Dear Friends in Christ,
Every year the season of Lent calls us on a journey of prayer, fasting and almsgiving to come closer to Jesus, the Son of God who shared and redeemed our vulnerable humanity. The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops invites us to participate in the Lenten journey through the Catholic Relief Services-CRS Rice Bowl program that helps us encounter Christ with our sisters and brothers in need around the world, transforming vulnerability into stories of hope.
This Lent, CRS invites us to journey to Honduras, the Philippines and Kenya to learn about the root causes of hunger and how families — with the support of faith communities — are making sure they have nutritious food to thrive. Through Rice Bowl stories of hope we can learn about the Gospel call to care for our common home, and respond to global issues such as hunger, malnutrition and climate change which impact our human family. Rice Bowl provides resources that “bring to life” the Lenten spirituality of prayer, fasting and almsgiving for families, parishes and schools in our diocese, connecting us all with our global ‘ohana.
Through the CRS Lenten Rice Bowl journey, we can become companions with others in need worldwide, including here in Hawaii. One fourth of the funds collected in our diocese through Rice Bowl goes to our local social ministry initiative One ‘Ohana: Food and Housing for All.
I strongly encourage all to participate in the CRS Lenten Rice Bowl journey to come closer to God and witness to Jesus by responding to Christ’s call to help our sisters and brothers in need. Mahalo.
Sincerely yours in Christ,
Most Reverend Larry Silva
Bishop of Honolulu
