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? (Isaiah 58:6-7)
Global food crisis: a monthly, churchwide fast
Haiti update
Will biofuels help or hurt impoverished people in Haiti?
Most of Haiti’s hillsides are depleted of productive soil and the rural population is desperately poor. Proponents claim that jatropha (a native plant whose seed can be converted into biodiesel) can be grown on degraded lands and serve as supplemental income. However, just like crops that came before (indigo, coffee and sugar cane), once money can be made by growing jatropha commercially, there is little guarantee that Haitian farmers will only use degraded land to grow it. Jatropha will likely displace food crops from arable land and decrease Haiti’s food production. FONDAMA (Hand in Hand Foundation) in Haiti and a PC(USA) solidarity network in the U.S. have initiated a campaign against the commercial production of jatropha. For more on jatropha and the campaign, read “Agriculture for Food Production, Not for Bio-Fuel” by Lionel Derenoncourt, the coordinator for Joining Hands.
October 30 - November 1, 2009 fast materials
Food Aid
Haiti
Download and print November fast materials  or keep reading.
The Jatropha Pepinye project in Terrier Rouge, Haiti. Income for local growers is around one dollar per day, so the multiyear maturation process for jatropha seedlings is a barrier for local growers. Photo by K. Robbins. Join with Presbyterians around the country in monthly 40-hour fasts to help discern ways to respond to the Global Food Crisis. The fasts typically take place on the first weekend of every month, beginning on Friday evening and ending with Communion or a communal meal on Sunday.
Learn how people are responding to the fast.
Give to the Global Food Crisis Fund
Your gifts support hunger relief and poverty reduction initiatives related to the Global Food Crisis.
Read the 2008 General Assembly action on the global food crisis.
Learn about the global food crisis from PC(USA) partners in the Congo, Haiti, Cameroon, Colombia, Brazil, India, Sudan, Liberia, Sierra Leone and the United States. And together, let us fast, pray, repent and act.
Translate this site into Spanish.
Join the fast
in love, especially to those who are suffering, is how we live our faith.
at least one other person, a group, or your whole congregation to participate with you in the fast. Even if you cannot refrain from eating, there are other ways to participate.
by signing up, finding others to fast with, and reading the Introductory Materials.
 Share on Facebook
Share with other Presbyterians on Facebook and learn what others are saying and doing.
Suggested fast schedule
Friday evening —
prepare and focus
- Biblical reflection
- Learning more
- Evening prayer
Saturday —
fast and integrate
- Prayers
- Biblical Reflection
- Learn more
Sunday —
break the fast and respond
- Prayers
- Break the fast with Communion
- Communal meal/sharing
- Respond
Fasting options
The typical fast would begin after a simple meal Friday evening, refrain from food Saturday, and break the fast with Communion or a communal meal on Sunday.
For those who are not fasting from food, one can choose to eat simple meals, skip a meal or design a fast that fits your circumstances.
If your congregation doesn’t celebrate Communion on the first Sunday of the month, you could break the fast with a simple meal before or after worship. Alternately, another time of the month can be chosen to do the fast.
Fasting from food should be avoided by those with health-related conditions, such as diabetes, heart problems, and pregnancy. Anyone with questions about their health condition should consult with their doctor before beginning. Those fasting should read the guidelines in “Fasting 101.”
Glossary
Learn more about words and phrases that relate to the Global Food Crisis. |
