Note: Because of the Scrutinies of the Elect, there were two different sets of readings, and therefore two different homilies.
You may have noticed a change in our readings today. Today and the next two Sundays of Lent, we shall be conducting the “Scrutinies” rituals by which the Church leads her Elect, toward sacramental initiation at Easter, that is Baptism, Confirmation and Holy Eucharist. The readings of these three Sundays of Lent—the Samaritan Woman, the man born blind, and the raising of Lazarus are especially important in regard to these sacraments. They convey the themes of water, light and life.
Today we consider the significance of water. In the first reading Moses strikes the hard rock and water gushes forth. The Psalmist makes a plea that we should not harden our hearts but open them to receive God’s word.
St. Paul’s words underscore this when he says that God’s love must be poured (like water) into our hearts.
Then we come to the radical and profound conversation between Jesus and the Samaritan woman. It is radical because Jews would have nothing to do with Samaritans. They were considered racially inferior and heretics. It was radical in that a Jewish man would never speak to the woman in public. It was radical since the woman was an outcast in the community, a public sinner and she still engages in conversation. This is why is comes to the fetch water at noon. She would not go in the early morning when other women would be there.
Jesus and woman initially speak on different levels. Her practical mind is centered on the water in the well. Jesus speaks rather about the living waters of grace. Basically Jesus is saying to her, “I have something for you that is as basic and necessary spiritually as water is. The water I can give you is life giving. It does not depend on what is happening outside of you.”
So often we absorb our definitions of happiness from the world, material comforts and physical pleasure. Creature comforts are nice but they fail to fulfill our deepest human needs, they fail to quench our thirst. The woman at the well was always searching for fulfillment and peace outside. Our Lord wants to direct the woman elsewhere.
Their conversations don’t seem to connect and so Jesus takes a different course to “get” to the woman. He touches on the most painful issue of her life—her irregular martial situation—once with five husbands and now with a man not her husband!
This recognition of her pain touches her heart, opens her mind to the mystery of God and she comes to believe and is quick to share her discovery with her town’s people. This encounter was both life giving and life changing and so are the waters of Baptism! What a tremendous gift the Elect will receive at the Solemn Vigil of Easter!
“Cradle Catholics” have to renew their appreciation of this tremendous gift and make its fruits visible in the world. I like the way Archbishop Chaput of Philadelphia describes the challenge for us:
“Knowing ‘about’ Jesus is not enough. We need to engage him with our whole lives. That means cleaning out the garbage of noise and distraction from our homes. It means building real Christian friendships. It means cultivating oases of silence, worship, and prayer in our lives. It means raising children in the love of the Lord. It means fighting death and fear with joy and life…sustaining one another against the temptation of weariness and resentment.”
This we can do if come to well, the well which is the Church and drink of the living waters that Christ offers us in the sacraments.