Social justice can be a controversial topic. Many organizations, religious or secular, consider themselves to be socially just. This paper will discuss Samaritan’s Purse. I will examine their major projects and assess how successful they are. I will also consider whether they can be considered a social justice-oriented organization.
Samaritan’s purse was founded by Bob Pierce in 1970. Pierce visited Koje-do in South Korea and was inspired to start the organization. Pierce was shocked to see the conditions on the island. The children were especially poor. Through his work, he met Franklin Graham. Graham went with Pierce on several missions. After Pierce’s death from Leukemia in 1978, Graham was elected to lead Samaritans Purse. Graham is the current president and CEO. Operation Christmas Child is their most famous and funded project. Operation Christmas Child a nationwide project is made possible by the generosity of all who help. You can contribute to Operation Christmas Child by purchasing a seven-dollar Samaritan’s purse label and attaching it in a shoebox. It is then packed and shipped to be given to a child in need around the world.
Their community development and emergency/disaster projects are the second and third most popularly funded projects. Their latest emergency relief project is one that assists Syrian refugees in Greece or Croatia. Samaritan’s Purse employs five staff members on five islands. They provide backpacks with essential items for refugees, including water, protein bars as well as socks, blankets and soap. They also offer temporary living arrangements with Wi Fi and charging stations to refugees, so they have easy access for information and can contact loved ones. They also give pre-paid debit card to families and women who are in need so they can purchase the items they need.
These community development projects provide assistance in many areas, including agricultural assistance and women starting small businesses. Samaritan’s Pantse offers a variety of farm animals and training to the families. They also donate fruiting trees and saplings to communities to promote sustainable farming. A construction component is another aspect in their community development initiatives. Samaritan’s purse assists with the construction of hospitals and schools for their communities.
These projects include women’s projects as well as community development. These works are focused on helping women in the developing world in many different ways. Samaritan’s purse receives funding to support these projects. It can provide vocational training, counselling, and medical care for women. Samaritan’s purse also offers religious ministry to the communities that it helps.
Samaritans Purse’s medical ministry is the most underfunded major “ministry”. Although they do provide some medical aid in certain countries, this is a small amount compared to larger projects like Operation Christmas Child as well as their community development projects. They send nurses and doctors to the developing world to provide medical care and to administer vaccines.
After all these projects, it raises the question about whether Samaritan’s purse is a successful charity. Samaritan’s purse has many successful campaigns and projects. Operation Christmas Child is perhaps the most successful charity-based children’s ministry. Operation Christmas Child received over two hundred million dollars in 2015, which is incredible considering that the project is almost entirely funded by the general public.
Even though their other campaigns are smaller than Operation Christmas Child’s, they still have a lot of success. Their community development projects were funded with over 30 million dollars last year. The same goes for their disaster relief projects. Samaritan’s Purse campaigns are largely successful because they achieve their goals. Samaritans is able to achieve what they set their minds to.
This brings up the question of what they are doing. Samaritans Perse is Samaritans’s Purse a social injustice organization? Samaritan’s purse is not considered a socially responsible organization. Their work is well-respected and needed, but they don’t focus too much on social justice. Operation Christmas Child receives a large amount of funding. It does not, however, aim to provide relief for children living in poverty.
You could argue that some of their community projects, like their women’s projects and their aid to women, might be considered social justice. The reason being that they can (and do) provide permanent improvement to the lives of the women who receive them. Unfortunately, Samaritans Purse does not have these types of projects. Their projects are primarily focused on providing services, and their refugee projects also have similar goals. They provide temporary housing for refugees, along with some basic necessities.
Samaritan’s Perse has many successful projects and they all meet the organizational goals. Samaritan’s purse is not social justice-oriented, however, as the majority of these initiatives are not socially just.
