Jordan Namerow is the Senior Communications Associate of
American Jewish World Service.
Why
does a typical family in the developing world spend 80 percent of its income on
food? Why are more than a billion people chronically hungry when our planet
produces more than enough food to feed everyone? These are just two of the
questions that Jewish communities around the world will be exploring this
weekend during Global Hunger Shabbat.
Global
Hunger Shabbat was created by American Jewish World Service (AJWS) as a
day of solidarity, education, reflection and advocacy to raise awareness about
global hunger, why it exists and what can be done to help the more than one
billion people worldwide–60 percent of whom are women–without sufficient food.
You
might be wondering, why should Jews care about global hunger? As many of us
know well, food is a central part of Jewish experience–challah, matzoh ball
soup, kreplach, corned beef, kishkes, cholent, I could go on. Culinary
affinities aside, food is at the core of our very existence. In the words of Pirke
Avot (Ethics of the Fathers) 3:21, “Without sustenance, there is no Torah.”
In other words, without food, there is no education, no progress, no justice.
Without food, it is impossible to think and impossible to thrive.
If
food is fundamental to Judaism, then its inverse–hunger–is antithetical to
living a Jewish life. As Jews, it’s our responsibility to help create a more
just world, and that includes making sure that everyone has access to the food
they need.
As
part of its Fighting Hunger from the Ground Up
campaign, AJWS is supporting over 80 grassroots organizations in the developing
world that are implementing sustainable solutions to global hunger: creating
“kitchen garden” programs in urban areas; teaching women how to farm using
agro-ecological farming methods; developing seed banks and innovative storage
facilities for harvested crops; advocating for the land and water rights of
marginalized indigenous populations and much more.
An
estimated 5,000 people from 100 synagogues, 30 college campuses and 40
independent communities in 20
Verde
will be observing Global Hunger Shabbat, using original
educational resources created by AJWS, free and downloadable on the AJWS
website.
Congregations
in
other cities are hosting events ranging from a social justice learner’s service
to a scholar-in-residence program on Jews and food around the world; from
discussions about synagogue gardens to conversations about organic food
production and how to connect with local farmers. In
an alumnus of AVODAH: The Jewish Service Corps, has organized Global Hunger
Shabbat as a kick-off event to jumpstart a new Jewish social justice community.
And in
the Global Hunger Shabbat gathering at the
Congresswoman Nita Lowey!
Even
if you or your congregation can’t participate in Global Hunger Shabbat, we
encourage you to use AJWS’s resources on global hunger including a prayer
for people living in hunger around the world, text
study resources, and youth
activities and lesson plans any time during the year.
For
more information about Fighting Hunger from the Ground Up and to sign up
for Global Hunger Shabbat, visit http://ajws.org/hunger/. Be sure
to also check out our “From the Ground” blog.