Hunger No More 2003

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Introduction

This Leader's Guide will help you present important hunger and poverty issues to study groups in your congregation. In our affluent world, people should "Hunger No More." "Decisions 2002" points to crucial decisions that will be made in 2002 that will affect hungry and poor people in the United States for years to come. While these decisions are urgent and thus we recommend that you convene your study group soon, as much as 90 percent of the material will be useful for several years as an introduction to hunger issues. In the 1996 "welfare reform," Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC), was replaced by Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF). TANF expires on September 30, 2002. Congress and the administration will decide what the program should look like for the coming years. This series of six sessions helps congregations examine our tradition's mandate to care for people who are hungry and poor. Because the new legislation will be in committee, and in the news, during the early months of 2002, there is no better time to start your study than now.


Participants and materials

This packet includes six sessions for interested adults and youth as part of the synagogue education program. We encourage you to use all six, but each can be used independently of the others. They are listed on "Hunger No More," p. 5 of this guide.

Consider using this study guide and related activities with specific groups in your congregation, such as the Social Action or Bikur Cholim committees, or any group specifically interested in the plight of families in your community. Also, consider bringing an inter-faith group together for this study, which is a cooperative effort of the religious organizations listed on the back cover.

This packet includes a separate set of children and youth materials that can be offered simultaneously with, or separately from, the youth/adult sessions.

However, some of the children's materials could be used in adult settings, and some of the discussion techniques used in the adult settings could be translated for children or youth. So scan all the materials, not just the ones that fit the class or group you intend to work with.

The six leaflets are used as bulletin inserts and/or in the congregation's newsletter. Each leaflet stands on its own and distributing them broadly helps educate the whole congregation on core hunger and poverty concerns. They are also used as handouts in the classes.

While specific sessions draw on specific pages, such as "Hunger and Poverty Definitions," the activity pages after Session 6 can be used in other sessions, posted for everyone to see, or used in other ways in your congregation. For example, there may be a strong interest in "charitable choice" in your congregation. You could use the definition plus an outside speaker to get the discussion going anytime.

Use your creative imagination, along with the ideas of other people, as you read the words of the Israeli folksong, "You and I Will Change the World." How can you get more people involved in this study and related activities?


Who might lead this study?

The leader should be someone who is comfortable leading group discussions and who will encourage everyone to participate. People may have varying points of view on some of the issues to be discussed, and the leader should be willing to listen to many points of view and encourage an atmosphere of openness and trust, rather than promoting their own agenda. It is important that everyone have a chance to express their own opinion and learn from others. The leader should not expect the group to arrive at a consensus about the solutions to hunger and poverty. You do not need to be an expert on these issues. Part of the fun and learning comes from wrestling with individual texts as well as inviting people to search out additional sources and answers to some of the questions before the next session.


Getting started

Get permission from the appropriate people in the synagogue administration for the classes to be held.

Make a decision about the timing and number of classes to be held and whether the children's meetings will be held during the same hours as the youth/adult studies or at other times.

Give the children's materials to the appropriate people in plenty of time for them to prepare.

Hang the poster (included with this packet) in a prominent place to advertise the sessions. Include the dates, times, topics and contact information (person, phone number) with a marker.

Announce the sessions in the congregation's bulletin and/or newsletter.


Each session has:

An opening kavanah (a spiritual intention) by a leader or participant. Consider opening some sessions with songs.

God's Story, a brief study of Jewish texts.

A personal story as a way to understand hunger and poverty as experienced by real people. The sessions suggest various ways of presenting these stories. You might invite someone before each session to prepare to introduce themselves as the "person with the story," telling the story in the first person, really getting into "being" that person - perhaps role playing, standing for questions from the participants, entering into dialogue with them. At the conclusion of each personal story and interview/discussion, you might ask about insights he or she has had in doing the presentation by having her or him say "This has helped me to realize that IÉ" (finish the sentence).

A Hunger Story, which summarizes some facet of hunger in the United States.

Our Story, exploring how we can connect our individual and congregational lives with the hunger story and our mandate from the tradition.


Closing reflections.

The sessions are planned for one hour, depending on the size of the group.

Some sessions might have more materials than you can use, so skip  some of the discussion questions. To lengthen any given session, allow more time for discussion.

Invite someone involved in social justice work, specifically in the area of hunger programs to speak to the group. Look for people who staff local community social service agencies, school nurses, nutritionists, local anti-hunger groups, Jewish Community Relations Councils, Jewish Family & Children's Services or serve on your synagogue's social action committee. If available, bring a guest from the office of a Member of Congress, and perhaps plan a joint session with parallel groups from other religious institutions.

Regularly encourage the group members to bring in news articles related to hunger. Post them for others in the congregation to see. Be alert to articles or radio or television programs that you can suggest to the group as well.


You will need

This Leader's Guide for "Hunger No More"
Copies of the six leaflets in the back pocket of this guide.
Photocopy one for each participant.
Tanakh and other source materials
Overhead projector or copies of selected pages for each session
Any statements from your synagogue movement on hunger or poverty
Pencils
Newsprint on an easel
Markers
Masking tape


Hints for the Leaders

Read over the session well in advance so you can make the required copies or transparencies.

Begin each session with a kavanah. This will set a framework for the discussion.

Give a brief summary of the previous session's discussion.

Encourage everyone to participate in the discussion and be accepting of all points of view.

Be clear at the beginning of each session, and by your own actions, that whether or not you agree with someone's opinion, no one is to be belittled.

If one participant tends to dominate the discussion, ask that no one speak a second time until everyone who wishes has had the opportunity to speak.

Expect that a discussion of this type will bring out a variety of opinions.

Encourage the participants to speak with certainty only of their own experiences and to avoid making generalizations about others.

Keep track of the time so you will not have to rush or omit the chatimah.

If you find it difficult to keep track of the time and lead the session, ask for a volunteer to tell you when it is the final ten minutes.

At the end of each session make follow up notes for yourself.

At the end of the series, complete the evaluation and return it to MAZON: A Jewish Response to Hunger (address on back cover).

"HUNGER NO MORE" Isaiah 49

	Who is hungry and poor in the U.S. and why?
	Why is 2002 such an important year for decisions?
	What would it take to end hunger and poverty?

2 "DEFEND THE CAUSE OF THE POOR" Psalm 72

	How are current welfare programs working?
	Who is being helped, harmed, and why?
	What important welfare issues will be on the table in 2002?
	What does it take to help people get out of poverty and into good jobs?

3 "WHO PROVIDES FOOD FOR ALL"

	How do national nutrition programs, such as food stamps and school meals, work?
	How can these programs be simplified and strengthened?

4 SUFFICIENT FOR THEIR NEEDS" Deuteronomy 15

	What constitutes a "livable income" in the U.S.?
	How can public policies support poor people to make ends meet?

5 "THE BREATH OF SCHOOL CHILDREN IS THE REASON FOR THE WORLD'S EXISTENCE" Maimonides

	How are U.S. children faring?
	Are public funds for childcare a problem or a blessing?
	Can public policies promote stable marriages?

6 YOU AND I WILL CHANGE THE WORLD"

	How should personal and social responsibility be balanced?
	What is the role of faith-based organizations?