding work and reducing poverty, especially child poverty.

The Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and the Child Tax Credit (CTC) were first adopted in 1975 and 1997, respectively.

The EITC is available to workers with low to moderate incomes. The amount varies depending on income, marital status and number of children. It grows as a worker makes more money, until it phases out as a tax filer reaches a certain income threshold. For single filers with no children, for example, the maximum income is quite low: $15,820 for the 2020 tax year. Married couples who file jointly and have three children become ineligible when their household income reaches $56,844 (again for tax year 2020). The maximum credit a household can claim varies, too, from $538 (no children) to $6,600 (three or more children). If the credit is greater than what a taxpayer owes in taxes, the IRS refunds the balance to them.

The CTC works similarly, though there are some important differences. The maximum credit a household can receive is $2,000 per child under age 17. If a tax filer has qualifying dependents who are not their children, the maximum credit is $500. To be eligible for the CTC, a tax filer must have at least $2,500 in income. The credit begins to phase out once a single filer reaches $200,000 in income ($400,000 for married couples filing jointly). Like the EITC, if the amount of the credit is greater than the amount a filer owes in taxes, a portion of the credit will be refunded, which again, increases the worker’s overall income.

 

Problems with the EITC and CTC

Despite the impressive impact these credits can have on poverty, there are some challenges with them. With the EITC, the credit and the income limit are both very low for single filers without children. According to the CBPP, about 5.8 million childless adults between 18 and 65 years old are pushed into poverty by the amount they owe in taxes, in part because they are either ineligible for the EITC or because the credit is so meager ($538 in 2020).

The CTC, on the other hand, sometimes falls short of helping families with very low incomes. Workers who earn minimum wage, for example, qualify only for a relatively small portion of the full credit. And if they lose their jobs or wages, as many did due to the COVID-19 pandemic, they can also lose both the EITC and the CTC – right when they may need them the most. Another issue with the CTC is that qualifying dependents must have a social security number, which can leave some noncitizen families ineligible.

 

Current Proposals

The U.S. House Ways and Means Committee is currently considering legislation that would expand and improve the EITC and the CTC.

  • For the CTC, the proposed legislation would make the full credit available to children in families with low earnings or no earnings and would increase the credit from $2,000 per child to $3,000 per child and $3,600 per child under six years old. These increases would begin to phase out as workers earned incomes above $112,500 (single filers) or $150,000 (married filers, filing jointly). The proposal would also expand the CTC to include 17-year-olds as qualifying dependents.

These proposed CTC changes alone would lift an estimated 4.1 million children out of poverty in a single year. They would also lift an additional 1.1 million children out of deep poverty (defined as income below 50% of the poverty threshold). That would mean a reduction of child poverty in the U.S. of 40%.

  • The proposal would also make needed changes to the EITC, particularly for single workers without children, who remain among the only groups whose tax burdens actually drive them into poverty. Under this proposal, the current maximum credit available to childless workers would increase from $538 to about $1500, and the income limit (at which childless workers become ineligible) would increase from $15,820 to over $21,000.

This EITC change would help raise incomes of the lowest-income earners by about three percent. This would benefit about 17.4 million working, childless adults in the U.S., according to the CBPP.

Sen. Mitt Romney has also proposed expanding the CTC, though his proposal suggests making up for the lost tax revenue by eliminating TANF and the Child and Dependent Care Tax credit. In this proposal, the current CTC would be replaced by a flat tax credit of $250 per month for each child between 6 and 17 years old, and $350 per month for children younger than six, including for four months prior to the child’s birth. An analysis by the Niskanen Center estimates that Sen. Romney’s proposal would reduce child poverty by a third and cut deep poverty for children in half.

 

Where to Go Next

While focus is often on public assistance programs, a wealth of research shows the important role tax credits such as the EITC and the CTC can play in reducing poverty now and in the future. Analyses of the proposals put forward to expand these credits suggest that cutting child poverty in half is entirely possible – with political will and careful legislation.

“Empowered by God, we continue to act, pray, and hope that through economic life there truly will be sufficient, sustainable livelihood for all” (ELCA social statement Sufficient, Sustainable Livelihood for All). In faithful hope, we trust that a just world where all are fed is not just possible but promised. With advocacy3 for justice, that vision can become one step closer to reality.

 


* Ryan P. Cumming, Ph.D., is the program director for hunger education with ELCA World Hunger. He can be reached at Ryan.Cumming@elca.org.

[1] Hoynes, Miller, and Simon, 2015, Markowitz et al., 2017, and Hamad and Rehkopf, 2015.

[2] Markowitz et al., 2017, and Johnson and Schoeni, 2011.

[3] Use the ELCA Action Alert to contact lawmakers about EITC and CTC in current COVID-19 relief consideration.

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Justice Alongside Indigenous Peoples : #NoPlasticsforLent

‘Wild’ Places

I have been interested in environmental activism, indigenous justice, and decolonization since I was a kid (I was a nerdy and revolutionary child, what can I say?). It became apparent over the course of my time in college and grad school. During my MDiv/MA program, I took a class on Environmental Law and Policy. One of the professors engaged us in a discussion about the early days of environmental policy and the focus on the US’ imagination about wilderness and the Muir-inspired notion of preserving ‘wild’ places.

Taina on a walk on the grounds of Santa Rita Abbey in Patagonia, AZ- the traditional land of the Hohokam, Sobaipuri, Ópata, Tohono O’odham, and O’odham Jeweḍ peoples- on a trip for a class entitled, “Ecotones of the Spirit.” She writes “we spent time with tribal communities and other organizations working towards sustainable/indigenous food systems and immigrant justice on the border. I felt the spirit of the land, inspiring me to take this photo.” March 2017.

Somehow (it was me, I did it) the conversation became about the fact that “wilderness” doesn’t exist. Indigenous peoples have been engaging with, traveling over, and altering the surface of the Earth since before European arrival; the ‘noble savage’ cliché in popular imagination came about because the white settlers didn’t perceive changes Native people made to the environment. Because there were no brick buildings, churches, gravel roads, or vehicles, the alterations were invisible to their eyes.

Indigenous Land Intervention

There are many cases of ecosystems suffering from the absence of indigenous intervention, including the increasing frequency and intensity of forest fires and wildfires in California. The reason? Climate change, sure. But until recently, the Chumash and other California tribes were prohibited from performing controlled burns of accumulating debris on the forest floor as their ancestors did for generations.

Plain in Patagonia, AZ

My explanation receives confused looks from the class, and a dismissive comment from my professor. “I’m unaware of any policy implemented to prevent such interactions, and I don’t know about that history.” I’m certain he wasn’t trying to be rude. He’s a cool guy and I respect him, but it continues to bother me that someone with so much education and experience in environmental law would perpetuate the colonizer narrative about ‘wilderness.’ At the same time, it’s not surprising considering his racial and socioeconomic status.

Reclaiming Rejected History

It’s important for me to converse with white folks about the reality of rewritten or rejected history by colonizers and how that affects what they believe about indigenous peoples and land use. One of my goals is decolonizing educational spaces and reclaiming history as part of the work of environmental justice- working to ensure communities of color and other historically oppressed communities’ health and well-being are no longer ignored or put in harm’s way through the creation or implementation of environmental regulations.

Christian Relationship to Creation

Christianity has a lot to answer for in this regard, and therefore Christians should be involved in seeking environmental justice alongside indigenous peoples. The historic Christian propaganda of “Manifest Destiny,” based in the Doctrine of Discovery (a papal document declaring Christian Europeans’ divine right to seize land from non-Christian Natives via killing, enslaving, and/or converting them) came about because of the white colonial conceptualization of “wilderness.”

Engaging Creation on a hike in Hanging Rock State Park in NC on the traditional lands of the Saura and Tutelo people. 2017.

Historic efforts to tame the North American wilderness resulted in suppression of traditional ecological knowledge and practices. Many Indigenous communities are working to reclaim their sovereignty and their ancestral relationship with the land. Christians can learn from the traditional conceptualization of relationship with the land, and there are notable efforts by theologians to do so. A Christian theological ethic that incorporates our relationality with Creation into our spiritual imagination could turn us from the colonial idea of “wilderness” to understanding ourselves as part of a sacred community.

 

I pray that the practice of #NoPlasticsForLent brings us to a place of reflection, repentance for the perpetuation of colonialism, and prayer for environmental and racial justice. Amen.

 

Reflection / Discussion Questions:

1) What are some environmental justice issues that you are passionate about? How does your faith inform how you respond to these issues?

2) What spiritual practices have helped deepen your relationship with creation in the past? What practices might you let go of / adopt this Lent?

3) Who are Indigenous leaders in your community? How might you follow their lead in relationship to Creation? How might you learn more / support their work going forward?

4) Is not this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of injustice, to undo the thongs of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke? Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, and bring the homeless poor into your house; when you see the naked, to cover them, and not to hide yourself from your own kin? Then your light shall break forth like the dawn, and your healing shall spring up quickly; your vindicator shall go before you, the glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard. Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer; you shall cry for help, and he will say, here I am. (Isaiah 58:6-7)

What are your favorite justice-oriented verses of sections of Scripture? What about verses describing Creation?

If you’re unsure, check out ELCA Advocacy resources for inspiration! https://www.elca.org/Resources/Advocacy#CongregationStudies

 

Taina Diaz-Reyes is the 2020-2021 Hunger Advocacy Fellow with ELCA Advocacy’s DC office. A “Lutheracostal” originally from Tucson, AZ but raised in the DC area, she graduated in 2016 from George Washington University with a BA in Geography and Sustainability, then completed the MDiv/MA in Sustainability dual degree program at Wake Forest University in December 2019. Passionate about using geographic and decolonizing research methods to pursue social and environmental justice, her background includes research in environmental quality and management, the role of science in society and politics, indigenous food sovereignty movements, racial justice, food justice, and decolonization. Her hope is to do doctoral research and theologically informed advocacy to pursue a more sustainable human connection to the Earth and each other through research and writing on food and faith.

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February 28, 2021–Seeing Clearly

Mary Houck, Decatur, GA

Warm-up Question

What do you predict will happen in 2021, and how certain are you that it will happen, on a scale of 1-10?

Seeing Clearly

Uncertainty is unsettling, and we’ve had a LOT of uncertainty lately. We’ve had constantly changing conditions and predictions concerning  the pandemic, on top of  a highly charged presidential election. Businesses are closing and laying people off. Churches and schools open, close, and go hybrid. How many times over the past year have we all wished for a crystal ball that would tell us what the world will be like in a year, a few months, or even in a few weeks?

According to a recent article, by Ruth Graham of the New York Times, there has been a big surge in the popularity of prophecy among some Evangelical Christians. This is a role usually played in stories by gypsies, witches, people cursed by Greek Gods, and that one weird professor in Harry Potter. But even Harry Potter, while attending a school for wizardry, was skeptical of prophecy.  Yet, some Christians in modern America look to pastors and other spiritual leaders to predict when the pandemic will end, who’s going to win the World Series, and when they will find love. 

They are frequently disappointed, as these self-proclaimed “prophets” are seldom right. However, people continue to support them. Even when they get things wrong,  followers stay loyal, hoping the next prophecy will prove true. A temporary feeling of certainty is so valuable that they give money to hear reassurances about the future. 

One modern “prophet” described God like this: “[If his] phone is on the table and he mentions wanting to go on a cruise, for example, the phone ‘hears’ him and starts offering advertisements for cruises, he said. ‘God works the same way,’ he explained. ‘He’s listening to everything you say.’” 

While it’s true that God is always listening and cares deeply about our prayers, God is not an automated service that caters to our desires like Siri or Alexa.

Discussion Questions

  • In the warm-up question, did your group mostly make bold and specific predictions (Ariana Grande marries Patrick Mahomes!) or did you play it safe (At the end of 2021, the sun will still be shining)? 
    • What did you consider when deciding how certain you were about your prediction? 
  • If you could choose one thing to know about the future, what would it be? If you had to pay or give something up to get this knowledge, what would you be willing to sacrifice? 

Second Sunday in Lent

Genesis 17:1-7, 15-16

Romans 4:13-25

Mark 8:31-38

(Text links are to Oremus Bible Browser. Oremus Bible Browser is not affiliated with or supported by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. You can find the calendar of readings for Year B at Lectionary Readings.)

For lectionary humor and insight, check the weekly comic Agnus Day.

Gospel Reflection

Prophets in the Old Testament were not people with magical knowledge of the future. God sent ordinary people  to remind the people of Israel that they were headed for disaster if they refused to live in a loving community, as God had taught them to do. 

Peter is not usually considered a biblical prophet, but in today’s Gospel text he sure seems to think he knows God’s plan for Jesus. Just a few weeks ago we read that Peter was absolutely floored by the glory of the transfiguration.  God told him and the other disciples present, “This is my Son, the Beloved; listen to him (Mark 2:7)!” Yet here Peter  rebukes Jesus for what Jesus is teaching! He doesn’t manage to listen for long before he decides he knows what is best for Jesus and God’s people. Jesus calls him “Satan” and points out that Peter is focused on human, not divine, things. 

It’s easy for us to get stuck in thinking about “human things.”  Some people listen to anyone who tells them God’s will is aligned with theirs (like the so-called “prophets” described above). Peter doesn’t like all this talk about Jesus suffering, being rejected, and dying.  He is expecting something more along the lines of the transfiguration than the crucifixion. Like him, we tend to project what we want onto what God wants. We tend to think that our favored politician, our opinion on schools opening (or not), our team winning, and our hopes for the future are clearly endorsed by God. When we focus on victory, glory, and self-satisfaction, we are definitely thinking about human things.

As Jesus explains so clearly in verses 35-38, we know our will is aligned with God’s when we expect to give ourselves away completely, in total humility, service, and sacrifice for our neighbors. When we do that,  we can be certain God will do amazing things. 

Discussion Questions

  • What do you think Jesus meant when he told the crowd to deny themselves and take up a cross? What kind of sacrifices does Jesus expect from us now? 
  • One of the above questions asked what you’d be willing to give to have special knowledge about the future. What are you willing to sacrifice for a future that is uncertain, but where God is in charge? 

Activity Suggestions

  • Write a letter to your future self (6 months away) saying at least three things you hope for in that time and giving yourself encouragement. Ask your group leader, a parent, or a friend to give it back to you at the appropriate time.
  • We tend to think of our lives as a narrative that follows a familiar pattern we learn from our families, books, movies, and TV shows.  But God sees many more possibilities. Starting with wherever you are in your school/work/family life, write a “choose your own adventure” story that imagines many different possible futures. You can do this by yourself or as a group, in which each member contributes a different possible chapter to the story. 
  • Decide on a faith practice you can do, either alone or with a group, (for example, prayer, meditation, fasting, service to the community, singing or playing sacred music) that you can take up for the rest of Lent, with the goal of knowing God better and asking God to show you God’s will for your life. 

Closing Prayer

Gracious God, focus our minds and hearts on divine things and give us the courage to let go of human things. Give us confidence in the future you have planned for us, even if it is different from what we envision for ourselves. Amen.

 

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Celebrating Big Dream Grants in 2021!

 

We are excited to introduce the four recipients of ELCA World Hunger Big Dream Grants for 2021!

ELCA World Hunger’s Big Dream grants, one-time gifts of $10,000 to $75,000, support ministries in the United States and Caribbean as they pursue innovative and sustainable approaches to ending hunger. Together, we celebrate the ways God is working through these ministries and their “big dreams” for their communities.

Around the world, the COVID-19 pandemic and the associated economic repercussions have brought into focus the weaknesses in the systems and structures intended to ensure that basic human needs are met. In the United States, unemployment, under-employment and healthcare costs are high, and hunger is on the rise. In 2021, ELCA World Hunger’s Big Dream grants will support ministries that are boldly working to uproot, transform or re-envision the structures and norms that perpetuate disparities in access to resources and result in 77% of low-income Americans living without the savings to cover costs when an emergency arises.

Introducing the ELCA World Hunger Big Dream Grants for 2021:

Posada

Pueblo County, Colorado

group of people from PosadaFor 33 years, Posada has been providing shelter, housing and supportive services to people experiencing homelessness or at risk of becoming homeless in Pueblo County, Colorado.  The focus of Posada’s service delivery is the provision of housing and supportive services, which includes referrals for food assistance, food banks and more, with a special focus on food items for youth. The mission of the agency is “to provide housing and supportive services that empower homeless individuals and families in Pueblo County to become self-supporting members of the community.”

The Big Dreams Grant from ELCA World Hunger will help Posada implement and strengthen their Senior Housing facility through the creation of a safety net to support unhoused older adults. Posada addresses the needs of homeless individuals, families, youth, veterans and, now, older adults to break down barriers, reduce inequality and build strong relationships that move us toward a just world where basic needs of all are met.

MOSES

Detroit, Michigan

MOSES is a faith-based, grassroots-led community organizing nonprofit serving residents of Detroit, Michigan, and its surrounding region. An interfaith, multi-racial and regionally-focused organization, MOSES especially emphasizes the leadership of laypeople and clergy from member congregations based in Black communities in Detroit and other southeast Michigan communities. MOSES identifies as a Black-led organization, and their overarching ministry is to develop the civic skills of marginalized residents so that they may act upon their values in the public arena. By focusing on grassroots leadership, MOSES remains rooted in their commitment to addressing needs that are directly expressed and identified by members of marginalized communities. To this goal, MOSES’ priority issues are based upon direct input from community leaders.

The Big Dreams Grant will help MOSES achieve its long-term objective of reforming the ways in which water is sourced, delivered and billed in southeast Michigan, in order to end water shut-offs in low-income neighborhoods. This work is critical in ensuring access to clean water in a city that has experienced crises in access to water over the last decade or more.

MOSES is also working to counter the trend of divestment from Michigan’s public health system by building public demand for increased state investment in public health infrastructure. MOSES is doing this by working to make affordable access to clean water (water equity) and renewed investments in public health central areas of focus in the 2021 Detroit mayoral campaign. At the same time, MOSES is working to build capacity to drive increased investment in public health infrastructure. They are also working with a coalition to establish a graduated income tax structure in Michigan that will protect people living in poverty and create the opportunity for much-needed investment.

Church on the Street

Sioux Falls, South Dakota

Church on the Street is a Synodically Authorized Worshipping Community (SAWC) of the ELCA and a vital ministry in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, with a primary focus of being the church with people living with poverty and homelessness. Church on the Street (COTS) works towards equality, peace, justice and advocacy while offering a place at the table for everyone to be fed physically and spiritually.

Responding to the pandemic, the “small” ministry of COTS has served in big ways. COTS has deep, genuine, ongoing relationships that have enabled them to meet the needs of the most vulnerable people in the community, especially when larger organizations have not been able to provide services to them. The Big Dream grant will enable COTS to double their work in the city, meeting the immediate needs of neighbors, advocating for justice and creating a system of change alongside community responders to best serve those in need.

ForKids

Norfolk, Virginia

ForKids is committed to breaking the cycle of homelessness and poverty for families and children in Norfolk, Virginia. Their integrated services are vital to the safety and well-being of families in their community.

When schools closed for the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, ForKids partnered with Mercy Chefs, local restaurants and individual donors to deliver over 8,000 meals to ForKids families in the region. Their Housing Crisis Hotline geared up to meet the unprecedented call volume which peaked at 935 calls in a single day. The Hotline now handles over 3,000 calls weekly, and ForKids is partnering with multiple cities to administer over $5 million in rental assistance to households experiencing a COVID-related financial setback, in addition to expanding emergency shelter placement. The team has been working diligently to keep families connected to social supports, academic support for their children and other vital resources.

The Big Dreams Grant from ELCA World Hunger will support a digital storytelling campaign to help public officials and community leaders make informed decisions about the issues contributing to hunger and poverty in their region. It will also support the construction of the new Center for Children and Families slated to open in March 2021. The Center includes the Regional Services Headquarters, a 135-bed family shelter, an expanded 24-seat Housing Crisis Hotline which will double call response capability and an education center with the capacity to tutor up to 120 children in creative learning spaces. With a full-service kitchen, ForKids estimates they will be able to provide over 31,000 meals each year. The Center will connect more than 85,000 individuals annually to services when complete. The Center will also be the home of a long-awaited dream: The ForKids Research & Advocacy Center.

Even amid challenging times, we know that God is at work in new and surprising ways. Through these transformative, holistic and integrated ministries – and the generosity that makes Big Dream Grants possible – we can see the impact of this work, and be part of it, in communities near and far. Thank you for your support of ELCA World Hunger as we work together to respond to hunger and poverty in the United States and 59 other countries around the world. To learn more about ELCA World Hunger’s approach, visit ELCA.org/hunger.

 

Big Dream Grants are part of ELCA World Hunger’s support of local and regional ministries. Through Domestic Hunger Grants, Big Dream Grants, Daily Bread Matching Grants, and Hunger Education and Networking Grants, we accompany partners throughout the United States and the Caribbean. Each year, several ministries that exemplify the values of transformative, holistic and integrated work are invited to apply for Big Dream Grants.

 

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