Ohio University junior Dawn Parker and her roommates went grocery shopping last weekend. Each spent $10 on food for the next five days so that they could participate in the Week of Solidarity.
For the second year in a row, the Central Avenue United Methodist Church hosted the Week of Solidarity last week, during which participants were challenged to eat for less than $2 per day.
Personally
I tend to waste a lot of food and I wanted to be mindful and really feel what it is to be hungry said Parker, who is studying education.
In fact, 40 percent of the world's population lives on $2 a day or less, according to data from www.globalissues.org.
Paul Risler, the lead pastor at Central, said the aim isn't to make Americans feel guilty about their diets but to raise awareness about poverty levels around the world.
I think the church has lost the idea that the gospel is good news for the poor. ... I wanted to raise awareness of global issues and the fact that we are in solidarity with the people around the world who are like us
Risler said.
Risler added that the week was an exercise, flexible in its practice, and not a requirement.
The question really is
'How do we live our life differently so that we ... have a margin to give?' Risler said.
For example, instead of restricting their diets, Jake Householder and his wife chose not to use electricity for the week.
It's about bringing a mindfulness to something so mindless (like flicking a light switch)
said Householder, the worship director at Central and an OU alum. It's valuable to remember that there are people in this county that live in poverty.
At the end of the week, the participants were encouraged to bring the money saved on food to one of Central's church services, where it will be donated to the Lattridge and Kilvert food pantries and to an orphanage in Honduras, which helps youth affected by HIV/AIDS, Risler said.
We sing our songs and do our Bible studies
but we forget our part in God
and God has a heart for the poor
said Risler, who added that Central also has a Remember the Poor box year-round where members can drop money to be donated.
With almost 100 confirmed participants on the Week of Solidarity's Facebook page, and others not on Facebook, Central hopes to match last year's $5,000 donation, Risler said.
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