Freedom and water are two of the themes that matter most in current Solari commentaries.
Our Music of the Week is a classic of American gospel singing that goes back to the era of slavery in the United States. It was published for the first time in 1901 but is a song that many will historically associate with Harriet Tubman, the famous American freedom agent who personally helped some 70 slaves escape to Pennsylvania via water routes and the “Underground Railroad.” The lyrics of the song are said to be a coded message telling escapees to wade in the water to prevent hounds from picking up their track. Harriet Tubman was called the “Moses” of her time.
The song is also sung during baptisms in African-American churches, and it refers to the biblical escape from slavery when the people of Israel left Egypt wading through the shallow waters of the Red Sea.
Water is on the side of freedom!
Related:
The Staple Singers (Wikipedia)
Mavis! – Documentary about the Staple Singers
Harriet Tubman (Wikipedia)
I listened to this on the ‘leave taking’ or last day (Jan14) of the Orthodox Christian festival period of Theophany. For Orthodox believers this is a feast celebrating the baptism of Jesus Christ by John the Baptist.
We celebrate that when Jesus was baptized, all water was transformed into a vehicle of healing and freedom. God’s touch heals and creates! Water becomes a vehicle for our spiritual encounter with God.
This posting of ‘Wade in the Water’ and its history in the lives of Black Americans added to my understanding of the richness of God’s use of water as a blessing.