Share
RSSCalling for a Flood of Support
by The Rev. Barbara Cawthorne Crafton
7/17/2005
"Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? Where, then, did these weeds come from?" He answered, "An enemy has done this." -- Matthew 13:27-28
Remember the Cold War? Communism was the enemy then, and our foreign policy was dedicated to combating it everywhere. Thoughts of China's intentions woke American presidents and cabinet members at night with political and military nightmares. Today they may toss and turn even more: China is a formidable business power, certain to become dominant in world economics in a very short time.
An enemy? No -- more like a friend to be reckoned with. But there are human situations in which such questions are utterly irrelevant, and the flooding that has repeatedly ravaged southern China during this rainy season is one such situation. What matters now is not ideology but speed: over two million people have been displaced, at least 76,000 homes completely destroyed, more than 500 people killed and countless reservoirs, rail lines, roads, fields and entire villages damaged or demolished in the deadliest flooding the region has seen in a decade.
Xinshawo, Lianyuan, Anhua and Xinhua counties, in the province of Hunan, and Qingzen County in Guisho Province have been profoundly affected, and are being served by Episcopal Relief and Development in partnership with Church World Service, which have joined forces to supply food, quilts, medicines and critically important mosquito nets to guard against malaria.
What will the political future of the region look like? How will America relate to such an enormous economic competitor? Others will have to deal with such things as history unfolds. For now, the needs in flood-ravaged China are clear and urgent, and each of us is able to respond through the ministry of ERD.
