RSSApril 25, Easter III
by the Rev. Barbara Cawthorne Crafton for ERD
4/25/2004
Acts 9:1-19a or Jeremiah 32:36-41
Revelation 5:6-14 or Acts 9:1-19a
John 21:1-14
Psalm 33 or 33:1-11
Food We Provide for Ourselves
On the beach: a cooking fire and the delicious smell of grilling fish. Our Friend has seen us coming, and has prepared a meal for us all to share. It is the same meal we've enjoyed with Him a hundred times before, we fishermen -- every time we came back in, we'd grab a couple and cook them over the coals right there on the beach. Nothing better.
Food we got ourselves. If we can get food ourselves, we'll never be dependent on anybody else to live. We'll be able to live on our own, no matter what.
Urban neighborhoods in the province of Salta in northern Argentina are impoverished. Tucked in here and there among the dilapidated buildings, there is a surprising amount of unused land in this place. City-dwelling adults who have never thought of themselves as farmers learn to cultivate it efficiently, learn about vegetable crops suitable for urban community gardens: Argentina's National Institute of Farming Technology provides training in the ancient art of bringing forth the bounty of Argentina’s fertile soil, even in the middle of a city slum. The Diocese of Northern Argentina provides the communal kitchens in the neighborhood churches, and the people themselves do the cooking. Their children play safely while they work, and at the end of the day, everyone can sit down to a hearty meal together: enjoying the bounty of food they've raised themselves.
Food for everyone. The honest fruit of honest toil. Jesus seems to have loved being around working people, to have understood the challenges of their lives, and the joys of them as well.
We're having some wonderful wine from Argentina with dinner tonight; their wines are commanding increasing respect among knowledgeable wine lovers. We'll also have some early lettuce from around here. In a couple of months , we'll be having my husband's own wonderful tomatoes. Wherever you are, there's nothing like home-grown.
With the cooperation of the Diocese, Institute of Farming, and Episcopal Relief and Development, 900 children a week sit down in the Anglican parishes of Salta at these communal meals. Their parents now know the quiet pride of feeding their families themselves, rather than the humiliation of lining up for a handout of food. Already the medical symptoms of malnutrition in these children of Salta have begun to abate.
Episcopal Relief and Development is an effective, reliable, and vital ministry of the Episcopal Church in communities around the world. Episcopal Relief and Development provides emergency assistance in times of disaster, rebuilds devastated communities after the immediate crisis is over, and offers long-term solutions to help people sustain safer, healthier, and more productive lives.
