Day of Justice

"If you do away with the yoke of oppression,
with the pointing finger and malicious talk,
and if you spend yourselves on behalf of the hungry
and satisfy the needs of the oppressed,
then your light will rise in the darkness,
and your night will become like the noonday."

—Isaiah 58:9-10

From Bangladesh to your backyard…

Food Insecurity is affecting millions of people worldwide, but this is not a simple issue of poverty. There are many layers of injustice that create challenges to accessing safe and nutritious food for both our global and local neighbours. A lack of affordable local grocery stores in downtown Calgary, unpredictable rainy seasons in rural Kenya, or the effects of the conflict in Ukraine trickling out to neighbouring countries, the disruptions of shalom in our world breaks our hearts. We believe that God sees all of these situations and desires that we enter into them with love. 

World Renew, Diaconal Ministries Canada, and the Justice & Mercy ministries of the CRCNA invite you and your church to participate in reducing food insecurity and to explore alternatives that respectfully and sustainably contribute to long-term changes to food access. 

Day of Justice Bulletin Inserts

Day of Justice Worship Resources

Food Insecurity Resources US:

Global - World Renew - Food Security

Domestic -  See here for Food Justice resources. 

Food Insecurity Resources Canada:

Global - World Renew - Food Security

Domestic - Diaconal Ministries - Food Insecurity/Poverty 

Additional food insecurity resources:

World Renew Video: World Hunger Devotional

World Renew Video: “What is The Global Food Crisis?”

CRCNA Thrive Social Justice - Poverty & Hunger Resources

Canadian Foodgrains Bank Resources 

CFGB Article

Food and Faith Article

Books on Food Justice:

• Braiding Sweetgrass
• The Spirit of Soul Food: Race, Faith, and Food Justice
• I was Hungry
• Food and Faith
• Hunger for the Word: Lectionary Reflections on Food and Justice
• “Just Eating: Practicing Our Faith at the Table” 

Children’s books 

• The Good Garden, Katie Smith Milway 
• Poverty and Hunger, Louise Spilsbury 

Young Adult book 

• Free Lunch, Rex Ogle 

About the Day of Justice

As Christians, we are called to a lifetime of justice and righteousness. In the earliest parts of the Old Testament, God calls people to be stewards of creation and to care for their brothers and sisters. Later, there are explicit rules about caring for widows and orphans, forgiving debts, and farming in a way that preserves the soil for the long-term.

In the New Testament, Jesus models a new kind of justice that includes extending the gospel to all people, appropriately challenging authority, and caring for the “least of those” among us. Today, each of us lives out this call to biblical justice in our individual lives and through the ministries of our local congregations.

We know that scripture promises us a future of renewal and restoration — a righting of all broken relationships between people and God. We also recognize that Jesus calls us to stand up, be kingdom workers, and begin that renewal now in our own context and beyond our churches’ walls.

On August 18, 2024 we will have an opportunity to reflect on justice and what it means for our lives. Designated by Synod 2017, this date will mark the sixth annual, denomination-wide, Day of Justice and will allow us experience a unity as a denomination as we consider the meaning of Biblical justice, lament injustices in our world, and commit to the transforming work of standing alongside people whom society oppresses and pushes to the margins.