Food For The Poor

      Once again, I wish you all a Happy New Year! And, of course, a most blessed Feast of the Epiphany of our Lord! If you had any gifts that you had not had a chance to offer to a friend or loved one during the Christmas Season, this weekend is a great opportunity to do so.

      Additionally, if you have not completed the charitable giving you had planned, beyond the parish, perhaps you will consider a gift to “Food for the Poor, Inc.” We have hosted this charitable organization in the past and many of you found the preaching and message very helpful and stimulating. 

      This year, Fr. Stephen Toth of the Diocese of Newark, New Jersey, will be here the weekend of January 13-14 in order to offer a message that sheds light on Gospel ministry to the hungry. Matthew 25 (when I was hungry you gave me to eat…) is the inspiration for their work. The opportunity to listen to their message again may help you to make a decision about how to help the poor in other countries. They primarily serve the poor in Central and South America.

      “Food For The Poor (FFP) raises funds and provides direct relief assistance to the poor, sometimes by purchasing specifically requested materials and distributing them through the churches and charity organizations already operating in areas of need. Since it’s founding [in 1982], FFP has distributed more than 63,000 tractor-trailer loads of aid to the poor. [They] have also built more than 84,000 housing units for people desperately in need of adequate shelter, and completed more than 1,475 water projects that provide lifesaving water and sanitation to hundreds of thousands of people in need,” (from Charity Navigator website).

      May your New Year be marked by recognition of the poor around you and by your generosity!

Peace, Fr. Andy