Stories & Info

Advent is a season to anticipate the coming of Christ. And what better way to celebrate the spirit of the Christ Child, than to love one another as Christ loved us!

When Hurricane Sandy hit the US East Coast two years ago, I was hunkered down with my cat in our apartment in Brooklyn. 

The room at the top of the stairs is a shared home office. The Reverend Alden Besse is on the left, his wife Barbara on the right. Hers has a computer and file cabinets. She’s the organized one, the one who does e-mail. Alden’s side of the room is awash in post-its, newspaper clippings, books and small mountains of other stuff. One desk chair looks to be in a permanently supine position. It appears quite possible that a small but powerful bomb just went off.

What has been increasingly clear in the last few months is the valuable role of faith communities in our troubled world.  In Liberia, populations affected by Ebola are more inclined to listen to health messaging from their priests than from the government health officers. In Central America, church leaders have been uniquely positioned to bridge gaps between government and armed groups and to fight for justice. In the Philippines, the Church has provided visionary leadership in transforming communities as they recover from the devastating typhoon. 

We love the creative ways people come together to raise awareness around Episcopal Relief & Development. This year we’ve seen a BBQ contest in Texas, a bike riding fundraiser in Virginia and a festival in Connecticut, just to name a few.

This blog was written by Angela Siele, a student at Cornell University, who shares her experience of working in Burundi with Episcopal Relief & Development, in partnership with Cornell University’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences.