Washington National Cathedral

The Sunday Forum: Critical Issues in the Light of Faith

The Very Rev. Samuel T. Lloyd III, host

The Rev. Dr. David Beckmann talks with Cathedral Dean Samuel T. Lloyd III about “Why We Must Reform Foreign Aid.”

Beckmann says he might be “the only ‘missionary economist’ in captivity.” He connects Christian teachings with information about poverty and hunger throughout the world. Since 1991 he has served as president of Bread for the World and the Bread for the World Institute.

“God has a special concern about people who are really at the bottom of the pile: hungry, poor people,” Beckmann says. “In our great democracy, all of us really can change history for the Lord . . . opening up opportunity for poor people.”

The poorest people in the world have been most severely hurt the most by current economic problems, Beckmann asserts—although “you wouldn’t know it from the Washington Post.”

The number of hungry people worldwide, which had long remained steady at 850 million even amid a dramatic population increase, has recently jumped to almost one billion. Beckmann links hunger to violence, including food riots, in many countries.

He calls for additional funds to help the poor, and for “fixing” foreign assistance delivered by the United States. In a recent trip to Mozambique, Beckmann saw some good effects of government aid and charitable contributions. Even in remote areas, children now attend school; AIDS medication is lengthening lives, enabling people to grow food and raise their children. However, the three United States agencies working in Mozambique do not work together, except perhaps at the highest levels. The government of Mozambique must work separately with each agency.

“As people of faith, we need to insist that, as we’re debating these issues, we look at what’s happening to ‘the least of these’ in our country and also on the other side of the world,” Beckmann comments.

The United states gives only two-tenths of one percent of national income to foreign aid—far less than other developed nations give. “This is an area where Republicans and Democrats can work together,” Beckmann says. He cites both the leadership of former President George W. Bush, and the commitment of President Obama. “I think the Lord is calling us . . . to a deeper faith and a deeper generosity,” he summarizes.

The Rev. Dr. David Beckmann is president of Bread for the World, a collective Christian voice urging our nation’s decision makers to end hunger at home and abroad, and of Bread for the World Institute, which provides policy analysis on hunger and strategies to end it. He also serves as president of the Alliance to End Hunger, which engages diverse religious and secular institutions in building political will to end hunger. One of the nation’s foremost advocates for hungry people, Beckmann also is the author of many books, including Transforming the Politics of Hunger and Grace at the Table: Ending Hunger in God’s World.

About The Rev. Dr. David Beckmann

The Rev. Dr. David Beckmann is president of Bread for the World, a collective Christian voice urging our nation’s decision makers to end hunger at home and abroad, and of Bread for the World Institute, which provides policy analysis on hunger and strategies to end it. He also serves as president of the Alliance to End Hunger, which engages diverse religious and secular institutions in building political will to end hunger. One of the nation’s foremost advocates for hungry people, Beckmann also is the author of many books, including Transforming the Politics of Hunger and Grace at the Table: Ending Hunger in God’s World.