Presbyterians across the island of Ireland are being encouraged to ‘bee’ generous this Christmas in responding to this year’s World Development Appeal (WDA), which has been launched by the Presbyterian Church in Ireland (PCI).
Entitled ‘Hives of Hope: Working together for a better tomorrow’, this year’s annual appeal is supporting a number of overseas projects, including one in Honduras that is helping families to make a business from beekeeping.
Primarily for Irish Presbyterians, the WDA takes place in the run up to Christmas and New Year. The Appeal normally raises between £300,000 (€343,000) and £600,000 (€686,000) to support life-changing sustainable development projects in some of the poorest communities and disadvantaged places on the planet.
As Rev Liam Rutherford, PCI’s World Development Appeal Agent, explained, for over 40 years PCI’s 500-plus congregations have been assisting the work of the all-Ireland denomination’s relief and development partners, Christian Aid, Tearfund and Tearfund Ireland, in a number of countries across the globe.
“Since the World Development Appeal began many years ago now, our local churches have always been at the heart of the Appeal and have always been generous as we, as a Church family, come together at this time of year to help people trapped in poverty overseas. As we endeavour to change lives and communities for the better through the work of our relief and development partners, I hope that we can support not just this project in Honduras, but the different programmes supported by Christian Aid, Tearfund and Tearfund Ireland,” he said.
In March of this year Mr Rutherford visited Honduras to see for himself how PCI’s support could change lives and communities. “Honduras is not a place we are terribly familiar with – but it is in the middle of Central America – in a region of the world that is heavily impacted not only by climate change but also by drug trafficking, political instability, gender-based violence and food insecurity.
“With a population of around 10 million people and a land area that is 25% larger than the island that we live on, around 60% of the population live in poverty and 19% of children under the age of five have impaired development. Beekeeping was chosen as an income generating project and it has proven very successful. It is my hope and prayer that our support will be able to make a difference as we stand in solidarity with the people of western Honduras,” he said.
In the hills and valleys of the west of the country, Christian Aid’s partner, OCDIH – The Christian Organisation for Integral Development of Honduras – is working to support local indigenous communities. A faith-based organisation, which promotes a biblical worldview, OCDIH works on a range of issues with small farmers in the western part of the Central American country and trains women in beekeeping, helping to produce and market the honey. Income is generated through selling honey and this can then be used to support the family, as well as provide education for the children.
Speaking about this year’s World Development Appeal, PCI’s Moderator, Right Rev Dr Richard Murray, encouraged congregations to get involved. “In some ways it would have been better to have this particular project when our Moderator, Dr John Kirkpatrick was in office, as he keeps bees!
“The faithful support of Irish Presbyterians through the World Development Appeal has become a traditional part of our Christian witness at this time of year. It is a time when we can sow real and lasting hope, the kind that helps families far away from us, often in countries that we may not be familiar with, as they struggle to provide enough to cover their basic needs,” Dr Murray said.
The Moderator continued, “James 1:27 tells us that ‘Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after the orphans and the widows in their distress and keep ourselves from being polluted by the world.’ In living out our faith in practical ways, through the WDA for example, we can also demonstrate our love for our neighbour, wherever they may live.”
Talking about this year’s World Development Appeal, Hives of Hope. Working Together for a Better Tomorrow, the Chief Executive of Christian Aid Ireland, Rosamond Bennett said,
“The generosity of Irish Presbyterians has allowed Christian Aid Ireland to help transform the lives of thousands of people across the world. This year, the money raised through the World Development Appeal will make a huge difference to families in Honduras struggling with poverty and hunger, exacerbated by the climate crisis.
“Our bee-keeping project will help women learn new skills and boost incomes, as well as improve local biodiversity. We hope that as churches around Ireland use the resources and pray for the project, they will also be encouraged and blessed.”
This year’s World Development Appeal will also support Tearfund projects in Ethiopia (including Tearfund Ireland), India, Pakistan, Mozambique and the DRC, alongside other Christian Aid projects in Kenya, the Dominican Republic and in Zimbabwe.
As Dr Murray spoke of sowing “real and lasting hope”, Marie, one of the beneficiaries of the OCDIH’s beekeeping programme in Honduras that the WDA will support, wants to build up the number of hives she has from the two she started with to ten – and then start to sell the honey. Running a small shop from her home, Marie said, “It was a dream. I wanted to have those beehives, but due to the situation, I couldn’t, but thanks to Christian Aid, this dream was a reality.”
“My husband helps me building them, he’s the one that does the frames…It’s a team effort. Yes. My small daughter also, she loves watching them. My daughter says these ones are going to be mine and I tell her no, they are from God! Well, if you could pray for this project, because this project, I hope it can continue this progress. It can continue growing and please pray for our families so that God can give us the wisdom to manage it, the few that we have to manage it.”
As in previous years five per cent of all contributions to the WDA will be allocated as normal to the Council for Global Mission, to assist with development work through Partner Churches. This year, unless a congregation’s Kirk Session decides in advance that its contribution will go to only one of PCI’s relief and development agencies, the remainder of all contributions will be divided equally between Christian Aid and Tearfund.