March 27, 2011
3rd Sunday in Lent
A well with clean water is critical for the existence of villages in many parts of the world today and at the time of Jesus. Women come in the cool of the morning to obtain water to quench thirst, to cook food and to bath. A well is often a place to socialize. The woman in the Gospel of John comes to the well at noon. Why? Is she being ostracized or shunned by other women in the Samaritan village? Alone she encounters Jesus. It is awkward even scandalous for a woman to speak to a man apart from her husband. They talk about water. She misunderstands the meaning of his words. They talk about their differences and about true worship. Jesus knows that she has been married several times before and presently living with a man who is not her husband. He knows her and treats her with respect. Her faith in him is deepening. She comes to see Jesus first as just another man, then as a prophet and finally as the messiah. Today at Mass, our catechumen knelt before the altar and prayed for the grace of repentance and conversion. Later, when she reflected on the Gospel passage, she remarked personally that Jesus knows her sins and sees who she truly is. The woman at the well becomes a model for all of us during the season of Lent. Jesus sees past our sins to the person we long to be -- in Christ!
Previous:
2nd Sunday of Lent
Next:
4th Sunday of Lent
