There is an old saying that goes: “Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.” The second part of that saying is the goal of much of the work we do to help the poor here at Cross Catholic.

However, during staff devotions this morning we were reminded of how important the first part is, as well. Our newest projects officer recently returned from Belize. It was his first time visiting the projects we support there, and he was struck by the impact of the elderly feeding programs — those meeting an immediate need rather than supporting development.

“These programs provide palliative care to deal with the effects of poverty. As we minister to the more immediate needs of these people, we are expressing the love of Christ in a very real way,” he explained. “Yes, it is important to teach people how to fish, so to speak, but what about the people who are too old or sick or unable to learn how to fish? Should we just forget about them?”

It is clear from Matthew 18:14 — “Even so it is not the will of your Father which is in heaven, that one of these little ones should perish.” — that every person is important to God.

Giving an elderly woman a daily meal is just as meaningful in God’s eyes as supporting a scholarship or microenterprise program. Both are meeting important needs of the poor and, in the process, exposing them to Christ.

Click here to learn more about what Cross Catholic is doing to meet both the immediate and long-term needs of the poor in Latin America.

If you’ve ever wondered where the most religious place on earth is, a new study from the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life has an answer: sub-Saharan Africa. More specifically, the countries south of the Sahara Desert and north of South Africa.

The sisters at Kabulonga Cheshire Home are impacting African society with Catholic moral values and the love of Christ.

Researchers found that a large majority of Africans consider religion “very important.” But the more interesting find has to do with which religions they are practicing. Just a century ago, traditional indigenous beliefs dominated the region. But Christian missionaries, both Catholic and Protestant, have turned the tables to the point that one in five of the world’s Christians now lives in sub-Saharan Africa!

This reversal is great testimony to the effectiveness of evangelism, but it’s not the whole story. In many cases, indigenous African beliefs, such as sacrifices to ancestors, have been incorporated into their newfound Christianity. A man might go to Mass on Sunday and then on Monday earn a living as a witch doctor. And as the infamous Rwanda genocide has shown, the tribal violence that plagued pre-evangelized Africa continues to be a problem.

How should we as Catholics respond to this? Deep, sincere faith cannot be forced, but God has given us the tools to be an effective witness, and one of those tools is the simple act of loving our neighbors. That’s what is happening at Kabulonga Cheshire Home in Zambia, where the Franciscan Missionary Sisters of Assisi are providing care for children with birth defects and physical disabilities. The love and compassion the children experience is in stark contrast to their previous lives of loneliness and isolation in a country where disabilities carry a heavy stigma. Now the children do not have to be ashamed, and they have learned that there is a God in heaven who accepts them the way they are.

Cross International is an enthusiastic partner and supporter of Kabulonga Cheshire Home. Click here to find out how you can help the sisters impact Africa with Christ’s love.

When Mother Joan Clare first held little Prince and Princess, 17-month-old Filipino twins, they were only 6 ½ pounds. She tried to give them food, but they didn’t know what food was. She tried to give them milk, but they vomited what little they consumed. She says, “They were both suffering from severe malnutrition…they could not speak, walk, or even sit up. They were yellow from lack of blood, and too listless for comfort.”

Mother Joan and Sr. Aura cuddle 20-month-old Prince and Princess, twins rescued from the brink of starvation just three months earlier.

She rushed the twins to the hospital, but she knew the odds of their survival were slim. The hospital found their blood so anemic it was like water, and Prince’s condition was the worst. His tiny veins were collapsing, making an IV or blood transfusion nearly impossible. Mother Joan says, “The skin color of Prince was a sickly, pasty yellow, and the look of death was on his face. I emergency-baptized the baby.”

Mother Joan knew it was time to call in divine forces. She pulled out her cell phone and sent a text to her priest, “FATHER WE NEED A MIRACLE!” His response: “I WILL PRAY AND HOPE YOU GET YOUR MIRACLE!”

The next morning, Prince and Princess were still alive, and three IVs were finally feeding nutrients into Prince’s tiny body. A week later the twins were discharged into the care of Mother Joan at Cross Catholic-sponsored Queen of Peace Children’s Home. She says, “God never fails—I got my miracle!”

We’ve made the news in Rome, and the topic is Haiti disaster relief. Cross Catholic President Jim Cavnar was recently interviewed by a Vatican reporter for an inside perspective on Haiti’s humanitarian crisis. Jim’s comments were published in a story announcing Pope Benedict XVI’s decision to finance the rebuilding of a Port-au-Prince seminary destroyed by the quake.

Since the earthquake, Cross Catholic President Jim Cavnar (right) has traveled from the front lines of Haiti disaster relief to the Vatican to support ongoing aid efforts.

Here is an excerpt from the article:

“The Haitians have always been very religious, even though they are very poor, and their faith has remained remarkably strong in the face of such tragedy,” Cavnar said after meeting with Cardinal Paul Cordes, president of the Pontifical Council Cor Unum.

Cavnar, who visited Haiti in February, said, “The church in Haiti was hit very hard” by the earthquake, which killed dozens of church workers and severely damaged churches, schools, hospitals and seminaries. Still, he said, even the day after the quake, walking through the streets of the city, one would come across groups of people praying and singing hymns.

Each year, the Pope chooses a specific cause to support with the collection from his Holy Thursday evening Mass. His decision to fund the seminary will be a huge encouragement to Catholics in disaster-stricken Haiti. When the Pope first made the announcement, Jim was in Rome meeting with Cardinal Paul Cordes, head of the Pontifical Council Cor Unum, the group responsible for distributing the Vatican’s humanitarian funds. Cross Catholic collaborates with Cor Unum, and thus with the Pope, by giving about $500,000 per year to specific projects in need of funding.

Cross International Catholic Outreach’s close relationship with Vatican officials and years of experience in Haiti have equipped us to speak to Catholics in a meaningful way about the ongoing recovery efforts. Jim has a great passion for the people of Haiti and is working overtime to ensure that the world does not forget the deep needs of this desperately poor country. Click here to get involved in Cross Catholic’s Haiti recovery efforts.

Now that Lent has begun, Catholics are spending even more time in prayer and fasting in the weeks leading up to Easter, when we will celebrate our Savior’s resurrection.

There’s a tradition that during Lent, we are supposed to give up a particular luxury we enjoy, such as unhealthy foods or even television. But this year, some Christian religious leaders are calling for a slightly different approach: don’t just give something up – give it away. Reach out with your time and talents to others in need.

“Remember all the gifts God has given you,” suggests a recent Catholic Digest article. “Imitate God’s generosity by increasing your offering to your parish and to outside charities, and keep it up throughout the coming year.”

Lent is a great opportunity for believers to bless others while denying themselves. We can turn our thoughts not only to the needs of the neighbor across the street, but also to the poor and downtrodden around the world. Of course, not everyone can personally travel to a faraway land to feed the hungry and clothe the naked, but those of us who stay home have an important role to play in supporting those who go.

At Cross International Catholic Outreach, our mission partners simply could not do what they do without the generous giving of our Catholic donors. Whether you choose to feed orphans at the Impaputo Children’s Center in Mozambique or build houses for poor families in the Philippines, your gifts make a real difference. Check out our online project catalog to see how you can be a blessing in someone’s life today!

In Haiti, one thing has always been certain. Through all the poverty, tragedy, and violence that has plagued the small Caribbean nation, Haitians have always celebrated Carnival.

Many churches were destroyed in the earthquake. But Haitian’s faith in God remains strong

But not this year.

The lively annual festivities, which would have begun Sunday and ended today, have been set aside, so the Haitian people can observe three days of mourning and fasting. Haitian musicians cancelled their Carnival performances and instead are raising money for earthquake relief.

It’s amazing how God can use the worst of tragedies to remind us that he is in control. We are confronted with our own helplessness, with our absolute dependence in God’s mercy and compassion. Shortly after the earthquake struck, our own staff reported seeing groups of people openly praying and worshiping God amid the ruins of Port-au-Prince. Though the church buildings were destroyed, the faith of the people remained intact.

As Cross Catholic begins to look forward to Haiti’s long-term recovery, we consider our spiritual focus an integral, rather than peripheral, part of our mission to the poor. The people of Haiti need hope, and our mission partners are there to lead them to the only hope that lasts. Whether we are supporting orphans at Pwoje Espwa, building houses for destitute families through the Kobonal Housing Project, or helping the Haitian Health Foundation rescue malnourished children from the brink of starvation, we do our work in Christ’s name, because he is the one who changes lives. A meal will sustain a child for a day, and the sturdiest rebuilt house will eventually weather away, but Christ’s sacrifice and resurrection sustains us forever.

While traveling through Haiti, Cross Catholic Projects Officers Mike Wilson and Claudio Merisio visited the camps where our mission partners are continuing to provide medical care for earthquake victims. They got to see firsthand the incredible work that so many doctors, nurses, and volunteers are providing on a daily basis in tent facilities or even outside.

Cross Catholic Projects Officer Claudio Merisio visits a Project Medishare health clinic in Haiti.

Now that more than three weeks have passed since the quake, our partners are beginning to transition from trauma to general health care for the many displaced men, women, and children who are trying to rebuild their lives in the aftermath; and Cross Catholic is working alongside them to ensure success.

For instance, our Cross Catholic partner Arc en Ciel is providing care for about 4,000 people, including 1,600 children, in five refugee camps. They plan to send health workers to fifty additional camps to train their peers on general health issues such as hydration, nutrition, vaccination, and psycho-social support.

Another Cross Catholic partner, Project Medishare, is increasing the number of women and children receiving care, and plans to double the number of mobile clinics from one to two per week.

Gladys Thomas, who runs Hopital Espoir and Village Espoir, is shifting her focus to rehabilitative care for people needing physical and occupational therapy and post-traumatic support.

To help our mission partners provided the best possible health care under the strained conditions of disaster-stricken Haiti, Cross Catholic has given food, medicine, medical supplies, and in one case even a container to be converted into a clinic. To learn more about what Cross Catholic is doing in Haiti, check out our latest updates at www.crosscatholic.org/relief.

Between serving as a guide and translator for an NBC news crew and personally delivering pillows for all the beds at the main Project Medishare hospital in Haiti (as he put it, “My vehicle looks like a giant cotton ball!”), Cross Catholic Projects Officer Michael Wilson has successfully established a food distribution network in the greater Port-au-Prince area and the badly damaged cities of Leogane and Jacmel.

The food recipients include long-term Cross Catholic partners such as the Bethsaide short-term shelter in Jacmel, as well as internally displaced persons (IDP) camps where many earthquake refugees are now living. These groups will benefit from a $1.3 million shipment of emergency supplies that Cross Catholic arranged to be airlifted to Port-au-Prince in two C737 cargo planes over the weekend. The shipment includes 50,000 lbs. of fortified rice/soy casserole, bagged corn, water, an electrolyte replacement drink, tarps, and diapers, and is now being stored in a partner’s warehouse near the airport, where the goods are already being picked up for distribution.

Michael also reported that one of the orphanages Cross Catholic is supporting has now relocated from Leogane to an open field in Tabarre, where the children are living in tents. On Monday, Michael visited a school in the Port-au-Prince area that was severely damaged by the earthquake and he assured the widow of the deceased headmaster that we will help them recover from their loss. Even as schools have reopened in unaffected areas of Haiti, there is much work to be done before children in Port-au-Prince will be able to return to school again.

Get more of the latest Haiti updates at www.crosscatholic.org/relief.

There’s a unique difference between the prayers and goals of people in developed nations and those born into abject poverty:

Sign posted on the wall of an orphanage in Haiti, where children are rescued from the ravages of poverty and raised to know God’s love through Christ Jesus.

“I resolve to lose weight” vs. “I am going to trust God for a meal today.”

“I resolve to live a healthier lifestyle” vs. “I pray that I might live long enough to raise my children.”

“I resolve to better handle my finances” vs. “I pray God will bless those with money so they can continue to help others.”

As you contemplate your physical, spiritual, and financial goals for 2010, won’t you resolve to join us in being instruments of God’s love for the poor?