Serving the least of these with shared food ministry

“… move to a shared ministry model? My study will look for how sharing creates vitality and belonging, and helps us to see Christ in one another. ”

Team Members/Contributors

Elizabeth Mae Magill South Acton Congregational Church Contact Me

About this pastoral study project

How can church-based food ministries move to a shared ministry model? Too often church ministries serving people who are poor or hungry fail to build relationships between those serving and those being served. Shared ministry is people with and without food security working together as volunteers at meal programs, food pantries, and gardens, including sharing set-up and cleanup, working together in food distribution or organization, and making decisions for planning and evaluation of the ministry.

I will identify four churches, two with meals, two with pantries, from a variety of mainline denominations and visit each for ten days. I will take part in each food ministry twice, attend worship, and interview three volunteers or staff to learn how the program was created, what obstacles they faced, and what they identify as best practices for shared ministry. I will engage the people I meet, some with and some without food security, in a Bible Study of Matthew 25:31-46, looking for whether they identify as sheep, goats, or perhaps “the least of these”, and where, or within whom, they see Christ in this ministry.

I will use this research to look for patterns in the development of the programs, in the interactions between volunteers, and in their understanding of Matthew 25:31-46, to create an outline to help churches change direct service food ministry into shared ministry. I will report as I work on my blog www.writingfromtheside.weebly.com/blog, create workshops, and then develop a book proposal for congregational leaders, Shared Food Ministry: Creating Community with Neighbors in Need. The research will provide rich stories, in addition to step-by-step advice for creating shared ministry.

Image Title Year Type Contributor(s) Other Info
Five Loaves, Two Fish, Twelve Volunteers: Growing a Relational Food Ministry 2020 Book Elizabeth Mae Magill