Downstream from Eden: The Gift of Water

Downstream from Eden: The Amazing Gift of Water for a Thirsty World

David Knight

2012

Westbow Press

426 pages

ISBN: 9781449745653

Having lived in the developing nation of Belize and experienced life first-hand in other majority-world nations, Pastor David Knight understands water as a vital resource in human ecology and spirituality.

Knight draws connections between the global water crisis and spiritual teachings in Downstream from Eden, and calls for a united front against water scarcity. Divided into three parts, Downstream from Eden explores water as a "gift" of nature in the environment, as a "story" in the way that it is used in narratives throughout the Judeao-Christian Bible, and as a "way" in that lessons learned from these stories of water in the Bible can be applied to life.

Knight offers a call to action at the conclusion of his book: ten disciplines for living ethically and effectively in terms of water.

"Water scarcity illustrates the need for tribal/community, regional and inter-national cooperation, compassion and justice," Knight says. "This book tells stories of the joy of sharing water – 'those who refresh others themselves will be refreshed.'"

More information: davidknightwrites.blogspot.com.au and downstreamfromeden.com

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A River Pilgrimage

The Comfort of Water: A River Pilgrimage

Maya Ward

2011

$28

Transit Lounge Publishing − transitlounge.com.au

This is the true story of four friends who walk a 21-day pilgrimage from the sea to the source of Melbourne's Yarra River. There is no path for most of the way, but offers of campsites and boats, and free access to private lands, illustrates the generosity shown to pilgrims. Maya Ward weaves the telling of the journey with ecological and cultural history.

A review in the Fairfax press said "this is an important book simply because no one appears to have done this trip and written about it for more than 100 years. Ward's description of the closure of the Yarra's headwaters is a reminder that the simple joy of following a river from the mouth to the source is no longer easy and is often a heartbreaking disappointment."