I. What is an Estuary?
An Estuary is a geographical term that refers to places along the coastline where freshwater from rivers and streams meet and mix with the salt water from the ocean. Although influenced by the tides they are protected from the full force of ocean waves, winds, and storms by landforms such as barrier reefs or islands and peninsulas.
Estuarine environments are some of the most fertile places in the world. According to the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency), they create more organic matter each year than comparably sized areas of forest, grassland, or agricultural land. The sheltered waters support unique communities of plants and animals especially adapted for life at the margin of the sea.
Vibrant and unique habitat types are formed in and around estuaries primarily due to the mixing of fresh and salt water. The confluence of river and sea results in a unique and rich diversity and abundance.
II. Geographical features of an estuary:
- Partially enclosed body of water
- Place of transition and movement – a place for meeting and mixing: land and ocean, freshwater and saltwater
- Highly productive – influenced by the tides, but protected by land forms
- Vibrant and unique life forms – especially adapted for life at the margin
- Diverse habitat types – marshes, rocky shores, sandy beaches, mangrove forests, seagrasses, tidal pools, deltas, peninsula
III. Estuary Cultures as a way for church movement
Estuary Cultures as a way for church movement derives meaning, at least in part, from the geographical reality: a place where a river becomes a confluence of many avenues of flow resulting in a richly diverse and abundantly fertile ecosystem for the thriving of God’s people.
Ezekiel’s vision (Chapter 47 of The Holy Bible) is that of an estuary – a place where the river of God meets the sea and through the mixing of the waters the environment is transformed. It is a site of transition characterized by multiplicity (large and huge numbers), diversity (everything), and vibrant life. Here, diversity is directly related to the multiplicity; both are possible only because of the richness of the meet and mix of river and sea.
Estuary Cultures is a dynamic, interactive, and organic environment that fosters diverse, abundant, and unique life forms, which constitute and contribute to the formation of a rich ecosystem for mutual cohabitation. It signifies flow and movement with a purpose – creating with others.
Estuary Cultures refers to:
- The movement of the River to go beyond the limits of our current structures (church movement)
- To meet and mix with (the ocean) diverse others peoples in transition, migrants and refugees in particular, also, with a focus on cities and the complex traffic in and out of urban gateways (church vitality and renewal)
- With a purpose to share the commonality of our differences in Christ (Dialogue)
- Using alternate learning behaviors, synchronous and asynchronous development environs, and creating diverse and multiple contexts for the experience of God
Summary
Estuary Cultures refers to the phenomena of creativity inspiring diversity for the irruption of community in Christ. It is an organismic principle that makes diversity a priority – intentional meeting and mixing with diverse others where they are is a breeding ground for spontaneous-combustive community in Christ.
The church therefore is not so much about digging channels for the waters of the sea to flow inward and then to set up expensive desalination plants for the bottling of “living water” for consumption by others. Rather, it is about going out to sea…risking joining with others and in the course of collaborative ventures to flow with the Spirit for bringing about life change.
The intentional process of meeting and mixing with others to share in the bringing about of life-generating cultures for the transformation of the world is indicative of the incarnational impulse of Christ followers to be the salt and light wherever they are.
