Faith Leaders Join Pope Francis In Supporting New Campaign to End Hunger

WASHINGTON, Dec. 6, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Members of the Circle of Protection, and other faith leaders, will participate in a global wave of prayer for an end to hunger at the U.S. Capitol at 12 noon on Tuesday, Dec. 10.  The prayer service launches a Caritas Internationalis campaign, which is supported by Pope Francis. Prayers will take place at noon in every time zone around the world, creating a "wave" around the globe.

Who: Faith leaders (including Fr. Larry Snyder, president of Catholic Charities USA; Rev. David Beckmann, president of Bread for the World; and Jim Wallis, president of Sojourners) will participate in the prayer service. A final list of participants will be available  Dec. 9.

What: A prayer service to join Pope Francis in supporting a global campaign to end hunger

When: Tuesday, Dec. 10, from 12 p.m. to 12:30 p.m.

Where: East Lawn of the U.S. Capitol, facing the Senate side

Why: Millions of faithful people around the world will be praying on Dec. 10, at 12 noon local time, for an end to hunger. The "One Human Family, Food for All" campaign is organized by Caritas Internationalis, an international confederation of Catholic charities in the Vatican, and is supported by Pope Francis. This prayer service, organized by the Circle of Protection, joins Pope Francis in supporting this campaign to end hunger.

The wave of prayer comes at a critical time. Congress is considering deeper cuts to SNAP, or food stamps, which is one of the most successful anti-hunger programs in the United States. Recent cuts have resulted in the loss of 10 million meals  a day from the program—meals that would have fed families struggling to lift themselves out of the recession. Nearly 5 million of those meals were taken away from hungry American children, and a big chunk of the remainder meals were taken from the 900,000 veterans who rely on food stamps to avoid hunger.   

With their resources already stretched, this loss is more than what churches and other food charities can cope with.

Although this is a prayer service, the event is open to the media. To interview any of the prayer leaders, contact Eric Sapp (703-863-6403) or Adlai Amor (202-423-7989).

The Circle of Protection is composed of more than 65 heads of denominations, relief and development agencies, and other Christian organizations. To learn more, visit www.circleofprotection.us

SOURCE Circle of Protection