Homily – Third Sunday Lent Year A

Homily – Third Sunday Lent Year A

Notes All about thirst and Living Water

Reading

Old Exodus 17:3-7

Psalm 94:1-2, 6-9, R8

New Romans 5:1-2, 5-8

Gospel John 4:5-42

What is the longest you have every gone with out drinking anything. No water, no tea, no coffee, no lemonade, no orange squash, no beer, no wine. Can you remember that thirst you would have had. Or after playing a fast paced game of football or going for a long walk on a hot day. How thirsty does that make you feel. Can you remember the feelings, your month is so dry your lips stick together, your throat is parched and feels like sandpaper, your stomach feel empty and hollow, your legs and arms get heavy and tired, your head starts to pound with a headache that wont leave you.

Can you recall your desire for water. Clear, cool, sweet water.

And can you recall again the taste of the first drink, the wetness hitting the back of your throat, the compulsion to keep drinking even when you have to stop to take a deep breath air.

Those feelings are what today's readings are all about.

Except, they are not about water. They are about thirst, desire and compulsion, but they are not about water. They are about Living Water and that's a completely different thing. Living water is God's Love being poured into our hearts by the holy spirit.

The scene of our first reading is a desert, with him Moses has 600,000 men, their families and their herds and flocks of livestock. They have left their homes in the middle of the night, been chased by an army, escaped literally through a the middle of a vast sea, they have been hungry and have just been feed on Manna and Quails and now the are complaining bitterly that they have nothing to drink. In some ways they seem ungrateful but they also seem human. Scared and in a strange place, they are striking out against their leaders. What they are after isn't just water to quench their thirst it's, it's love and care. And that's what they get, God doesn't direct them to a water hole or stream, but gives them water that can only come from him. He shows them he is with them. He gives them the cuddle they need. But like any loving parent he must have been hurt by their challenge “Is the Lord with us or Not?”

Our Psalm today is a reflection on that challenge. It's a sorrowful reflection on that doubt, that challenge, that test of a loving God. When we said together the response, we are asking that today, right now, we all listen to the Lord's voice. We have no need to challenge him, to test him. But we have great need to just listen. Which brings us nicely to our Gospel reading.

We find Jesus on a journey between Judaea and Galilee. The quickest route goes through Samaritan territory and it's here next to a well we encounter Jesus. He is joined by a women and for a few minutes they have a rather disjointed conversation about drinking water. To start with the women is surprised that Jesus talks to her at all. He is a Jew and Jew's don't talk to Samaritan's. Then Jesus reverses the conversation and talks of living water, she misunderstands and probably get insulted. Living water to her would have been a stream or river, free flowing water, which was considered much better than well water. If Jesus could find living water here he was claiming to be greater than Jacob who first dug the well. Then Jesus describes his living water and she still misses the point, maybe even laughing at him as she asks him for this magical water. It's not until he demonstrates that he really knows her that she takes him seriously. Her eyes begin to open, and she starts to listen. She realises that the water Jesus is talking of is spiritual water, God's Love. She realises Jesus is someone special, maybe even the Christ.

There is a strong lesson here for us. When Christ speaks to us through our lives, though scripture, through our prayer, we may think we know what he's talking about, but we could so easily have got it wrong and be missing something special. It's worth taking the time to really listen, and to understand that He is talking to us because He loves us.

The Samaritan woman listened and was filled with His Living Water and then she introduced others to Christ so they could listen as well. And they were all filled with His Living Water. The work He started here, or the harvest as He described it, is to bring all people to God, not just the chosen race the Jews but everyone.

And now in the middle of Lent it’s worth reflecting on how Jesus brings all people to God. He brings people to God through his sacrifice, through his death, on a cross. He looked at us, saw everything we do wrong, the wars, the hatred, the poverty, the greed, and he loves us. He loves us so much he allowed us to kill him. He offered himself as our sacrifice for all that is wrong is in us. And through that sacrifice he offers us forgiveness, offers us grace, offers us his love.

So now it is by our faith in Christ Jesus that we can be judged righteous and at peace with God. It’s our faith that lets us accept the gift of grace. And it’s by that Grace that we can hope to enter the kingdom of heaven.

And as Paul said in his letter to the Romans, “This hope is not deceptive, because the love of God has been poured into our hearts by the holy spirit which has been given to us.”

Are you thirsty?

Do you need the love of God poured into your heart?

Christ is sat next to a well waiting for you, to talk with you and to give you a drink of his Living Water.

Homlily - Christ The King

My dear brother and Sisters, if you have been reading my tweets over the last 24hours you may be wondering what all the nervousness has been about. Well I gave my first homily at St. Augustine's today. Over the last year I have given several at St John Fisher, but that church has a very different feel to it. It is small and intimate and I feel very much at home there, where as St Augustine's is much bigger and more formal, noisier and I still feel a little out of my deep serving there so stepping up to reflect on today's readings and Christ the King was nerve racking.

Writing this homily was challenging as well. After the homily I gave at Ammerdown with no notes I felt confident but when I sat down with the scripture nothing came easily. Much of the theology was complex and I struggled to find words to explain things. I spent 4-5 hours at the keyboard and typed nothing, than on Thursday evening after 2 hours of nothing it just flowed, 20mins and most of it was written. I guess you have got to give the Holy spirit space to provide you with the words.

So if you are interested this is the homily, or at least near enough, as the exact wording changes as you stand up and start speaking to the congregation. God Bless, J.

Homily – Christ The King

Notes 21^st Nov 2010

Reading

Old Samuel               5:1-3

Psalm                        Ps 121

New Colossians       1:12-20

Gospel Luke            23:35-43

As we reach the end of another year we celebrate today the feast of Christ the King. But I have to admit, after all the press coverage this week of Prince William's engagement to Kate Middleton, I am a little uncomfortable thinking of Christ as a King. Prince William is second in-line to the thrown after his father Prince Charles. He is very likely to be King one day. His Kingdom or commonwealth will stretch across the globe from Canada to Australia. Is this a good comparison to Christ the king?

Personally I think it falls a long way short. So how about we look to the Kings of history, warrior kings ruling their lands. Strong powerful kings like king Richard, or more sinister kings like King John. Well again this doesn't work for me when I read about Jesus.

Jesus had no palace, no robes, no political power, and he wasn't willing to rule through power. When Jesus walked the earth he resisted being made king, for example in John's Gospel when he tells us about Jesus feeding the 5000 we hear “Jesus, who could see they were about to come and take Him by force and make Him king escaped back to the hills by Himself.” And again when Pilate asks him if he is the king of the Jews he replies “It is you who say it”. The only time he wears a crown it is made of thorns and cuts deeply into his head.

So what sort of king is he? Where is his kingdom?

Today's readings help us understand why today we we refer to Christ as the Universal King.

Our first reading is about David, the second and possible greatest, King of Israel. It tells of his anointing as king by the tribes of Israel after a civil war and the death of Saul the first King. The prophets who foretold of Jesus' coming said he would be descended from David. And so in human terms Jesus had a claim to the human throne of David, and the ability to unite the people of Israel as David had done, to establish armies and retake Jerusalem, to re-establish it as Gods Kingdom and home for the Jews as Gods chosen people. This was what was expected of him 2000 years ago, but it was not the kingdom he came to establish.

For that we need to look closely at our second reading Paul's letter to the Colossians. Paul was writing to correct a heresy spreading in Colossae, called Gnosticism. And the great thing for us is that Paul choose to do this by telling the Colossians everything the was correct about Christianity, rather than telling them everything that was wrong about Gnosticism. So we are left with a wonderful description of Christ and his kingdom.

Paul uses phases like “join the Saints”, “inherit the light”, “out of darkness” and the phrase I want to talk a little more about “Created a place for us in the kingdom of the Son he loves”.

But Paul didn't write in English, he wrote in Greek and his words may have meant something a little different for people of the time so I am going to try and teach you a little history and a little Greek.

The unusual word I want to explain is meth-is'-tay-mee (methistemi) it means in our translation today “Created a place for” but it was used specifically when a conquering army exiled all the people in a conquered land back to their own land. Just like the Babylonians and Egyptians did to the Jews. So in that one word “Meth-is'-tay-mee” or “created a place for” Paul is showing the readers of his letter a picture of Christ's victory over this world and of them being carried away to kingdom of light to join the saints. It's a lovely image isn't it.

Paul goes on to describe Christ. He was the first born of all creation, through him everything was created, Thrones, Dominations, Sovereignties, powers – everything was created through him and for him.

So if the power of every king, prime minister, emperor and president is given by his kingdom, the kingdom of heaven and earth, the kingdom of everything you can see and everything you can't, that kingdom must be a very different place. Christ is King of something so big and so wonderful we can't imagine it, but that doesn't mean we can't experience it, touch it, feel it. Know it really exists!

So now as we turn to the Gospel we see the sacrifice he made to win this victory for us. And most importantly how we can gain our freedom in His Kingdom.

The gospel scene is familiar to us, but try and picture it now for me. There is a hill a short distance from a big city, on the hill are three simple wooden crosses. Nailed to each is a man, but the man in the centre has also been beaten, he's covered in blood and bruises. He is being mocked by all around him. “IF you are the king of the Jews save yourself” they say. Even one of the men hanging from a cross next to him joins in the abuse.

Placed above his head is a sign “This is the king of the Jews” is this sign also mocking him, or has it been placed there by Pilate because he is beginning to believe that Jesus is something much bigger?

The other criminal next to Jesus then turns to him, admits his crime and asks to be remembered in his kingdom. And Jesus promises him paradise. That's a clear message for us isn't it.

Admit we are wrong and ask to be taken to his kingdom. If you remember nothing more from today's gospel remember that.

You may by now be thinking that Christ's Kingdom is heaven, the paradise we as a people of hope aspire to when our time on earth is done. But if you listen to Paul's letter and this gospel you realise that Christ Kingdom is bigger than heaven, everything seen and unseen, heaven and earth, are part of his kingdom. And you right now are experiencing that kingdom. You are his body, he is present in the people next to you right now, and you are making him present to the people next to you. You want to be part of Christ Kingdom turn and smile at someone next to you...

...how did it feel to see Christ smiling back at you?

The Victory of Christ on the cross is his kingdom, a kingdom we make present every day by accepting Christ as our King. By accepting the tasks he gives us to do. The vocations and ministries he challenges us to complete. Today is a day to be proud of your faith, to be proud of you kingdom, to be proud of of the work you do in His kingdom and most of all today is a day to celebrate and worship our King.

Another year - have I born the fruit expected of me

Last year at this time I gave a homily to the deacon's in formation and by chance this year I have to give a homily on the same reading. That of Luke 13:1-9. Now after I have finished writing the new homily for this year I am struck by the reference to the fig tree being given another year to bare fruit. I find myself asking what I have done this last year, what fruit have a produced. I am feeling quite humble, quite small, far from worthy. My mind produces the image of myself on my knees at Mass, "Lord I am not worthy, but only say the word and I shall be healed." I am nourished by the Lord, but have I born fruit?


Homily - Sat 23rd Oct 2010.pdf
Homily - Sat 24th Oct 2009.pdf

Both homilies attached, have read if you like and see what difference a year makes.