2022 Loaves & Fishes Offering: The Harvest Project
“And when you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not reap your field right up to its edge, nor shall you gather the gleanings after your harvest. You shall leave them for the poor and for the sojourner: I am the Lord your God.” Leviticus 23:22
The Loaves & Fishes Offering is an annual offering which the Cumberland Presbyterian Church receives from individuals and churches to express gratitude for all that God has done. This year the offering will go to The Harvest Project in Brazil.
The Mata de São João (Mata de SJ) Cumberland Presbyterian Mission is located outside of Salvador, Brazil. There are about 50,000 people in Mata de SJ, a rural town on the edge of vast tropical farmland. The Cumberland Presbyterian Church started a mission church in Mata de SJ a few years ago.
The Harvest Project is designed to feed families in need, both in the Mata de SJ Mission and among families in the town. The design of The Harvest Project calls for the Mata de SJ Mission to select fifteen needy families and use the Loaves & Fishes Offering to provide those families with food for at least two years (or until they no longer need help). The Mata de SJ Mission will give food each month, encouragement, and prayer to these selected families. Our hope is that through the relationship and food assistance, these families can use this assistance as a bridge to a more prosperous future.
Your donation to the Loaves & Fishes Offering will be used to fund The Harvest Project in Brazil. The goal is that sufficient donations will be made that allow the Mata de SJ Mission to provide monthly food assistance to fifteen families for two years, starting in 2023.
Report Form – used to mail in your offering – [PDF] [Word]
This yearly observance takes place during the month of November, and the annual offering is typically received on the Sunday prior Thanksgiving (or some other date appropriate for your congregation). It is generally viewed as a thank offering. The observance is based upon Matthew 14:13-21, Jesus feeding the multitude.
