THINKfast 2004

On the weekend of March 20-21, eleven young people chose to go without food for twenty-five hours.  This was no radical diet plan, but rather, a decision to follow the example of people such as Gandhi who have fasted to raise awareness about issues of injustice in our world.  By accepting to go hungry for this short time, these eleven people chose to live in solidarity with those in our world who have no such choice, those whose hunger is forced upon them. The theme of this year’s THINKfast follows the Share Lent campaign: Thirsting for Justice.

Saturday morning began with games designed to focus our attention on the water situation of many people in the world today.  “Amanzi” is Zulu for water.  During the game with the same name, participants were given a sense of what life is like when access to clean water is limited and threatened.  Players were divided into three South African families, each with more or less access to water.  Each day, each family must seek out clean water.  How much they pay and the terrible choices they must make (take their chances through a mine field? or take a long, safe route which leaves no time for anything else, including education?) varies from family to family.  In addition, life throws unexpected events  their way, whether they be disastrous droughts, floods and pollution from neighbouring factories, or helpful training on health issues and farming techniques.  Throughout it all, each family found the challenge for access to clean water to be daunting.  

Once fast participants began to grow in their awareness of the water situation of so many in our world, next they were challenged to reflect on their own inattentiveness use of water.  One gallon of water weighs approximately 8.3 pounds (1 litre = 1 kilo).  We use incredible amounts of water in our basic, day-to-day tasks: a 5 minute shower with a regular showerhead alone uses 30 gallons of water.  During the THINKfast, participants struggled to lift weight of the water that they use on a daily basis, remembering that in many places in the developing world, women and even very little girls must walk for hours to obtain water for their families.  The strongest participants cracked at 115 lbs. – the equivalent of one load of the dishwasher.

The fast was also an opportunity for participants to renew themselves spiritually through prayer and reflection.  On Saturday evening, we reflected on the call of Julian of Norwich:

• Be a gardener.

• Dig a ditch,

• toil and sweat,

• and turn the earth upside down

• and seek the deepness

• and water the plants in time.

• continue this labour

• and make sweet floods to run

• and noble and abundant fruits

• to spring.

• Take this food and drink

• and carry it to God

• as your true worship.

 The eleven THINKfast participants understood this as a call to be active partners in creation, to work with God to produce that which bears fruits of justice and life.  And so as a symbol of their contribution to the world, as a pledge to build and plant for a future where all God’s people share in the harvest and no one does hungry, the participants in THINKfast 2004 planted seeds, hoping that they will bloom into fiery flowers by Pentecost – the day the apostles were empowered to speak and act and witness to the good news of Jesus Christ.

The good fruit has already begun to show.  This year’s THINKfast participants raised approximately $1200 for Development and Peace – that’s almost three times last year’s total!  A special word of praise should be given to Jeffrey Bartlett, who co-organised and led the weekend with grace and style... truly a job well done!

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