Feast of the Epiphany, Year A
Isaiah 60:1-6
Ephesians 3:1-12
Matthew 2:1-12
Psalm 72:1-7,10-14
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                                      Riches From the Sea
 
...the abundance of the sea shall be brought to you...
                                                    Isaiah 60:5
  
On the west coast of Thailand, six provinces were flooded by the waters of the Indian Ocean tsunami three years ago.  8,000 people there died that day; 1,200 children were totally or partially orphaned.  Thousands of homes and other buildings were destroyed. 
 
And the major means of support for the people who lived there was lost in a matter of minutes: they were fishermen, and almost all their boats were in splinters on an unrecognizable beach.
 
But Christ Church Bangkok quickly partnered with Episcopal Relief and Development to repair and replace fishing boats: 13 new ones in Ban Had Nai Yang, plus 52 replacement engines for salvageable boats.  8 large new boats and 1 small one built by local builders in the communities of Ban Nieng, Ta Chat Chai and Lam Kaen.  Replacement squid pots and fishing nets, plus repair of nets still usable.  With our help, the fishing industry in Phuket province is back in business.
 
The sea is full of life, and these mariners have long understood how to make a living from its bounty.   It didn't take much to accomplish this repair of a crucial segment of the Thai economy -- the total cost of all the boats was much less than an American will spend a modest one-family home.
 
We remember that the very first Christians were fishermen, just like the people of Phuket province.  Their methods probably weren't very different, either: dragging heavy nets up from the sea.  They, too, knew what it was to be vulnerable to the sea, to the weather.  Here, the prophet Isaiah celebrates the richness of what God provides for us. Reading his words, we can think immediately of Jesus, our Messiah, and his fishermen friends.  And we can also think of his modern counterparts, whose lives we have joined in helping them to set out again for the day's catch.
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To learn more about ERD, or to make a donation, visit http://www.er-d.org/ or telephone 1-800-334-7626, ext 5219.