CRS Rice Bowl

Richard A. Sokerka

As Lent began on Ash Wednesday, so did Catholic Relief Services’ (CRS) Rice Bowl, the agency’s flagship Lenten program now in its fifth decade — giving Catholics throughout the country an opportunity to help people in need around the world.

Started as an ecumenical effort in the diocese of Allentown, Pa., in 1975, CRS Rice Bowl soon spread across the country as it called on Catholics to perform a simple act of Lenten sacrifice — substitute a low-cost meatless meal for more expensive dining once a week during Lent and put the money saved in a cardboard rice bowl.

The Lenten sacrifices of Catholic families across the nation aid CRS’ work in more than 100 countries.

The Rice Bowl concept also provides Lenten faith enrichment through a wide variety of resources available for the millions of Catholics who participate. These include prayer resources, a daily Lenten calendar, weekly stories of hope that introduce families from around the world and recipes from various countries for meatless meals that can be enjoyed on Fridays during Lent.

Funds collected in the rice bowls, not only aid the poor around the world, but they also help those in need right here in our own neighborhoods in the Diocese of Paterson. Of all the contributions received in the Diocese, 75 percent of every donation goes to CRS programming in targeted countries worldwide while 25 percent remains right here in the Diocese to support initiatives that help alleviate poverty in our Catholic Charities agencies and parishes.

But the goal is to go beyond collecting money and spur discussions — both in parishes and around family dinner tables — about the meaning of Lent and the daily reality that people living in poverty face.

This Lent, take part in CRS’ Rice Bowl as part of your almsgiving and make a difference in feeding the hungry.