HEALING  WATERS

  

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily for this 4^th Tuesday in Lent  is, “Healing Waters.”

Both readings for today talk about waters and healing.

Take the time to dip yourself in both readings. Like water let them wash you, refresh you. Drink of the waters. Taste the waters. Experience the waters.

FIRST READING

The first reading from Ezekiel  is refreshing. You can hear the water. You can sense the water flowing from the right side of the temple.  I can picture a museum in Washington D.C. that has water flowing down a wall - with great sound and splash. It’s one of the walls in the museum restaurant.

In this first reading, Ezekiel talks about pools. The water is knee deep. Then it’s up  to his waist. Then he finds himself walking along the bank of a  river - among trees on both sides and the river and the pools are filled with fish. The trees are loaded with fruit - which will serve as food and its leaves will be medicine.

Great slide show. Great power point images - on the screen of our mind.

Come to the waters.

TODAY’S GOSPEL

Today’s gospel also features water. The scene is the pool of Siloam at Bethesda in Jerusalem.

It features a man who is lame and crippled. He comes to this pool of water for healing for 38 years.

Being crippled everyone else beats him to the waters - when the waters are bubbling up - and ready for healing.

I was in Israel in the year 2000 and we were shown where this pool was thought to be.  It was across the street from St. Helen’s Church.  But in June of 2004 they found a much larger pool. This pool was 225 feet wide with steps on at least 3 sides. They are still working on excavation there.

King Hezekiah from way back around 700 BC had a tunnel built from outside of the city of Jerusalem  - under the city for about 1750 feet  - so they could have fresh water if attacked.

They now think that’s the healing pool in John 9 when and where Jesus tells the blind man to bathe in - as well as here in the 5^th chapter of John where this paralyzed man is healed.

COME TO THE WATERS

We humans often sense the healing powers of water.

Where have you been healed by coming to the waters.

Was it the ocean - a pool - a lake or hot springs.  When is  a good shower? When is a great bath.

I have fond memories of being with my dad soaking his feet in a bucket of water with Epsom Salts after a long day on his feet at work.

I love water coolers - especially if the water is very cold - like the ones down our side corridors here  at St. John Neumann - unlike the one  at St. Mary’s. Horrible.

I’ve been blessed to live my first 13 years of life in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, just above the Narrows - part of the New York Harbor - and we walked down there almost every Sunday.

I lived the next 6 years in North East, Pennsylvania, not too far from Lake Erie.

In our novitiate year we were on the Patapsco River near Ilchester, Maryland. That water was ugly. It was polluted from a box factory - just below us.

I was 14 years of my life on the Hudson River - between Kingston and Poughkeepsie NY

And now I’ve been here in Annapolis - on Spa Creek - leading out to the Chesapeake Bay.

How lucky could one be.

Location, location, location - to be on or near the water.

Is it any wonder Jesus is called, “Living water.”

Is it any wonder the first of the sacraments is Baptism?

Do we see Lent as a moving towards a renewal our Baptismal Vows - in the Living Water called, “Christ”?