Saving change to promote change

Susan Jones, Class of 2002
Director of Faith-Based Service and Learning

Water is mentioned in the Bible about 400 times. Water is one of the most powerful symbols of the Christian faith, and this is, in fact, true in almost every other religious tradition. It seems that there’s something that humans find intrinsically symbolic and even sacred about water and its power to give life and wash us clean.

Many of you will know that most of our bodies are composed of water. You might also know that over 70% of the Earth is covered by water. However, less than 1% is usable and readily available for consumption.

There is a shortage of clean, potable water in the world today due to the growing global population and increasing use of agricultural irrigation. According to current trends, humans will use 40% more water than they do now in twenty years. And this means that water is becoming a valuable investment. In fact, some sources will tell you that the global water industry is growing more quickly than the global software business. Water is being called the new oil.

And while all of this is happening, one-sixth of the world’s population does not have access to safe water. That’s over a billion people. That’s troubling. And it’s even more troubling when we realize that the people living without water are also very often the people living without medical care and without basic education; they are often the same people who live in extreme poverty.

When we realize these things, we’re confronted by the issue of injustice. Isn’t it ironic that water—this thing we use as a symbol of God’s act of purifying our sinfulness—has become an example of the injustice that Scripture tells us our God stands against? It is to me. And it burdens me that I use water all day, every day… and it never crosses my mind that others have a different experience. It sorrows me that I have so much, and yet take so much for granted. I am troubled by the injustice of it all.

But, in this Advent Season, I am encouraged by the fact that Christ was born into this world of injustice not only to tell us of a Kingdom where the last are first and the first are last, but also to invite us to live out the ideals of that kingdom now... even in the midst of our broken, hurting world.

It’s on that note that I’m excited to introduce a new initiative sponsored by the Office of Faith-Based Service Learning and Campus Ministries. The initiative is called Change for Change. As a campus community, you are encouraged to begin saving your loose change. At the end of the academic year, we’ll collect and count all of our change, and we’ll use it to address water inequalities. Through partnership with Sowing Seeds of Hope, a portion of the proceeds will go to provide water access to fourteen families living right here in Perry County who do not have usable running water in their homes. The remaining proceeds will go to Watering Malawi, a non-profit organization seeking to provide safe drinking water, as well as sustainable sanitation and irrigation systems, in the landlocked Southeastern African country of Malawi.

Please take a red Change for Change bank and start saving your change to promote change... both in our own backyard and around the world.