LE3 .A278 2012

2012

Wooden, Glenn

Acadia University

Master of Arts

Masters

Theology

Acadia Divinity College

As people shaped by the narrative of Scripture, we must likewise use Scripture to frame our understanding of the world around us. World Vision reveals that the food crisis in Kenya, Ethiopia, and Somalia is affecting twelve million people. Increasing food and fuel costs, on-going conflicts, a lack of investment in small farmers and live-stock rearing, land degradation, and recurring rain failure all combined to ripen the region for a severe famine.1 Canadian Baptist Ministries estimates that nearly half of the children in the world live in poverty; excluded from essential services like water, basic health care, adequate schools and protection. In extreme cases, their childhood is ripped away from them and they must struggle each day to survive.2 Coffee is one of the most profitable and most traded commodities on the planet, second in trade only to oil and gas; but conventional coffee growers only receive 3 cents from a $1.50 cup of coffee sold in North America. Ninety percent of coffee’s profits go to traders and retailers.3 In January 2009, the Fredericton Food Bank served 669 families; by January 2011, that number had climbed to 895.4 These numbers represent the millions of people in our world that struggle to meet their basic needs. However, the numbers allow us to separate ourselves from the individuals. By focusing on the numbers, we become distanced from the reality that these are people created in the image of God (Gen 1:27), people who need release from oppression and injustice, people who need release from cycles of debt and poverty, and people who need to experience the hope that Yahweh calls his people to provide. While the numbers above reflect the reality of a broken world, the Biblical narrative points God’s people to respond. This thesis will explore a component of the Biblical narrative that calls for a release-proclaiming response.

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https://scholar.acadiau.ca/islandora/object/theses:263