Fifty years ago, Catholics in our own Diocese of Allentown organized to bring help to families facing famine in Africa. That help came in the form of a small cardboard box, marking the beginning of “Operation Rice Bowl.” Today, as we celebrate Catholic Relief Services (CRS) Rice Bowl’s 50th anniversary, the program is a tradition for millions of Catholics in the United States who continue to answer the Gospel call, supporting families experiencing hunger around the world.
Monsignor Robert J. Coll, priest of the Diocese of Allentown and pastor emeritus of Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Bethlehem, established “Operation Rice Bowl” as a Lenten practice, first with the acronym “O.R.B.”, Latin for “world.” Eventually, it became a national initiative, and the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops partnered with Catholic Relief Services.
As a form of fasting and almsgiving, clergy, religious, and laypeople in the Diocese of Allentown and across the United States continue to make simple meals and skip eating out. Instead, they place their extra change aside and into the "rice bowl" which they send to support relief the services of the Church.
Of the money received, 75% goes to fight hunger and poverty worldwide, and 25% of the donations stayed within the Diocese of Allentown. The relief funds were sent as grants to supplement services and support programs across Berks, Carbon, Lehigh, Northampton, and Schuylkill Counties.
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