Catholic Relief Services (CRS) is the official international relief and development agency of the U.S. Catholic community. Founded in 1943 by the U.S. bishops, the agency provides assistance to 80 million people in 99 countries and territories in Africa, Asia, Latin America, the Middle East and Eastern Europe. A member of Caritas Internationalis, the worldwide network of Catholic humanitarian agencies, CRS provides relief in emergency situations and helps people in the developing world break the cycle of poverty through community-based, sustainable development initiatives. Assistance is based solely on need, not race, creed or nationality. It is headquartered in Baltimore, Maryland, while operating numerous field offices on 5 continents. CRS has approximately 5,000 employees around the world. The agency is governed by a Board of Directors consisting of 13 bishops, 1 monsignor and 6 lay people. ([1]).

History

Initially founded as the War Relief Services, the agency’s original purpose was to aid the refugees of war-torn Europe. A confluence of events in the mid 1950s — the end of colonial rule in many countries, the continuing support of the American Catholic community and the availability of food and financial resources from the U.S. Government — helped CRS expand operations. Its name was officially changed to Catholic Relief Services in 1955, and over the next 10 years it opened 25 country programs in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Middle East. CRS's executive director during this period (1947-1976) was Bishop Edward E. Swanstrom. As the agency grew, its programming focus widened, adapting to meet the needs of the post-World War II Roman Catholic Church and the circumstances of the people it encountered. In the 1970s and 1980s, programs that began as simple distributions of food, clothing and medicines to the poor evolved toward socio-economic development. By the late 1980s, health care, nutrition education, micro enterprise and agriculture had become major focuses of CRS programming.

In the mid-1990s, CRS went through a significant institutional transformation. In 1993, CRS officials embarked on a strategic planning effort to clarify the mission and identity of the agency. Soon after, the 1994 massacre in Rwanda – in which more than 800,000 people were killed – led CRS staff to reevaluate how they implemented their relief and development programs, particularly in places experiencing or at high risk of ethnic conflict. After a period of institutional reflection, CRS embraced a vision of global solidarity and incorporated a justice-centered focus into all of its programming, using Catholic social teaching as a guide. All programming is evaluated according to a set of social justice criteria called the Justice Lens. In terms of programming, CRS now evaluates not just whether its interventions are effective and sustainable, but whether they might have a negative impact on social or economic relationships in a community.

Activities

CRS programming includes

• emergency relief in the wake of disasters and civil conflict
• long-term development programming in the areas of agriculture, community health, education, health, HIV/AIDS, micro finance and peace building.

Overseas

Overseas work is done in partnership with local church agencies, other faith-based partners, non-governmental organizations and local governments. CRS emphasizes the empowerment of partners and beneficiaries in programming decisions. Program examples include:

• Agriculture — CRS’ immediate goal is to improve family well-being through agro-economic development and environmental stewardship. The long-term goal is to strengthen the capacity of local communities to take control of their own development.
• Emergency response — Natural and human-caused disasters disproportionately affect the lives of the poor. CRS works to ensure that disaster-affected populations are at least able to meet their basic needs and live a life with dignity. The agency works directly with affected communities and local partners to help restore and strengthen their pre-disaster capacities.
• HIV/AIDS — CRS promotes community-based programs that help those infected, address the underlying causes of AIDS and reduce the spread of HIV. CRS is the lead agency in a consortium that is expanding the delivery of antiretroviral treatments to people infected with HIV in Africa, the Caribbean and Latin America. Funding for this venture comes from the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief. In addition to this, programming addresses AIDS-related stigma, poverty and the special vulnerabilities and burdens faced by women. Included in CRS’ HIV/AIDS work is home-based care for individuals and families living with HIV/AIDS; support to orphans and vulnerable children affected by AIDS; behavior change and life skills education; voluntary counseling and testing; and projects that help increase beneficiaries’ livelihoods.
• Peacebuilding — The agency's commitment to global solidarity led CRS to adopt peacebuilding as an agency-wide priority. Peacebuilding in this context is defined as the long-term project of building peaceful, stable communities and societies. CRS assembled a team of regional advisors and a headquarters-based technical staff to work with partners, and peacebuilding projects were started in dozens of countries. Each summer, CRS conducts training programs for its staff and overseas partners at the Mindanao Peace Institute in the Philippines and at University of Notre Dame’s Joan B. Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies. An increasing number of bishops from developing countries have attended these sessions.

In the United States

The agency has also made engaging the U.S. Catholic population a priority. CRS is seeking to help Catholics more actively live their faith and build global solidarity. Program examples include:

• Operation Rice Bowl — Nearly 12 million parishioners, students and teachers participate in CRS’ Lenten program, which emphasizes prayer, fasting, learning and giving. Materials offer daily prayers, recipes for simple meals and stories that teach about life in the developing world. And the bowl itself, a symbol of both hunger and hope, is used to collect funds for those in need. Seventy-five percent of funds raised support development projects in Africa, Asia and Latin America; the remaining 25 percent stays in the diocese for local poverty and hunger alleviation projects.
• Global Solidarity Partnerships — Tailored to an individual diocese or faith community, the initiative helps U.S. Catholics to connect with the poor overseas through education and awareness activities, reciprocal visits, shared faith and prayer experiences, as well as financial support for specific locally appropriate development programs.

References

Egan, Eileen. Catholic Relief Services: The Beginning Years. NY:Catholic Relief Services, 1988. ISBN 0-945356-00-5

Egan, Eileen. For Whom There is No Room: Scenes from the Refugee World. NY: Paulist Press, 1995. ISBN 0-8091-0473-3

USAID 1994. Initial environmental examination for the Catholic Relief Service Food Transition Strategy Project in the Philippines. USAID, Washington, DC.

External links

• CRS official Web site
• Caritas Internationalis Web site