Students raise funds for CRS
Letter to the Editor
Dear CSB+SJU community,
‘Amen, I say to you, whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me.’
This is one of the ultimate teachings of Jesus, and one of the most well-known verses of the Bible. One of the companies putting this teaching into action is Catholic Relief Services. Catholic Relief Services is a non-profit organization that provides help in many different areas, such as education, agriculture, and emergency funding to struggling countries and communities around the world. Writing from a Catholic perspective, it is important for me to remember that CRS is, as Bishop Neary (now the Chair of the Board of Directors of CRS) says in a video advertising it, “inviting us to encounter God and our global family by…reflecting on how the Eucharist, the bread of life, compels us to share bread for life with all members of our human family.”
At a school so focused on community, it is helpful to also remember that, as a church, community is universal – in a sense, the world is our community. And certainly those who need our help are our family. CRS is a great example of living out the call to living in a global community; 93% of the money they receive, according to their website, goes into their humanitarian efforts, and they have an A+ rating on CharityWatch, an organization dedicated to measuring the effectiveness of charities. They have also, in the wake of cut funds for USAID, stepped in to contribute more money to those areas. This organization has been something that St. John’s has always been proud to help – St. John’s Campus Ministry has been doing CRS donation efforts for more than 10 years.
Through our donation efforts here at St. John’s Campus Ministry this year, students have raised a total of $2000.00 for Catholic Relief Services – through our Fish Fry initiative, collections at 9 PM Mass, and donations made through the CRS Rice Bowls. This is something we should be immensely proud of as a community! Through our efforts in donating, we are not only helping those in need, but being attentive to our human family.
Sincerely,
SJU Campus Ministry