In this Sunday’s gospel we hear Jesus start the famous encounter with the Samaritan woman with a simple request, ‘Give me a drink”. The conversation ends up with her begging for the living water that wells up to eternal life. As so often with the Gospel stories we see a simple situation develop into a much more telling reality. In our own lives too, we can perhaps be asking a question or discussing something that we thought was about one thing but we suddenly realise it is about something else entirely and it causes us to pause and reflect and move in another direction.
In the play “A question of Attribution”. Queen Elizabeth II is discussing with the Sir Anthony Blunt, the curator of the Royal Art Collection, a question about whether or not a particular Veermeer painting is actually by Vermeer or a fake by a well-known forger Hans van Meegeren, but the way they are talking it clearly the Queen is talking about Sir Anthony himself who was about to be exposed as the ‘4th Man” of the infamous spy ring. “Things are not always what they seem, Sir Anthony, are they?”
Perhaps we need to take pause and recognize various things we might take for granted in our faith and open our eyes and minds to the deeper reality of them. Our faith must constantly challenge us to grow and deepen our relationship with Christ as happens to the woman at the well. Lent is a good time to do this.
May God bless you, your families, and the week ahead,
Fr Aidan Peter