World Food Day

Written on: October 17, 2013

On October 16, 2013, the world celebrates World Food Day. Last year Pope Benedict marked the day with a message. Pope Francis is likely to do the same.  This day is an opportunity for all of us to increase our awareness of global hunger issues, and more specifically, to call on Congress to pass the Farm Bill once the government returns from the shutdown. Take a few minutes to learn something new about how ending hunger is possible by checking out this interactive photo (just click on the icons for more information). You can also share this prayer for World Food Day with your family and parish community.

Thank you for raising your voice and taking a step to end hunger!

God of All Harvests

God of sun and God of rain, In you, there is no dryness.

In you, no weed chokes the root.
No blight withers the leaf.
No frost bites at the blossom.

And, so, we pray for farmers and their
harvests everywhere.

In you, seeds of tears yield a bountiful harvest of joy.
May the rice farmer in Madagascar know
such bounty.

In you, seeds of truth and courage yield a bountiful harvest of justice.
May the coffee farmer in Honduras know
such bounty.

In you, seeds of compassion yield a bountiful harvest of wisdom.
May the cacao farmer in the Philippines know such bounty.

In you, seeds of hope yield a bountiful harvest of fulfillment.
May the vegetable farmer in Haiti know such bounty.

In you, seeds of love yield a bountiful harvest of forgiveness and reconciliation.
May the cassava farmer in Zambia know such bounty.

In you, seeds of the Gospel yield the glorious harvest that is our salvation.

God of all harvests, bless all planters everywhere:
All who sow and all who gather,
All who nourish and all who weed,
All who thresh and bundle and bring to market.
And bless all harvests.

Sprinkle your living water on our fields, on our relationships, on our communities, on our hearts.
And kiss us with the light and warmth of your undying sun.

May all our harvests reflect the Harvest that is to come.

The above alert came from Catholics Confront Global Poverty, an initiative of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops and Catholic Relief Services.

This entry was posted in With a Heart for Justice and tagged: Congress, Food bill, Global Hunger, Pope Benedict, Prayer, World Food Day