“HUNGER COULD BRING WORLD REVOLUTION”

Press, Volume CIX, Issue 31941, 19 March 1969, Page 2

“HUNGER COULD BRING WORLD REVOLUTION”

Hunger was no longer the silent way to die: it heralded the “roar of revolution,” a Methodist minister the Rev. M. A. McDowell, said in Christchurch yesterday.

Shortage of food was the most urgent problem in the world today, and one which would have far-reaching effects on everybody.

The developing countries were stagnant in the production of food, yet the population of these countries would soon far outnumber that of developed countries. This was the crisis, the “storm centre,” towards which the world was heading, Mr McDowell told women attending an interchurch school organised by the Women’s Committee of the Christchurch branch of the National Council of Churches.

Half the world’s population, 1.5 billion people, was either chronically hungry or suffered severe dietary deficiencies, he said. Every minute of every day there were seven deaths from hunger, and one out of every

three children now living would carry effects of dietery deficiency. Even more significant than the increasing birthrate was the declining death rate, he

said. Throughout the world there were a million more mouths to feed every week.

“But the production of food is not being increased. There is less food for each person in the world today than there was yesterday, and the experts say this will worsen.

Money For Wars “Only a major effort on a world scale by both the ‘haves’ and the ‘have nots’ can solve this problem. If only the nations would stop their wars there would be more money available to help alleviate the hunger problem,” said Mr McDowell. “Missiles and nuclear weapons are useless when the people are starving."

Individuals could help by being awake to the hunger problem and by trying to build informed public opinion, he said. New Zealanders should

urge the Government to expand its level of aid, even if it meant cost to the tax-

payer. to total at least 1 per cent of the national income. “We can also call for a war on waste. Good stewardship of foodstuffs is necessary in a hungry world.” Mr McDowell, whose sub-

ject was “To Love Kindness,” described kindness as “love in action.” A person did not have to be rich or clever to be kind; it was something within the range of everyone.

“Projects overseas loom so largely in our thoughts today that we are Inclined to overlook the simple things in our own neighbourhood. Charity begins at home, and so does kindness.” It was impossible to tell how far the influence of a simple act of kindness went. Kind tasks performed in a humble way could still open our hearts in the world today, Mr McDowell said. Christians should not confine their work to their Church, but should take it out into the community. Some forms of kindness were possible in certain areas only through organisations or institutions.