4TH WEEK OF LENT

They shall be watered by the flow from the sanctuary.

The centuries-old image of Lent as a desert journey powerfully illustrates the bleak desolation of a life without God. Few natural disasters, in fact, can compete with a prolonged drought, and the more we experience spiritual drought, the more we thirst for the life-giving water of the Spirit.

This promise of healing, refreshment, and life is at the heart of the vision that the angel shows Ezekiel in today’s first reading. The prophet sees water flowing out from the Temple, mysteriously expanding in depth and volume from a mere trickle to a mighty river. The water produces fruit and brings healing wherever it goes, even reaching the toxic waters of the Dead Sea and turning them fresh and vibrant (Ezekiel 47:8).

The first Christians saw in this vision a clear connection with the new life in Christ available to everyone who receives the Holy Spirit in Baptism. They understood that, just as the water that flowed from the side of the Temple brought life, so the water that flowed from the wounded side of Jesus’ body brought the healing power of the Spirit. Or, as the Catechism teaches, “The Spirit is also personally the living water welling up from Christ crucified as its source and welling up in us to eternal life” (694, emphasis added).

These final weeks of Lent are a good time to pray for our brothers and sisters who are preparing to receive the Spirit when they are baptized or confirmed at the Easter Vigil. Pray that they will experience the same refreshment and joy that God promised through the prophet Ezekiel. Pray that they will receive every possible gift and grace from the Spirit!

It’s also a good time to declare in faith, over and over again, that you are a temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 3:16). Like the waters of the Dead Sea, you have been brought to life by the power of the Spirit. His life flows in you, offering you a taste of God’s love and empowering you to share that love with everyone around you.

“Come, Holy Spirit, and well up in me as the great feast of Easter draws closer!”

Ezekiel 47:1-9, 12
Psalm 46:2-3, 5-6, 8-9
John 5:1-16