Living Water – Church Leaders Visit Lough Neagh
Coinciding with this year’s Season of Creation, whose theme is ‘Living Water’, yesterday Church Leaders gathered at Cranfield on the shores of Lough Neagh to bear witness to the continuing challenge of water pollution and to reflect on our shared responsibility to care for creation.
The Church Leaders have published this statement following their visit:
Water is essential to all life. The Season of Creation invites us to consider how our patterns of consumption affect the natural world and how we can respond more responsibly to the pressures placed upon our waterways.
Our visit follows the conference held in January, ‘Let Justice Flow like Rivers’, at which we brought together more than 200 Christians from different Churches to learn about the crisis facing Lough Neagh, listen to local experience and consider practical ways of caring for creation.
During our visit, we met members of the local Lower Bann community and we heard about the challenges faced by those whose livelihoods depend upon the land and water around Lough Neagh.
At Cranfield, which is on the shores of Lough Neagh, we were joined by pupils from Saint Patrick’s New Row Primary School, Castledawson, to observe the condition of the lough, its wildlife and signs of pollution using the Big River Watch App. We also shared in prayer as part of the Season of Creation.
The Scripture chosen for this year’s Season of Creation comes from Ezekiel 47:9,12, where the prophet receives a vision of life-giving water bringing renewal and abundance. For Christians, this image also points towards Christ as the source of living water.
At Lough Neagh we offered prayers for all whose lives are closely connected with lough, including farming and fishing communities, local businesses and families. We also prayed for wisdom for those in public life entrusted with protecting this precious natural resource.
The Church Leaders concluded, “The continuing crisis at Lough Neagh reminds us that care for creation is a shared responsibility. Each of us can consider how our choices affect water, land and the wider environment, and how we might take practical steps to protect our common home for future generations.”
Church Leaders taking part in the visit were:
Rev Dr Richard Kerr, Presbyterian Church in Ireland
Archbishop Eamon Martin, Catholic Archbishop of Armagh
Archbishop John McDowell, Church of Ireland Archbishop of Armagh
Rev Charles McMullen, representing the Irish Council of Churches
Rev Alan Wardlow, Past President of the Methodist Church in Ireland
