This year marks the 50th anniversary of Catholic Relief Services’ Rice Bowl initiative – a vital Lenten program that empowers Catholics to live out the Gospel command to feed the hungry by supporting vulnerable communities locally and globally. By participating in this initiative, individuals, parishes and schools engage in prayer, fasting and almsgiving, directly alleviating food insecurity.
First, I want to acknowledge a sober fact. We are still suffering from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic that exacerbated food insecurity in the United States and throughout the world. Millions of Americans are still experiencing hunger due to job losses, economic instability, disruptions in food supply chains and higher food costs. The donations collected through the CRS Rice Bowl program provide critical support for food assistance programs that address these immediate needs, ensuring that individuals and families have access to nutritious meals here and abroad.
• Here is how CRS Rice Bowl works abroad:
Last month, and this past fall, I participated in a virtual call with diocesan directors like myself who are working with Catholic Relief Services. One individual who had been in Gaza shared how 43 CRS workers helped oversee a camp of more than 100,000 people – mostly women, children and older adults. CRS Rice Bowl donations help feed refugees of war when other aid agencies cannot.
In Ethiopia, contributions to CRS Rice Bowl help prioritize sustainable solutions to hunger and poverty, focusing on long-term development projects like providing community farms that empower communities to break the cycle of poverty. In war-torn Ukraine, Rice Bowl funds help provide meals and “field kitchens” in neighborhoods where conflict has destroyed the infrastructure of once-thriving restaurants and community centers. Because the suffering is so great, some CRS funds go to creating shelters.
Our efforts to support the Rice Bowl campaign provide tangible assistance by feeding those who are hungry and sheltering people experiencing homelessness, strengthening bonds of empathy and understanding across borders and cultures.
• Here is how CRS Rice Bowl works locally:
A portion of CRS Rice Bowl donations – 25% – remains within a diocese to fund grants to parishes and organizations addressing food insecurity in their communities. Last year, 20 parish food pantries, ecumenical food cupboards, soup kitchens and food programs across the Diocese of Camden received grant distributions of more than $40,000.
Saint Vincent de Paul Society conferences are integral in leading, organizing and advocating for many of our parish food pantries. I had the opportunity to visit many of them. For example, Cathy Rainey and Kevin Dark help coordinate a dedicated group of parishioners and local volunteers at Saint Simon Stock Parish in Berlin. Many Saint Vincent de Paul conferences, like Saint Simon Stock, provide utility and rental assistance for families at or below the poverty line.
Michael and Ellen Barrett, featured in the Catholic Star Herald on April 20, 2024, helped reinvigorate a long-existing food pantry at Our Lady of the Angels Parish in Cape May Court House. Compelled by faith and a desire to help those in need, the Barretts and food pantry workers serve more than 40 families weekly. Much of the food comes from the Food Bank of South Jersey and the parish’s 40 Days of Giving. The CRS Rice Bowl monies can help cover more expensive items like eggs or, in some cases, help toward a new refrigerator or freezer!
The CRS Rice Bowl can also be applied to create and support a parish vegetable garden. One such garden that has served its neighbors is at Saint Teresa of Calcutta Parish in Collingswood/Westmont.
Parishes can apply for a grant of up to $3,000 to help with such endeavors.
Perhaps one final example of how your contribution to CRS Rice Bowl helps support a parish’s outreach is the Parish of Saint John Neumann in North Cape May. Pati Sparks, a longtime parishioner and parish secretary, said it best, “I do what I do because Jesus commands me. Feeding those in need is love in action.”
Amen!
For more information about CRS Rice Bowl and grant applications, visit camdendiocese.org/ricebowl/ or call Michael Sims at 856-853-2910.
Dr. Michael J. Sims is the director of the Office of Life & Justice Ministries for the Diocese of Camden.
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