|PIC1|Church bodies have affirmed their commitment to feeding the world's hungry after world government's agreed at the Rome food crisis summit last week that overcoming the current shortages would require a united effort.

The plea "give us this day our daily bread" by the world's poor is deeply understood by Christians and a message that world leaders at the food summit need to hear", said Sushant Agrawal, director of the Church's Auxiliary for Social Action (CASA) in India.

"The Lord's Prayer highlights that having enough to eat is, and has always been, central to the Christian idea of a world shaped by justice and mercy," Agrawal added, according to World Council of Churches (WCC). "If God's will was done, no one would go hungry."

There are 854 million people - or one in every eight - that are short of food, and another 100 million people are expected to join their ranks with the current food crisis this year.

According to statistics from the UN Food and Agriculture Organizations (FAO), the international price for rice increased by 74 per cent, vegetable oils by 60 per cent, dairy products by 83 per cent, soybeans by 87 per cent, and wheat by 130 per cent.

To respond to the food crisis, churches have worked locally with rural and indigenous groups on issues such as using crops for biofuels, and advocating policies to curb global warming.

Peter Prove of the Lutheran World Federation noted that the problems of food shortage have existed for a long time, and churches have been there to help the hungry.

The Rev Elenora Giddings Ivory, director of the WCC's Commission of the Churches on International Affairs, said meanwhile that, "Church groups around the world are and have been responding to the food crisis in a comprehensive way.

"Their work in helping with the immediate emergency need and running long term development programmes to improve food security is complemented by challenging unjust systems and structures that contribute to hunger."

Church leaders blame "inappropriate human actions" in general for the current food crisis, although world leaders at the food summit blamed other governments for the problem.

"The WCC views the primary cause of the current crisis as inappropriate human actions which have induced climate change and skyrocketing food prices," declared WCC General Secretary the Rev Dr Samuel Kobia.

"Human actions that are driven by greed have created poverty, hunger and climate change. Humanity must be challenged to overcome its greed," he said.

The World Council of Churches, Action by Churches Together (ACT) International, ACT Development and the Ecumenical Advocacy Alliance (EAA) plan to continue to share information and research on the food crisis and to participate in a conference slated for December entitled "Confronting the Global Food Challenge".