What are the Episcopal Church Women to do?
Are we the women at the well?
Are we the woman protecting the well?
In ancient Israel, maintaining the household was the work of the woman. Carrying jars or skins of water weighing 35–45 lbs (16–20 kg) on the head or hip was not unusual regardless of one’s age. In the video from week 2, “Living without Clean Water,” 12-year-old Tarique made that trek every day to gather dirty water to bring back to her family. Remember the man? He had difficulty keeping up with a 12-year-old (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yPxMOzN0Uq4).
In Genesis 24:18-20, Abraham’s servant was sent to find a husband for Issac, one of Abraham’s sons. When the servant arrived at the town of Nahor, he stopped at the well with his camels and wished that one of the women who came to the well would be the wife for Isaac. Rebekah was one of the women who came to the well and “quickly lowered her jar to her hands and gave him a drink” and then “ran back to the well to draw more water and drew for all his camels.” In doing this, Rebekah demonstrated both strength and the expectation that a woman could supply substantial quantities of water without additional help. How are women today reacting to the water needs of the world?
We are one with the waters of creation.
We are one with each other through the waters of creation.
We are Living Waters.
Commencement. We tend to think of a commencement as an ending, like, graduating from high school or college. However, commencement is about beginning, a new beginning. One path or process is ending while giving life to a new path or process – commencing a new path or process. We have information, for some it might be too much; however, what are we going to do with it? How can we or can we turn the misuse or abuse of water around? How can we ensure all people have access to clean and abundant water? What is the future of water management if we continue to consider it a commodity, something to be sold and bought? Should it be a commodity? How do we unite across communities, across parishes, denominational or faith community boundaries to make sure people have what they need?
Let us pray: Algonquin Water Song; Women, Water Carriers, and Protectors –
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dDGWuPUH5_A&list=RDnJstnFx-PUI&index=5
Review the following videos:
- Upstream/Downstream: Uniting for Water Justice: https://www.pbs.org/video/upstream-downriver-uniting-for-water-justice-HvYOtw/
- The future with Hannah Frye: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FDY2McKLvlM
- How to make changes: the water crisis: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3VyfN30XzDM
- What are the solutions? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gCMGFZ2A85o
- Standing rock: https://eelp.law.harvard.edu/tracker/dakota-access-pipeline/
This week’s task:
What are the Episcopal Church Women called to do as part of Creation Care? Creation care is about stewardship. In Genesis, humankind was given dominion over all God created – for God’s purposes. We have been made caretakers for what is Gods to be used for God’s people. What are YOU going to do to make this a reality? What is your ECW chapter willing to do to ensure the water God created is available for God’s people?
We know there are some simple steps we can take that were shared at the beginning of this journey. We can change to low flow shower heads and toilets, take shorter showers, have fewer water-thirsty lawns, stop rinsing dishes before using the dishwasher and use the dishwasher. We can continue to collaborate with organizations that work with communities around the world assisting women and girls, saving their lives and ours because we are all connected. What can we learn from cultures other than our own?
Do not overwhelm yourselves. Keep it simple if this is something new. You can expand if your chapter is already doing something. Let’s not wait until our taps go dry.
Let us remember Kweli’s journey (from week 1) which is part of ours:
The creek connects to the river.
The river connects to the ocean.
The rain connects to the aquifer.
The plant connects to the land.
The pigment connects to the plant.
The remnant connects to memory.
The ancestor connects to the descendant.
And I am somewhere within all of these relationships, receiving, observing, creating, and carrying something forward.
The water carries.
The plants carry.
I carry.
Share what you are doing or going to do on the ECW Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/ecwnational/).
As we commence, let us pray in song: We pray for the waters — We pray to the waters: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aIi2Lrb8GZ8&list=RDnJstnFx-PUI&index=6
Water of Life — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CRazuibrxAs&list=RDCRazuibrxAs&start_radio=1
Thank you for taking this journey toward ensuring people have water because we as Episcopal Church Women are Living Waters.