(posted by Audrey Riley for Karen Ward, intern)

(source: www.bread.org/hunger/budget)

10. President Obama and congressional leaders reached a deal to raise the debt ceiling and reduce the deficit by at least $2.1 trillion over 10 years in two parts.

9. This plan will last through early 2013, so we don’t have to go through this ordeal again within a few months, as proposed in previous versions of the plan.

8. The deal creates a bipartisan, bicameral (with members from both parties and both legislative chambers) “super committee” that must report by late November. This committee must make specific recommendations to reduce the deficit by an additional $1.5 trillion over 10 years.

7. The committee’s recommendations are to receive special procedural treatment in Congress, requiring a simple up-or-down vote by Christmas. The committee is directed to look at everything, including revenues, entitlement reforms, and defense spending.

6. The bill caps discretionary spending, leading to $840 billion in cuts over 10 years. For the first two years, there are different caps for security and non-security spending.

Security in this case includes foreign assistance (including poverty-focused development) along with defense, homeland security and other areas.

5. Discretionary programs important to people suffering from poverty are at risk of deep cuts. Programs include international food aid, poverty-focused development assistance, WIC, job-training programs, Head Start and Hunger Free Communities.

4. Because foreign assistance is considered security spending, it could be at risk of even deeper cuts should Congress attempt to protect defense spending over foreign assistance.

3. The initial cuts and caps do not affect mandatory spending. The super committee will be tasked with mandatory spending cuts and reforms. Changes to entitlement programs could have devastating consequences for SNAP (formerly known as food stamps), unemployment insurance, Medicaid and other programs.

2. If the super committee fails to produce recommendations totaling at least $1.2 trillion, automatic across-the-board cuts would be triggered every year for 9 years, starting in 2013. Cuts would be split 50/50 between defense and non-defense spending. Means-tested entitlement programs would be exempt from these cuts.

1. Means–tested entitlement programs that are exempted include SNAP, Medicaid and others. While means-tested entitlement programs are protected, all other vital programs, including poverty-focused development assistance and WIC, will be open to deep cuts.

Take action! Call your members of Congress at 1-800-826-3688 to make sure they are considering the safety and livelihood of those suffering from hunger and poverty in our country. Write a letter to the editor to get the word out! Together we can make a difference for millions of people in this country and around the world.

God bless,
Karen

Dorothy Fergus wrote us this inspiring note:

“Just a quick note to let you folks know about our tiny little Sunday school in Edina, Minnesota and what they have been doing this past year.

On Rally Day in September, the 24 children of our small Sunday school took on a new mission project for the year – to raise money for the ELCA Malaria Campaign.

We put together a large bulletin board complete with story book about malaria, a real mosquito net, a world map and pins to hang up mini-nets.  For every $10.00 that we received, the children were invited to attach one mini-net to the board.  Thoughout the year we learned more about malaria and how it can be devistating for whole families.

By Mother’s Day, we had taken in $804.72 and had pinned 80 mini-mosquito nets to the map.  Here is a photo of some of our students in front of the board the Sunday following our VBS program.  The kids, some still wearing their teeshirts, are celebrating their accomplished goal.”

Thank you, Calvary Sunday School!

It’s amazing for me to read over the first blog post I wrote as the World Hunger summer intern only two months ago. It’s also surreal to be sitting in my cubicle during my last week working at the Lutheran Center. It all went so fast, yet it was packed with so much personal growth, education and discernment that it felt much longer than one summer. Many young adults hope for a summer packed with sunshine, good friends, good times and perhaps a little romance. I feel I was privileged to experience all of these (just got my dad’s attention), but maybe differently than most would imagine.
The first few goals are what anyone would expect. Despite working in an office for the summer, I still managed to get outside and enjoy the sights and various cultures of Chicago and my tan lines are living proof of those experiences. Also I have become friends with the other interns working with me this summer and we’ve shared some great memories in and around the Windy City.
My “summer romance,” however, took an unexpected form. I ended up falling in love with my longtime good friend . . . the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Is that weird, saying that I fell in love with my denomination? Let me clarify.
First and foremost, I am a Christian. I’ve devoted my life to picking up my cross and following Christ. My own personal discernment has led me to sense a call to ordained ministry, but everyone has their own call to discern. Secondly, while I was born into the Episcopal church, I’ve grown up in an ELCA congregation. While my heritage is not deeply rooted in the Lutheran church, I feel that my family–my mom, my dad and I–is deeply rooted in our home congregation. Through thick and thin, Trinity Lutheran Church has been a major part of our lives, and the values we’ve learned there have guided our daily lives.
But it took me years of growth and engagement to really get a handle on what the ELCA is all about. Through various Theological Education with Youth programs I learned more about the wide range of Lutheran Social Services around the country—dealing with homelessness, hunger, social justice, advocacy, education and the list goes on and on. However, it wasn’t until this summer, working at the Lutheran Center, that I really began to understand what the ELCA stands for. I’ve had the privilege of having one-on-one meetings with various members of the church-wide staff. I’ve discussed their passions and their hopes and concerns for the future of the church. All of these discussions have lead to my acknowledgment that I’m proud to be Lutheran and I love serving within a Lutheran context.
I love that we’re engaged in the world through mission development, through hunger appeals, environmental sustainability practices, and through disaster relief both here and abroad. I love that our mission work is grounded in the theology of accompaniment, where working side by side with people around the world is the key and relationships are of great value. I love that we’re deeply committed to interfaith and ecumenical dialogue and that we are engaged in public policy through our social statements. I love that we value diversity and are striving to create a more diverse church full of various experiences and ideas. I love that we have over 300 new mission starts that are working to becoming new ELCA congregations and that we have over 10,000 existing congregations that have the potential to be continually moving and growing with the Spirit. I love that we are passionate about diving into scripture and creating deep theological discussion and discernment. I love our Lutheran understanding that we have been freed by Christ to serve, whatever form that may take. Lastly, I love that all of this work is grounded in the idea that this is not our doing: God’s work. Our hands.
I’ve fallen deep and I’ve fallen hard. I’m excited to see where God leads me next and how I can continue to deepen my engagement with the church. Let me know what you love and what you’re passionate about in your faith life! I’d love to hear from you!

P.S. Look out for future posts from me!

God bless,

Karen

It’s not too often that the United Nations uses the word “famine” to describe humanitarian emergencies. But the serious food crisis in the horn of Africa, where the UN estimates that 10 million people are at risk, including 2 million malnourished children, is deserving of such an alarming title.
The response to the famine, which is particularly severe in Somalia, has been too little too late. With millions of people on the brink of starvation and aid deliveries complicated by Islamist militants’ control of the famine zones, the response is both necessary and urgent. Read this New York Times article to learn more.
The combination of one of East Africa’s most severe droughts in 60 years and Somalia’s unrelenting conflict has exhausted the country’s food supply. Two years of erratic rain have resulted in brutally reduced access to drinking water and major crop and livestock loss. Speaking at the United Nations, Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said that a total of $1.6 billion was needed to help, with about $300 million of it required in the next two months to mount an “adequate response.”
Many of those who are able are fleeing the most affected country, Somalia, using what little funds they have left to pay for buses. Thousands are walking hundreds of miles through desert regions with children by their sides or slung to their backs. Thousands of Somali refugees have been crossing the borders of Kenya and Ethiopia every day.
That’s where refugee and relief programs supported by ELCA World Hunger and the ELCA as a whole meet. Luley Hassan Aden is 19 years old, living on the outskirts of Hagadera Refugee Camp in Dadaab, Kenya. This is where many people fleeing Somalia, like herself, are settling, and it is one of the places where the Lutheran World Federation is serving.
The ELCA’s response to the current drought in the horn of Africa started in December of 2010. That’s when the ELCA pre-positioned $250,000 for use in East Africa to meet the needs of the local population in future disasters. These funds have proven to be a great blessing and are at work, helping those who are affected by the famine. Lutheran World Federation has the strongest roots in these refugee camps and is already using the ELCA funds to provide water in Dadaab to both refugees and the local population and enriched porridge for those older adults and children too weak to take solid food. The ELCA is sending an additional $400,000 to assist Ethiopian and Kenya communities at increasing risk as this crisis unfolds, as well as Somali refugees who are in search of refuge in those countries.
Luley was visited by an LWF block leader who took her details and gave her a ration card for food distribution. She was also visited by a team of staff in the camp. “We found her in an unbearable state and based on the criteria we use, she was given priority. We have done follow-up visits and provided her with a tent to sleep in” explains Keinan, a LWF social worker based in Hagadera.
We need your help! Donate to help support the work of the ELCA to refugees fleeing Somalia and other areas affected by the severe drought. Also your prayers are greatly appreciated! The act of leaving your home in search of resources can be a terrifying and exhausting activity, with some people moving as far at 300 miles on foot. Please keep these people in your prayers that God will continue to protect them on their journey.

God Bless,

Karen

Friends, I wanted to share this “Fourfold Franciscan Blessing” with you. In the context of the ELCA Malaria Campaign, I find this blessing to be inspiring and challenging.  May God bless all of us with these “gifts,” so that we are motivated to work with our companions to bring just and comprehensive health care to communities in Africa, as well as preventative and educational measures to overcome malaria!

“May God bless you with a restless discomfort about easy answers, half-truths and superficial relationships, so that you may seek truth boldly and love deep within your heart.

May God bless you with holy anger at injustice, oppression, and exploitation of people, so that you may tirelessly work for justice, freedom, and peace among all people.

May God bless you with the gift of tears to shed with those who suffer from pain, rejection, starvation, or the loss of all that they cherish, so that you may reach out your hand to comfort them and transform their pain into joy.

May God bless you with enough foolishness to believe that you really CAN make a difference in this world, so that you are able, with God’s grace, to do what others claim cannot be done.”

Amen!

The recent rise in cost of the basic Netflix plan I use has got me thinking. What do I spend money on that I ultimately do not need? And what could that money be used for to better serve the world?
This is not a black and white issue. This is something that each Christian needs to discern personally to become a better follower of Christ in the world. Our American culture has desensitized us to really think about how much we are spending and what we are spending it on. Think about the miscellaneous purchases you make throughout the week that you don’t plan or the things you buy that you don’t really need.
For example, my personal stumbling block is one of the latest ways consumers are obtaining their entertainment: Netflix. Recently Netflix announced a price change that made consumers think about how much they’re paying for these services. Mostly they’re really mad about having to pay a lot more. But I took this opportunity to re-evaluate what I need out of my entertainment, how it helps me grow as a child of God, and ways I can use my excess spending to support those around the world.
Previously subscribers could get unlimited online streaming and 1 DVD at a time for $9.99 a month. Come September the same plan will cost $15.98. I’m not interested in making a comment on the price increase. I am interested in how this has caused me to re-evaluate my priorities. Perhaps it has (or could? or should?) for you, too? If I choose a different plan that ends up saving me money come September, I want to think about how I may better use that money to help fight world hunger. If I were to switch to just an online streaming plan or just a 1 DVD at a time plan for 7.99 per month I would have enough to provide someone around the world a microloan that they would use to help start a new business. This may seem like tedious math but I think this is the kind of thinking that is needed to end world hunger. Check out how microloans help women in Mexico overcome poverty and hunger. Also visit ELCA Good Gifts to see all the different ways you can make a difference.
All of our abundance comes from God and he intends for us to share it with those in need around the world and in our local communities. As members of the body of Christ we need to take a good look at what we spend and ask if it’s serving God in the best way possible. We trade in the bigger houses, better cars, cooler gadgets, and the latest fashions for the hope to reduce global poverty, ensure social justice and work to make sure everyone is fed. Just by making small adjustments in what we buy we can make that difference.
So here are my questions to you. Have you thought about this issue? What’s your stumbling block that tempts you to spend? What are you doing to get over your stumbling block? I’d love to hear from you!

God Bless,
Karen

Several recent blog posts have discussed food production, gardening, etc. — perfect timing for the following announcement!

ELCA World Hunger is holding an ELCA World Hunger Ethics of Eating event in Region 7 on September 29 – October 2 in the Philadelphia/Allentown area!  Synods that are included in Region 7 include Metro New York, New England, New Jersey, Northeast Pennsylvania, Slovak Zion, Southeast Pennsylvania, and Upstate New York synods.

Please help spread the word about this exciting event!  Our goal is to have a racially and ethnically diverse group of approximately 20 participants, including young adults (ages 18-35).  Don’t live in this area?  Do you know someone who does who may be interested?  Pass this information on to them!

Interested?  If you are connected with the ELCA and are in one of these synods, email Erin.Cummisford@elca.org for an application — completed applications are due on AUGUST 15, 2011.  Detailed information about the ELCA World Hunger Ethics of Eating event is at http://www.elca.org/hunger/ethicsofeating

Event information:
ELCA World Hunger has held regional Ethics of Eating events for the past few years to discuss the food production system and how the ways we eat impact the environment, those who are hungry, and those who work in food production.  These issues are explored from a theological perspective, and with respect to organic, local and conventional farming.

ELCA World Hunger will invite a diverse group of approximately twenty participants to attend this Region 7 Ethics of Eating event in the Philadelphia/Allentown area from Thursday, September 29 – Sunday, October 2, 2011. To fully leverage ELCA World Hunger’s investment in this event, participants must commit to attendance at the entire Ethics of Eating event.

Email Erin Cummisford (Erin.Cummisford@elca.org) to request the Ethics of Eating application. Completed applications AND a letter of support are due by August 15, 2011.  Applicants will be notified of invitation decisions shortly thereafter. ELCA World Hunger will underwrite the cost of participation.

After this event, each participant will:
1.  Have increased capacity to advocate for a just and sustainable food system, in response to hunger and on behalf of the environment.
2.  Implement a follow-up project, action or activity.
3.  Participate in the ELCA World Hunger Leader Network and online community.

If you have any questions, please contact Erin Cummisford (Erin.Cummisford@elca.org).  Thank you!

When I have the privilege of hearing Presiding Bishop of the ELCA Mark  Hanson speak, I pay attention.  Recently I heard Bishop Hanson speak to a group of people gathered to help shape the future of the ELCA Malaria Campaign. Bishop Hanson speaking about malaria? I was all ears.

Here is my interpretation of some of the things that I heard (with apologies; my notes were taken in haste, trying to keep up with his enthusiasm for the topic!):

This is “an Advent moment” in the ELCA. We’re excited to see the new thing that God is doing with us, and we’re leaning into the Holy Spirit for guidance. Because a church can’t be sustained by overcoming challenging times, we must also find a way to make an impact in the world, to do something concrete and forward-looking. The ELCA Malaria Campaign is one of the primary ways we as a church can do that.

Overcoming malaria is doable.  It’s something that will tap into the energy of our young people and the passions of our leaders. It’s something that will give ELCA members the joy of being part of what is happening in the world. It’s something that will deepen our existing relationships with our companions and provide achievable goals for us to strive for together.  The ELCA Malaria Campaign will begin with the capacity we already have– and our companions in Africa have– and grow from there. We will deepen our partners’ capacity to engage in sustainable development and holistic medicine.

The ELCA is poised to jump wholeheartedly into the ELCA Malaria Campaign, because who we are as a people of God is inseparable from what we do (and what God does through us). Working toward healing and justice is a mark of our self-understanding as a church.

The need is there. ELCA members “get” the vital importance of overcoming malaria and the impact that our partners can make on countless lives. The ELCA Malaria Campaign reflects the priorities of the church and the commitments that we have made to our companions. The time is now!

Amen. May it indeed be so!

~Jessica Nipp, ELCA Malaria Campaign

The twists of travel have put me in South Africa on July 18, Nelson Mandela’s 93rd Birthday, a day that is celebrated by service to neighbors in South Africa.

Yesterday I had the opportunity to tour the Apartheid Museum with some of the Lutherans who lived through the struggles.  The Christian community’s effort around the world to stand up for justice in South Africa is an important part of the story of freedom, democracy and reconciliation.

The Church in South Africa on its own might have been more easily dismissed had not other churches joined them in solidarity.  Conversely, we in the churches around the world could never have created the condition for change from our position outside.  It reminds me much more why we need to walk together in our witness—locally, regionally, and as the book of Acts says, “to the ends of the world.”

A few months ago Nelson Mandela was quite close to death.  Today his birthday is celebrated.  All over South Africa people are committing to provide 67 minutes of service to their neighbors. That is one minute for each year of Mandela’s leadership to the country (some on the streets, some in prison, some as head of state).  Certainly such service is not the final pathway to some of the struggles for justice that to this day continue, but it is a start and a great way to celebrate a man of inspiration.

Wars continue to rage, drought spreads, poverty stays around, and the church continues to strive in its service and witness.  We are stronger and truer because we have one another.  Thank you for being present in so many places and ways through the ELCA, our companions and missionaries, and with ELCA World Hunger.

Dan Rift, Director of ELCA World Hunger