FCC Partners with Week of Compassion to Help Ease Refugee Crisis

Week of Compassion is the relief, refugee and development mission fund of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in the United States and Canada. Their Mission is to seek to equip and empower disciples to alleviate the suffering of others through disaster response, humanitarian aid, sustainable development and the promotion of mission opportunities.

Earlier this year and in response to the growing refugee crisis, First Christian Church gave a $2,000 wholeness grant to Week of Compassion. In the slide show above, you will see some photos, taken in Lebanon, that show just one area where refugees are forced to call home.

The information below has been copied from an article that was posted on the Week of Compassion web-site in September. You can read that entire article and get more information by clicking here.

Since the beginning of 2015, over 100,000 displaced persons from Northern and Middle Africa, Syria, Afghanistan, and Iraq have been registered in Hungary alone, but the authorities are unable to handle all the needs of the migrants as the numbers continue to rapidly increase. All countries surrounding the crisis region are feeling the same strain on their resources, and the situation will only continue to become more dire.

For the past four years, the crisis in Syria has been escalating. Unimaginable violence and unrest across the Middle East and Northern Africa has grown to a level that has created one of the greatest humanitarian crises in current memory. Not since the Second World War have we seen such high numbers of refugees and displaced persons desperately seeking safety and refuge in lands not their own.

This week, we have been confronted with a visible image of exactly what is at stake: the lives – many of which have been lost – of men, and women, and small children… all of whom are beloved children of God.

At this moment, the Church is being called to respond. Through Week of Compassion and its partners, the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in the United States and Canada have been working to provide support and refuge to those in need. Below are a few examples of work that is already underway, as well as continuing opportunities to respond to the needs of those who are living through the crisis.

WHAT WE HAVE BEEN DOING

Week of Compassion has been working with partners inside the country of Syria, as well as in the surrounding countries of Jordan, Lebanon, Greece, Serbia, Turkey and Hungary in providing emergency assistance to the million of refugees who are fleeing the conflict. Just in the last month, Week of Compassion has been working with our partners in providing the following emergency aid:

1. Water, sanitation, and hygienic items to individuals, especially children and women

2. Essential medicines and medical supplies and equipment

3. Psychological, emotional, spiritual, and social support for children and their mothers in refugee camps

4. Distributing clothes, blankets and other non-food items in refugee camps in preparation for the winter cold season

5. Building emergency shelters for the increasing number of refugees

We are so grateful for all the work that Week of Compassion does on behalf of our church for the world. You can learn more about their ministries by visiting their web-site.

The wholeness grant used to fund this ministry was made possible through your faithful financial support of our church and its ministries and help fund a variety of efforts to make our world a better place. You can find more examples of those efforts or apply for a grant to make the world a better place by clicking here.