The Shredded Bible

In the last hour, about 900 human beings worldwide, mostly children, died from hunger. And here I sit, overweight and with a full cupboard. Likely your pantry isn’t empty, either.

Does this shock you as much as it shocks me?

When I first saw this dilemma on poverty.com, I also learned that lack of food is not the problem. There is enough food in the world for everyone. The primary problem is that very hungry people are trapped in poverty. And it’s a situation from which they are incapable of extricating themselves.

According to the U. N., about $195 billion a year could alleviate these hunger pangs. The solution is as simple (or as complex, unfortunately) as 22 developed countries of the world, including the U.S., giving just 1% of their income toward this problem.

Just such an effort has been underway since 2002 – a program called International Aid – but it is struggling badly. You can read about it here. Notice the countries who have met the goal. Also notice that the richest country in the world has not.

The compelling question is, do I, as an espoused follower of Christ here in affluent America, have a responsibility with regard to world poverty? I think it was Mother Theresa who said something to the effect that “the only Christ a hungry child will see is my cup of soup.”

I’m told that Tony Campolo tells the story of a preacher who cut everything out of the Bible that refers to homosexuality (the virtual sole focus of many well meaning Christians today). When he held up the resulting Bible to his parishioners, the difference was hardly noticeable. Then the preacher cut out every reference to poverty and helping the poor. There was but a shredded Bible left to hold up.

The point is crystal clear. I need to participate in solving this heartbreaking problem. I can help; we all can help. The first step is becoming educated about it. The next step is taking some action. Any action. Click here for just one.