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Homily Preached on 8/13/2006 Bruce Friesen Former ERD president Sandra Swan shared a story about post WWII Europe with me. They were starting to put back together one of the great churches. Repairing the walls and blown out stained glass windows. One of the parishioners came upon a statue of Christ. Miraculously most of the white marble was unmarred. It appeared that the only visible damage was that the hands of Christ were gone. The parishioner came to the Priest and said I want to pay to have the hands replaced. The priest politely declined the offer and told the Parishioner that now that statue was to serve as a reminder to all that entered this church that we are the hands of Christ. Episcopal Relief and Development is a wonderful way to use your hands for Christ. Formerly “The Presiding Bishops Fund” it has grown at an unbelievable rate. In 2003 the annual budget was just under 5 million dollars and at the close of 2005 it was just under 50 million. I want to thank each of you who have contributed by prayers, time or talents. We have received recognition world wide as one of the most reputable relief agencies with 93% of every dollar given going to program. ERD has been referred to as “The little relief agency that could.” For more than 60 years, ERD has been the compassionate response of the Church responding to human suffering around the world. For me one of the great benefits of being Episcopalian is my affiliation with the Anglican Communion. Some of you might be going yikes right now, but for me the Anglican Communion brings me closer to my brothers and sisters that live in the far reaches of this world. Giving me understanding and insight to their needs. With back to back unprecedented global disasters Episcopalians by the thousands responded from their hearts. Differing from other agencies ERD first asks, what do you need us to do? We partner with Anglican and ecumenical agencies around the world to get relief to where it is needed. Often times we are the first on the scene and remain long after most other agencies have left. In the highly politicized “situation” in the Middle East ERD has been able to partner with Action by Churches Together, (ACT) to supply emergency supplies to the most affected people in the region. Empowered by Matthew 25:36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me. ERD is not and has not been a politically based organization. We feel called by Christ to respond to human suffering whatever or whomever the cause may be without prejudice. In 2006 we have launched major efforts in the following areas: January: ERD, Episcopal Migration Ministries, and United Methodist Committee on Relief began the Katrina Renewal Program; Continues to aid communities in Pakistan devastated by the 2005 earthquake. February: The deadly mudslide in the Philippines. March: Provided food and aid after the severe drought in Burundi. April: Provided emergency assistance after the drought in Kenya. May: Responded after the earthquake in Indonesia; Major assistance program with the newly displaced in Darfur and Sudan. June: Flooding in the East Coast region; Tropical storm Alberto in Florida. July: Middle East response; Saint Louis seniors in the dark after prolonged power outage. August: Assisted Indonesians trying to overcome another devastating earthquake and tsunami. We have on going programs in 32 countries. Responding to emergencies, developing communities, and partnering for real change in collaboration with compassionate individuals and churches, we work with local communities to enhance their capacity for finding lasting solutions to hunger, poverty, and disease. Over 1 billion people live in extreme poverty. Every 8 seconds, a child dies from a preventable disease such as malaria or dengue fever. More than 30 million people are forced to flee their homes because of war, floods, hurricanes, earthquakes or other disasters. These problems are not their problems, they are the problems of my brothers and sisters of the Anglican Communion. The ones we remember in some way each Sunday in the Prayers of the People. The ones with whom we share the Lord’s Table each Sunday… I would like to share a story with you that my friend Bishop Bainbridge told me. There were three little boys who were walking in the woods one day and they heard a rustling in a thicket of trees. They walked over to investigate what the noise was and what they found was a little bird that had fallen down out of a nest. After much discussion about what they should do with the bird they decided that one boy would take the bird to the old wise man. He asked the old wise man, what do I have in my hand? After some time the old wise man replied it will be what you want it to be. Dumbfounded the little boy ran back to his two friends and told them what the old wise man had said. They decided the he would return to the old wise man and ask him if the bird was dead or alive. If the wise man replied alive, the little boy would crush it and show him it was dead, if he replied dead, he would set it free, once and for all stumping the old wise man. So the boy returned and held the little bird hidden in his hand and asked the wise man if what he held in his hand was dead or alive. After another very long pause the old wise man replied, you hold that power in your hands… Then Jesus declared, "I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty. Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, "Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?" And I said, "Here am I. Send me!"
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