Every year on Oct. 16, International World Food Day commemorates the founding of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization in 1945. I wish they had consulted Canada on the establishment of this day so close to our Thanksgiving celebration! To me, the two celebrations go hand in hand.
Another celebration that goes hand in hand with thinking about food is National Co-op Week which is from Oct.13-19. Agricultural Cooperatives have been important to farmers for generations. There are other kinds of cooperatives involved with food such as grocery buying co-ops for consumers and Credit Unions where neighbours finance local farms and businesses as well as individuals.
But what does all this have to do with religion?
Christianity has both feeding the hungry and cooperative living at it's very core. The miracle story of Jesus feeding 5,000 people with just a few loaves of bread and fish appears in all four gospels (Matthew 14, Mark 6, Luke 9, and John 6). And in Matthew 25, he tells his followers that when we feed poor and hungry, it is the same as if we were feeding Jesus himself.
Acts 2:43-47 tells us how the first Christians “would sell their possessions and goods and distribute the proceeds to all, as any had need.” They held all things in common and lived cooperatively, making sure everyone had enough to live on (Acts 4:32-34).
According to the International Cooperative Alliance, “Cooperatives are based on the values of self-help, self-responsibility, democracy, equality, equity, and solidarity.” In other words, the Christian church began as a co-op.
There are many different ideas about how to deal with the question of how to solve the problems of hunger and poverty in our world. While many believe the problem lies with scarcity, the Christian tradition holds that God has given us enough of everything. We just need to learn how to share it evenly. To do that, we need to work together in cooperation with each other.
Of course as humans, working together is easier than it sounds. We quickly fall into disagreement and judgment. That's where God comes in. When we let go of our selfish agendas and let God be our guide and judge, we can begin to put love and compassion at the centre of our actions, and be truly thankful for what we have. Then, perhaps, the whole world can be fed.
Robin Pengelly is the pastor of Castlegar United Church.
