Global food crisis: a monthly, churchwide fast

Get 12 months of fast materials.

Southern Sudan Faces Food Shortage

"People are already skipping meals, and we have every reason to believe that the poorest families will resort to desperate measures like selling their land or migrating out of the area in search of food," said Silke Pietzsch, Action Against Hunger's Senior Food Security & Livelihoods Advisor for the Southern Sudan. "If no outside assistance is provided, this downward spiral could have a devastating, long-term impact on families already affected by decades of conflict."

Read the full article on AlertNet.

Learn more and participate in the 40-hour fast.

Take Action

A member of the Presbyterian Church of Sudan takes part in a candle lighting ceremony for peace. Photo by Doug Welch.

• Donate to the Presbyterian Relief and Development Agency (PRDA) of the Presbyterian Church of Sudan which provides development support for farming, fishing and other self-help enterprises of the people of southern Sudan.
• Join the Presbyterian Sudan Mission Network to coordinate efforts, share best practices and develop strategies on how to accompany our sisters and brothers in Sudan. Contact Bill Andress, Doug Welch or Lacey Gilliam.
• Ask your congregation’s stewardship committee to take up a special collection for the Global Food Crisis Fund and to support effective work in Sudan.

March 5-7, 2010 fast materials

Focus: War, Hunger and Recovery
Country: Sudan

Download and print March fast materials or keep reading.

Give to the Global Food Crisis Fund

Your gifts support hunger relief and poverty reduction initiatives related to the Global Food Crisis. (H333333)

General Assembly action
Read the 2008 General Assembly action on the global food crisis.

Learn more
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

Responding in love, especially to those who are suffering, is how we live our faith.

Recruit 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.

Begin 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.

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.

IMPORTANT: 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.

Items marked with are Adobe Acrobat PDF documents. For best results, right-click the link (or click and hold for Macintosh), select "save target as" and save the document to your desktop for viewing and printing.