OFFICE FOR SOCIAL MINISTRY
“More people die on the cross of hunger than from any disease. Pope Francis calls on us to address this global tragedy.” (Stations of the Cross, CRS Rice Bowl 2018)
Our 2018 Rice Bowl Lenten journey took us through the Stations of the Cross — following Jesus as he carried his cross, falling three times. Tormented by pain, hunger and thirst to the point of feeling abandonment and loss, he cried out for help. Today, millions of people around the world carry the cross of hunger, calling for help, many in silence, suffering from forced migration and food poverty.
As the Apostles washed each other’s feet on Holy Thursday, broke bread and shared wine at the Last Supper Eucharist, we can do the same with our brothers and sisters struggling with challenging crosses. And the image of the empty tomb on Easter morning provides an ultimate symbol of hope — life overcoming death.
This year’s final weeks of Catholic Relief Services Rice Bowl featured a story of hope from the impoverished region of Malawi in Africa, where farmers are struggling with drought and hunger. Alefa Tom is a 68-year-old mother, grandmother and rice farmer, who provides for her three children, three grandchildren and husband by selling what she grows. If her crops fail because of climate change, her family goes hungry. Thanks to a CRS-sponsored seed fair, Alefa learned ways to grow other crops, such as corn, cabbage and tomatoes, in the changing climate. Now she is able to sell a diverse set of produce, even when her rice fails.
“This harvest will provide food, shelter and education for my family,” she says.
Alefa will be growing food for her village while harvesting hope — a gift of the Easter promise of overcoming the cross of hunger.
On Oahu, families with disabilities from all over the island celebrated Easter Sunday at St. Stephen Diocesan Center to give witness to the harvest of hope and resurrection in their lives. These families know first-hand the joys and challenges of caring for a loved one who may have a sensory, physical or cognitive disability. They experience a transformation in their journey with a God who is radically revealed in their shared vulnerability.
The Ohana Easter Mass celebrated how Jesus Christ experienced the fullness of human vulnerability — dying abandoned on a cross, then transforming his passion and death into the hope of the resurrection. Afterward, this community continued to break bread, sharing a potluck meal and a fun-filled Easter egg hunt where all were reminded how the challenges of disabilities manifest God’s life-giving amazing grace.
In the weekend after Easter, members of 15 parishes from Kauai, Molokai, the Big Island and Oahu will come together to deepen their experience of encountering God in the vulnerable through their food ministry projects supported by Rice Bowl mini-grants. They will gather at the rustic retreat center of Our Lady of Keaau in Waianae to reflect on their shared mission of accompanying the most vulnerable keiki and kupuna in their community. Through various projects, they will continue to experience the hope of Easter through their collective efforts to overcome the cross of hunger in Hawaii.
To learn more about these stories of hope overcoming hunger today, visit www.crsricebowl.org.
To learn more about the parish projects supported by Rice Bowl mini-grants, as well information about the Ohana Mass and ministry with persons with disabilities, visit our websites at www.officeforsocialministry.org/ricebowl and www.catholichawaii.org/ricebowl. These resources help us nourish hope while facing challenging crosses. May the Easter blessing of peace be with you! Mahalo,
Your friends at the Office for Social Ministry