Homily: Fourth Friday of Lent

Fourth Friday of Lent (Jn. 7:1ff) “Quenching Our Thirst”

In the Gospel of John, we hear about Jesus going to Jerusalem on any number of occasions. Why was he coming and going from Jerusalem? All male Jews who lived within fifteen miles of Jerusalem were supposed to go to the city. For the three primary festivals on the Jewish calendar.

Three primary festivals were the Feast of Passover, The Feast of Pentecost and the Feast of Tabernacles. All these festivals recalled events in Jewish history. They also were held as harvest festivals.

We can surmise that Jesus might have been within fifteen miles of Jerusalem on several occasions while he was involved in his ministry. He would then be obligated to go to the festivals.

The Feast of Tabernacles was held in the fall. This was a time when the Jewish people recalled the Exodus. They would live in temporary shelters for a week with loosely thatched roofs. This recalled that the people had once been without a permanent home and had been completely dependent on God.

At the high point of the festival there was a great procession around the temple. People would carry branches over their heads. They would march around the temple seven times recalling the conquest of Jericho. At the high point of all the pageantry, a priest would go to the Pool of Siloam and draw out a pitcher of water. He would then take the water to the altar and pour it by the altar. A chant was sung from the Prophet Isaiah. “With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.”

It was at that moment that Jesus cried out and said, “If anyone thirsts let him come to me.” This led to the great debate about who Jesus was claiming to be. We see the religious authorities growing more uncomfortable with the words and deeds of Jesus. Jesus is calling out to us. If we want living water, we need to seek him.

Reflection Questions:

1.    Am I familiar with Jewish customs? Would it be helpful to become more familiar with them?

2.   Was Jesus being deliberately provocative when he called out? Where did his words lead him?

 Dear Parishioners,

           Last night some of our children led the Stations of the Cross.  They projected shadows on a screen. This was an uplifting event and there was a good number of parishioners present.

          If you missed last night, there will be another chance to see this next Wednesday. I would invite you to come and experience this prayer service. It will begin at 5:30pm and there will be a soup supper afterwards.

          May Our Lady of Peace pray for us,

          Fr. Mark