As people around the globe observe World Water Day today, Presbyterian Mission Agency (PMA) ministries are working at home and abroad to help bring safe drinking water to the 663 million people who lack it.
While water protectors, encamped near the confluence of the Cannon Ball and Missouri rivers in North Dakota, endure brutal winter weather, Elona Street-Stewart, synod executive of the Synod of Lakes and Prairies, recounted her mid-November trip to the encampment, describing the camp, the work to prepare for the north’s raw winter, the sacredness of water and the role of the church.
It was dark, really dark. And it is not always the wisest choice to drive through the rough bush roads when the sky is black and evening has turned to night. But the radiator was leaking and the starter motor was broken.
The past year has been a challenging one for communities dealing with contaminated water supplies. Flint, Michigan has garnered national attention for nearly three years after improper source treatment caused lead from aging pipes to leach into the water. Between 6,000 and 12,000 residents have experienced a series of health problems including high levels of lead in the blood.
In November, Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) leaders stood in solidarity with Native American tribes and groups protesting the construction of the Dakota access pipeline and its encroachment upon Native American lands.
More than 20 PC(USA) representatives joined a 500-person gathering of clergy and lay leaders at Oceti Sakowin prayer camp November 3, after the local church community at Standing Rock put out a call for clergy witness.
Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) leaders have been standing in solidarity with Native American tribes and groups protesting the construction of the Dakota access pipeline and its encroachment upon Native American lands.
While the setting sun cast long shadows over the land, residents of the Sacred Stone Camp gathered near a community campfire as volunteers nearby prepared the evening meal. Children and a handful of dogs welcomed the night as if it were day, running and playing, oblivious to the changing weather and the cause that brought so many to the Missouri River in Cannon Ball, North Dakota.
From across the United States and the world, indigenous peoples and their allies have gathered at the Camp of the Sacred Stones, north of Cannon Ball, North Dakota, near the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe reservation’s northern border. Members of the tribe took the initiative in this witness to protect their sacred sites and waters from environmental harm and to affirm tribal sovereignty and treaty rights.
From across the United States and the world, indigenous peoples and their allies have gathered at the Camp of the Sacred Stones, north of Cannon Ball, North Dakota, near the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe reservation’s northern border. Members of the tribe took the initiative in this witness to protect their sacred sites and waters from environmental harm and to affirm tribal sovereignty and Treaty rights.
Days after Hurricane Matthew devastated Haiti, authorities are still trying to determine the extent of damage left behind. According to the latest report from the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), more than 350,000 people are in need of assistance in Haiti.
