Greenbrier is Flowing 1
By Casey Murano
Artist Statement
With the Mountain Valley Pipeline plowing through Appalachia, there is much to be nervous about, but we are doing our best to transform these fears and frustrations into collective action. "The Telling Takes Us Home" (a pastoral letter from the Catholic Committee of Appalachia) urges us to become activists by "putting into practice one’s faith in God’s coming community of creation." In August, Bethlehem Farm participated in this kind of prayerful action through the Greenbrier River Celebration and Interfaith Vigil. Local ministers, musicians, activists, artists, and neighbors gathered to creatively honor the resilience of our watershed. We praised the Greenbrier River through a rendition of "Morning is Broken" by Bob Carter, who has kayaked the entire Greenbrier River. While listening to the beautiful song, I painted mud and watercolor on paper wet with river water. The compositions of each piece corresponded with verses from the song. The vigil included beeswax candles, wildflowers, and stories reminding us to persist in pipeline resistance offering gratitude, lamenting, and recommitting ourselves to collective action. After the vigil, we continued building community with rocking chairs decorated with candy darters (a colorful endangered fish whose habitat will be destroyed by the MVP), fresh corn, crisp cucumbers, more music…what more could you ask for on a summer afternoon? The day ended with a relaxing swim in the Greenbrier. Floating in clear water as dragonflies darted about reminded us what a gift this flowing body is, a source of livelihood in the Greenbrier River Watershed. I may have trouble trusting the pipeline, but one thing I do believe in is a network of passionate folks rooted in prayer and care for the river. The Catholic Committee of Appalachia and the pipeline activists I’ve encountered model a prophetic way of being a synodal church rooted in care for creation.
About the Artist
Casey Murano grew up surrounded by the Blue Ridge Mountains in Roanoke, Virginia and is now living on one of those hilltops–just over the West Virginia border at Bethlehem Farm, an intentional Catholic community in Appalachia. Grounded in Bethlehem Farm’s various ministries (such as low-income home repair, gardening, and service retreats) and cornerstones (prayer, simplicity, service, and community), Casey’s art practice reflects the cyclical processes of life in this place and context. She creates works on paper: contemplative maps that explore themes of pilgrimage, placemaking, and displacement. Before Bethlehem Farm, Casey studied art at the University of Richmond and participated in the St. Joseph Worker Program in St. Paul, Minnesota.