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World Food Day

Food - the very stuff of life!  Give us this day our daily bread!  You are what you eat!

Here's what the Pope tweeted on 16th October 2019!

It's World Food Day and it's always uncomfortable to be reminded that children will go to sleep hungry to night!

Here are just a few statistics from the Food Aid Foundation:

• Some 795 million people in the world do not have enough food to lead a healthy active life.
• The vast majority of the world's hungry people live in developing countries, where 12.9 percent of the population is undernourished.
• Asia is the continent with the most hungry people - two thirds of the total. The percentage in southern Asia has fallen in recent years but in western Asia it has increased slightly.
• Sub-Saharan Africa is the region with the highest prevalence (percentage of population) of hunger. One person in four there is undernourished.
• Poor nutrition causes nearly half (45%) of deaths in children under five - 3.1 million children each year.
• One out of six children -- roughly 100 million -- in developing countries is underweight.
•  One in four of the world's children are stunted. In developing countries the proportion can rise to one in three.
•  If women farmers had the same access to resources as men, the number of hungry in the world could be reduced by up to 150 million.
• 66 million primary school-age children attend classes hungry across the developing world, with 23 million in Africa alone.

Have a look at this 30 second clip:

It seems so big but we can do stuff.  We can contribute to charities that work overseas.  CAFOD springs to mind.

• Maybe, we could consider buying one of their World Gifts for someone this year - https://worldgifts.cafod.org.uk/
• Maybe we need to consider how much food we waste and re-align our behaviour.
• Maybe we could eat more healthily ourselves in appreciation of how fortunate we are.

Don't forget too that we can contribute to the local Micah Foodbank for our local people who go hungry - often unnoticed.   You might think it's all too big a  problem to make a difference but change starts with the individual and it's never a bad time to do a good thing!!!

God bless!

HERE'S A PRAYER VIDEO (1:15) FOR TODAY

Creator God,

We give thanks today for all who produce, prepare and serve food. 

We give thanks for their diligence in ensuring that what we eat is safe to eat.

May they be rewarded fairly and feel appreciated for their efforts and expertise.

Guide us all in our food choices. 

Help us to consider sustainability, animal welfare and the elimination of wasteful practices.

God who provided manna from heaven,

where there are hunger emergencies help us respond generously;

guide decision-makers in leading just and compassionate societies where all are looked after and no-one goes hungry.

We ask this in your Holy Name. AMEN