True Christian living requires us to live according to Kingdom standards which bring Heaven to earth.
Dear friends
World Vision are at it again. Among the many undoubtedly good things they do on a scale that HIPPO can yet only aspire to, are the following items in their latest 'Alternative Gift Catalogue'. Once again the accompanying photographs invoke the natural affinity between children and animals to give a misleading aura of kindness to their callous exploitation of the latter.
Happy moo year
a dairy cow
Surprise someone with a cow for Christmas - and bring hope on hooves to a
child in Kisumu, Kenya. Many orphans here care for their younger siblings,
so a dairy cow near their school will provide much needed milk and an
income, which will help pay for school fees and provide a future livelihood.
As the cows have calves, they'll 'moove' on and be shared with others in the
community. £574
super nanny
a goat
Surprise your granny with a nanny goat! And bring stability to Malawi's most
vulnerable families, who've asked for this helpful gift. Goats provide milk,
and more goats to sell. And their first kids will be passed on to other
families. Why not push the goat out and give a whole herd? £14 - £91 for a
herd of goats
sunny side up
four chickens
Brighten life for a poor farming family in south-west Kenya. With the gift
of four chickens, plus training in breeding and rearing chickens, they'll be
assisted in earning an income by selling eggs, and their children will enjoy
a healthier diet. £12 £25 buys a chicken coop.
woolly jumpers
a ram
Why give another boring woolly jumper this Christmas when you could give a
real live ram? He'll help start a sheep breeding programme in Senegal.
Families will be able to sell the sheep they produce at market and be able
to fund their child's education and healthcare. And giving back some of
their first lambs to the programme will help the whole community to prosper.
£29. £57 for a ram and a ewe.
the 'squeal' thing
a pig
Who wouldn't love getting a porker for Christmas? Our ever-popular gift of a
pig will provide a farmer in Zambia with food and an income. And when the
first piglets arrive, they'll be given to another farming family. Now that's
what we call a community piggy bank! £56
This rather puerile 'humour' might not be quite so bad as Christian Aid's 'Animal Multiplying Machine' that we saw ad nauseam in their TV adverts this year but does it give you the impression of an organisation that cares about animals? To say nothing of the environment. Or even human health*. I am not surprised at their lack of consideration for the sensibilities or perspective of humanitarian and environmentalist vegetarians in spite of the representations they have received. We must seem an insignificant minority to them the loss of whose support would not be very important - I am not at all convinced that they are right about that. But I am surprised that any vegetarians continue to support them, or the others like them. We certainly wouldn't direct any of HIPPO's money to them, even if they promised to spend it on ethical projects - it would simply release an equivalent sum to be spent in non-vegetarian ways. We would want to see a complete change of heart and direction before we would have anything to do with them.
If you would like an emailed copy of my article "Charities that Exploit Animals in the Name of Humanitarianism' just let me know!
Yours truly,
Neville
* 95% of black Africans are lactose intolerant and suffer health problems ranging from mild to severe as a result of drinking cows milk. Any animal milk is an ideal culture for the growth and transmission of pathological bacteria especially in places where hygiene, storage and distribution are difficult. Of all animals that are pathologically threatening to the health of humans, especially in the tropics and especially when kept in close contact with people, the most dangerous are pigs. They might soon be joined by poultry, especially chickens kept in close association with families, as avian flu has already reached the border of Kenya in Sudan. All the new varieties of flu that have ever arisen, including the so-called Spanish Influenza of 1918 that wiped out millions of people, have come from pigs and poultry kept for food.
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