When Kingscare was formed in 1988, I had a clear vision of how we, as a Christian community, could make a real impact upon the lives of people living in extreme poverty throughout the world. Having a vision, is terribly important to me as a person. Without it, I might as well have continued working in the computer industry, earning good money. Continue reading “My Vision – how it came about”
Author: George Dowdell
I was the founder of Karuna Action (formerly Kingscare) and was the director for 24 years. I have now handed control over to younger people but continue as an advisor and trustee.
My passion is to see extreme poverty eliminated and to see justice for the powerless.
Calebu – his story
Hello, my name is Calebu and I am 10 years old. I live with my mum in Kampala, the capital of Uganda.
My mum tells me that primary education is supposed to be free in my country. But the government schools have great big classes with even as many as 60 children in a class. There are lots of “privately run” schools with smaller classes, but, because the government doesn’t help them, they have to charge school fees. Continue reading “Calebu – his story”
Joel’s Dream by George Dowdell
Joel woke up one day and said to himself, “Today I will visit the doctor”. He set out to walk to the doctor’s surgery full of hope that the symptoms he had would not be serious.
“I’m afraid I have bad news for you”, said the doctor, “You probably only have another year to live. There is a new drug which would ease the suffering and probably give you at least 10 years more life”. Continue reading “Joel’s Dream by George Dowdell”
Justice (2) – Responsible International Lending
Whether we’re talking about countries or individuals, there are responsibilities on both sides when a loan is made.
- The borrower has a responsibility to repay the loan.
- The lender’s responsibility is to ensure that money is only lent when it is reasonable to assume that the money can be repaid.
Continue reading “Justice (2) – Responsible International Lending”
Justice (Part 1)
I’m writing about the need for justice in our relationships with the poor and oppressed in developing countries. Much poverty is directly caused by injustice.
In a previous article I wrote about compassion and how this is an excellent motive for wanting to help the poor and oppressed of the world. But an equally important motive can be a willingness to help out the sense of justice. Continue reading “Justice (Part 1)”
Justice and Righteousness
“But let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never failing stream!” Amos 5:24.
This is a study of how justice for the oppressed and righteousness are linked together in the Bible. Justice in the Bible is about putting right the ways in which men oppress the disadvantaged, the poor and the stranger. Righteousness is about right living and is applied to men, kings and to God. There are 35 instances in the Old Testament where the words justice and righteousness appear together, linked in the same verse. Continue reading “Justice and Righteousness”
Compassion
Compassion is a great word involving our intellect, our emotions and our actions.
“A feeling of deep sympathy and sorrow for another who is stricken by misfortune, accompanied by a strong desire to alleviate the suffering”.
Compassion means so much more than pity. Pity is a feeling of sadness, but can stay as a feeling and is soon forgotten. It can be quite condescending.
Compassion means more than sympathy. Sympathy means, “feeling with” somebody. When someone is sick we express sympathy but there may be nothing we can do about it.
Compassion means taking action as well, otherwise it is not compassion. Continue reading “Compassion”
My Heroes – Martin Luther King
100 years after the emancipation of slaves in the United States, black people were still suffering segregation and discriminination. In 1963, Martin Luther King gave his famous speech where he spoke about “his dream”.
Martin Luther King is one of my heroes because he saw the future, and he wasn’t afraid to bring that future into reality. Continue reading “My Heroes – Martin Luther King”
Compassion and Justice 