Show It ft Seems To Me MeBy By Joseph B. B Roberts m m i World neighbor COPYRIGHT 1978 1976 Contemporary Features Syndicate Inc What do you do when you hear a arousing arousing arousing rousing good sermon one that challenges you to go out into the world and act like a true Christian Chances are you shake the speakers speaker's hand tell him what a great sermon that was and then go home to eat Sunday dinner and read the papers Well maybe YOU dont don't but many people do That's why I am utterly amazed that an egghead from a local university could give a guest sermon at ata ata ata a church in Oklahoma City and from that sermon develop an international organization that helps poor people That's not all that amazes me The organization itself leaves me dumb dumb- founded It operates in 29 developing countries where the average annual per capital income is less than has more than paid and 2000 volunteer workers and is supported entirely by donations from individuals churches and other organizations it neither solicits nor accepts government funds What's more it doesn't go around doling out food and clothes and telling poor people how bad off they are It usually loans money to people so they can ean buy tools seed fertilizer and raw materials and grow their own food and make their own clothes In short it helps people help themselves But lets let's start at the beginning One day in April back in 1951 Dr Or John Joh Peters a professor of philosophy from Oklahoma City University gave a guest sermon at a local church lie He challenged the congregation to help the needy of the world but not with handouts han ban douts but aids ht that help themselves It must have been a avery avery avery very persuasive sermon serman for following the church service a group volunteered to organize the kind of self-help self program he be had advocated That was the beginning and it grew into what is now called World Neighbors Neigh Neigh- bors hers a quiet efficient organization that works at the village level with the people who need a boost out of the slough o rJ poverty that would keep them th forever mired It employs competent dedicated local leaders very seldom do Americans serve as leaders in development programs to help their people raise more food improve their health and even start small industries with revolving loans After they increase increase in crease their income the people repay the money they borrow That money is then loaned to people in neighboring villages and the process is repeated Another principle of the organization is isto isto isto to ask the people what they need not tell them which in itself is a radical idea Dr Peters who is now president of World Neighbors probably does not have time to deliver guest sermons anymore He is too busy seeing to it that the truth of those words he spoke 25 years ago is kept untarnished by politics polities graft greed and the stupidity-the evils that infect most foreign aid programs lie He supervises his widespread organization to see to it that no government handles the distribution of its funds or materials that no social workers from the United States or anywhere else eise go into the villages to tell teU the people how to live or 01 what they need to improve their lot that material aid is kept to an absolute minimum that money loaned is repaid when possible that his native workers deal facet face to face with the people they are trying to help and that no recipient of help from World Neighbors ever feels he has been a charity case Dr Peters is a philosopher with common sense lie He knows the difference dif ference ferenee between material poverty and spiritual poverty and he will not impoverish impoverish im a mans man's soul just to feed his body Consequently the slogan of World Neighbors is A uA hand band up not a handout What a simple idea and practical tool too Feed eed a man today and he tie must be fed tomorrow but help him grow his own food and he will feed himself from then on And he will feel self-respect self as well Isn't it reassuring to know that there are some humanitarians in the world who are not simpering impractical idealists or political opportunists Just thinking about Dr Peters reters and his workers makes my ray whole day bright How lIow about you |