by Staff/ERLC
COLUMBUS, Ohio (BP) — Nearly 1 billion people are undernourished, and “chronic hunger is a debilitating problem for many around the world,” Russell Moore, president of the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, told messengers to the SBC annual meeting in Columbus, Ohio.
Southern Baptist leaders promoting Global Hunger Relief called for churches to address the global hunger crisis in their first report to the SBC, June 17. The report by GHR, a cooperative Southern Baptist initiative, preceded the missionary sending service for the International Mission Board and North American Mission Board.
GHR also sponsored an exhibit calling attention to the hunger crisis in both North America and across the globe.
IMB President David Platt told messengers in a pre-recorded report, “Global Hunger Relief is a great means through which Southern Baptists can say, We’re not just about proclaiming the Gospel. We’re also about demonstrating the love of Christ through these physical provisions and sustainable ways we can serve people, communities and villages, as we proclaim the Gospel.”
NAMB President Kevin Ezell said, “This is another example of how we, as believers in Christ, can do more together than alone.”
The report was a result of a 2014 resolution approved by the convention to continue to draw attention to the global hunger crisis and to support the work of GHR, formerly known as the World Hunger Fund.
GHR is a partnership of the IMB, NAMB, ERLC, LifeWay Christian Resources, the SBC Executive Committee, Baptist Global Response and Woman’s Missionary Union.
Global Hunger Relief follows the unique “dollar in, dollar out” practice of the former World Hunger Fund in which Southern Baptists are able to direct 100 percent of each donation to hunger causes. Through the cooperation of SBC entities, church gifts through the Cooperative Program provide the implementing infrastructure for hunger relief projects, with no deductions for promotional and administrative costs.
More information is available at globalhungerrelief.com.
Reprinted from Baptist Press (www.baptistpress.com).
Baptist Press (BP) is the official news service of the Southern Baptist Convention and provides news to the 42 state Baptist papers. BP reports on missions, ministry and witness advanced through the Cooperative Program and on news related to Southern Baptists’ concerns nationally and globally.
