All people thirst for meaning, but of what does that meaning consist? The people in the desert thirsted for water, but they misunderstood their thirst. The woman of Samaria thirsted. Her conversation with Jesus showed that she thirsted for understanding and insight as well as water. For what do we thirst in this world of such great excess and unmeasured need? Life has not become simpler with all of our advances. We still thirst for more – for the newest, the fastest and the best. How much is enough, and when do we cross the line into ‘too much’?
The gospel readings for the scrutiny Sundays very clearly lay out the choices that are placed before the catechumens and the rest of the believing community as well. This Sunday it is between water that quenches thirst and water that does not. Jesus identifies himself as the source of water that guarantees eternal life. He places before the Samaritan woman a choice that requires a step of profound faith. She knows the thirst-quenching quality of the water from Jacob’s well, but she is not acquainted with the water promised by this stranger who is also an enemy of her people. The choice is not an obvious one. A similar choice is placed before us. We know the demands of our culture and the circumstances of our lives. Are we able to acknowledge the sins of which we are guilty, recognise the grace that is being offered to us, and make the right choice?
© Dianne Bergant CSA, https://www.liturgyhelp.com/calendar/date/2026Mar08/0/RefDiBer