In 1976 Bangladesh was being strangled in the grip of famine. Economics professor Muhammad Yunus visited the village of Jopra, one of the hardest-hit communities. There he met a group of impoverished basket weavers.
Yunus took $27 out of his own pocket and let it to those forty-two women. With that seed money, the women bought straw to weave baskets and seats for stools. They were able to sell their baskets and stools, repay the load, and develop an ongoing business.
That seed of an idea to give "micro-loans" to the poverty-stricken grew into the Grameen ("village") Bank. These small loans allow the poor to invest in supplies, trade or services to earn their livelihood.
Since then, Yunus and the Grameen Bank have granted micro-loans to more than seven million poor people - people who have no collateral and who usually cannot read or write. The repayment rate has been 98 percent. This is not charity; it is an investment in people who have never had an opportunity to live into their potential and experience decent lives.
That seed of change grew like the tree of life in Jesus' parable (Mark 4:31-32). The poorest of the poor have flocked to Yunus and the Grameen Bank for protection and hope. Ninety-six percent of the loans have gone to women, victims of repressive social and economic conditions. The seed money give them wings to fly, a voice to sing, and a safe place to care for their young.
Yunus, "Banker to the Poor," received the Nobel Peace Prize in 2006 for his work to eliminate poverty. He has expressed the hope that someday people will go to museums to see what poverty was like.
In the coming week, where can we plant the tiny seed of our faith to grow a tree of life for someone else? How much hope could $27 buy?
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Labels: Sunday Insights
