Sunday, March 27, 2011

Third Sunday of Lent

Link to Mass Readings: http://www.usccb.org/nab/032711.shtml

How do we keep faith in the desert?

When we struggle, we need encouragement. We need people to tell us we are doing a good job, that what we are doing is worth doing. When we are depressed, we need people to tell us that we are loved, that we are good people. When we are hurt, we need people to tell us things get better, that it won’t always be like this. We need support.

In the desert we need water. The desert is a dry place, and the sun beats down relentlessly. Water is what refreshes us, renews us, and lets us keep going even though the harsh surroundings keep tempting us to stop, stop. Water runs through each of the three readings today, and it is important to see how water is used because it speaks to our own experience of being thirsty and in need.

In the first reading, the people of God are wandering in the desert and they are tired. They are also thirsty, and even though they were led through the Red Sea on dry ground, even though God sent plagues to convince Pharaoh to release them out of Egypt, they worry that God will abandon them. Because of this, God sends Moses with the elders of Israel to give them water out of the rock. He gives them a sign of encouragement, and renews their faith in him with life-giving water.

In the Gospel reading, Jesus offers to give the Samaritan woman living water. After she drinks this, he promises she will never be thirsty again. She thinks he means that she will never be physically thirsty, and is confused. But then He reveals Himself as the Messiah, and she spreads the good news of his arrival to the rest of the town. Jesus stays with them two days, and afterwards the Samaritans told the woman: “We no longer believe because of your word; for we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this is truly the savior of the world.”

There is a parallel here between water and hearing the Word of God, and the living water and knowing God. We can go to church and hear the Word, and leave renewed and invigorated. We can go on retreats, or have deep conversations with believers and feel inspired by the mystery of God. We can read books, or see movies, or hear incredible speakers and be moved in faith but unless we come to know God personally we will always be like the Israelites who demand sign after sign because they are never satisfied.

When we have the living water, God is enough. We don’t have to look for signs from other people because “the love of God has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.” Church, music, movies, people, retreats, and conversations will never be satisfying unless we haven drunk of the living waters. We often think it is enough to believe like the Israelites or as the Samaritans did at first, basing our faith on the faith of others and relying on their faith to carry us through. We hear conviction in the voices of those who testify and believe because they tell us to. But we are called to hear for ourselves, and know personally the savior of the world, who died for us while we were still sinners.

How do we keep faith in the desert? During Lent, we try to surround ourselves with holy things like the Mass, rosaries, prayer, and fasting. And these are good. But we should not just drink and be renewed, but drink of the living water and never thirst again. In the scarcity of Lent let us draw closer to Jesus, and know Him intimately in a way that leaves open all our vulnerabilities. Because we hope in the glory of God, and hope does not disappoint.

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