Letter for June
Dear Friends,
One of my favourite poems from my schooldays is “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner” by Samuel Taylor Coleridge, which, if you are not familiar with this poem, is the story of an old sailor who accosts a wedding guest with a tale of a shipwreck following his killing of an albatross. It includes the famous line: “Water, water, everywhere nor any drop to drink”, and it is true that of all the water in the world over 97% is undrinkable as it is seawater. Of the 3% that remains, 2% is part of the icecaps, leaving less than 1% that is available for people to use. It’s no wonder that water is so precious.
Water was a scarce resource in Palestine in Jesus’ time, as it is today, and there are numerous references to water in the New Testament. Jesus turned water into wine at the wedding in Canaan; he was baptised in the waters of the River Jordan; he washed the feet of his disciples in water; and Pilate washed his hands in water when not releasing Jesus just before the Crucifixion. In particular, I wanted to refer to Matthew chapter 10 verse 42 where Jesus says: “You can be sure that whoever gives even a drink of cold water to one of the least of my followers... will certainly receive a reward”. How can we give water to those who need it? Well (!), one of the organisations that is doing just that is Water Aid. In fact Water Aid is one of the two charities adopted by the church to support this year. On your behalf I have already sent Water Aid a cheque for £200 and will send them a further one later in the year. That will be for a larger amount as any money put on the offertory plate is shared between the two charities.
Finally, Jesus did not only offer physical water but also spiritual water in saying “...whoever drinks the water that I will give will never be thirsty again”. May we appreciate the water that Jesus gives and not take it for granted.
Jeff Smith