Advocating for Sustainable Agriculture and Nutritious Food for All
Catholic Rural Life is a long-time advocate on behalf of family farmers and farm communities. Our advocacy work for fair and just federal policies on agriculture and nutrition programs–especially the Farm Bill–is highly regarded by family farmers and faith-based groups alike. As a representative of the Church, Catholic Rural Life strives to speak truth to power and join in solidarity with farmers, ranchers and producers whose generosity, graciousness and stewardship of the land serves the common good of all creation.
Through a program called Faith, Food and the Environment, we collaborate with agricultural leaders and encourage them to make the connections between their faith and food production. Through resources like The Vocation of the Agricultural Leader, we call upon farm and food production leaders to be moral agents in the complex and competitive world of modern agriculture.
For Catholic Rural Life members and supporters in general, we provide educational and advocacy resources that help shape public policy and institute ethical agricultural practices. As a catalyst for social change, CRL works “for a new earth where righteousness dwells” (2 Peter 3:13).
The $800 Disk
In the spring of 1993 I was looking for a good field disk and gave Auctioneer Glen of Springfield a…
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A Very Extraordinary Day
As I sit trying to come up with the right words for this column I have written and deleted and…
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The Meaning of “Farm to Table” with Ron
[Editor’s Note: An excerpt of the following appears in CRL’s Spring 2019 Magazine, Our Farms to Our Tables. CRL interviewed…
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The Meaning of “Farm to Table” with Tom
[Editor’s Note: An excerpt of the following appears in CRL’s Spring 2019 Magazine, Our Farms to Our Tables. CRL interviewed…
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Easter Sweet Bread
“One evening, Monsignor Hellriegel was describing the finding of the “Alleluia” egg in his family. The story was becoming more…
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Our Yard Farm
I fancy myself a country boy – from a small Arizona town where I grew up surrounded by (very small…
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The New Farm Bill
On December 20, 2018, President Trump signed into law the 2018 Agriculture Improvement Act, commonly referred to as the farm…
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Relationship Between Faith and Food
[Editors Note: The following article was originally published by Iowa State Daily and shared with their permission. It can also…
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A Farmer’s Nature
Life on a rural farm is a natural place to experience and nurture a vibrant Catholic culture. This culture begins…
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A Mid-Winter’s Reflection
[Editor’s Note: On January 24, 2019 the Wethersfield Institute is celebrating the 30th anniversary of the death of its benefactor,…
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