Who believes that every child should go to school?

Every mom should have access to medicine that will keep her healthy during pregnancy?

Every family should have clean water to drink?

A Show of Hands is the CRC's way to pray, learn, and hold leaders accountable to achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) by 2015.  These eight measurable goals--like reducing disease and illiteracy, and improving primary school education and foreign assistance--work together to overcome the barriers that keep the poor powerless, voiceless, and vulnerable. 

Twelve years ago, the global community promised that it would not turn its back on the poor, as all 189 UN states committed to achieving the MDGs by 2015.

All over the world, the Church also made this promise.  As Christians, we believe the MDGs are not just something that world leaders agreed to, but that they reflect an integral part of the mission of the church--to proclaim and demonstrate the love of Christ to a world in need, to feed the hungry, care for the sick, administer acts of mercy and strive for justice for the oppressed.

In this vein, Synod 2004 endorsed the call for strong denominational participation in the international initiative to achieve the MDGs by 2015 (Acts of Synod 2004, p. 555). This not only includes the ongoing efforts of agencies such as CRWRC to directly alleviate global poverty, but also Christian advocacy that brings about the policy changes at all levels needed to make progress on the MDGs.

During fall 2012, the CRC will be joining Christians from all over the world in praying, learning, and taking action around the MDGs. We will be focusing on child mortality and maternal health in particular--learning how poverty affects mothers and children, telling success stories, finding connections to other MDGs, and understanding how having measureable goals has changed the lives of mothers and children around the world. Click here to learn more about the importance of child and maternal health.

Who thinks we can achieve the MDGs by 2015?

Let's see a show of hands!

FAQs

What is a Show of Hands event?

A Show of Hands is an event in a congregation that includes at least three things:

1) A prayer to end global poverty

2) A hand tracing for advocacy

3) Some education about the Millennium Development Goals

Is my school or congregation participating?

Enter your postal or zip code on our event registration page to find a list of events in  your area.

Can I register my school or congregation to host a Show of Hands?

You betcha! Just use our event registration page to sign up.

Why do I have to register my event?

First, we want to make sure your support is included in the global count of people putting their hands in to support the MDGs. Second, registering your event lets others in your neighborhood know about it so they can also attend.

Isn't hosting an event a lot of work?

We have lots of ready-made resources to make hosting your event a breeze. It can take five minutes or an entire service. It's up to you!

My church is already doing a poverty-related event this fall.

If you've already committed to CRWRC's World Hunger campaign, or similar program, there's no problem! A Show of Hands is designed to be integrated with whatever your congregation is already doing. We're all working toward the same thing: raising awareness for the Millennium Development Goals.

Still have questions?

Contact Marie at mvogel@crcna.org.