1st Reading, from the Book of Exodus 3: 1-8a, 13-15
Since a very early age and regardless of what we call him - Allah, Budah, God-, the vast majority of people around the world become familiar with the concept of a superior being.
On Sunday's 1st reading we encounter an always knowledgeable God, ready to make us feel certain of ourselves and of where we are. God is like our personal GPS, and he has known about special effects way before Star Wars introduced us to travel with the speed of light. On this day he shows Moses a bush that, despite being on fire, is not being consumed by it. And the "special effects" of the bush are not limited to visual but include sound too... Moses hears God's voice directing him "... where you stand is holy ground."
Living things whiter in uncertainty: not knowing whether or not you will have the luxury of the next cooked meal or a warm bed to sleep in, can lead the most healthy person into full blown depression. It won't happen in an instant, but it will happen...
On the other hand, when we know where we are -and I am not just talking about the location but I am also referring to life in general-, we thrive. Just look at basic forms of life... For example, indoor potted plants: once they figure out which way the sunlight comes from, they twist their stalks and leaves towards that one window that offers them the marvelous nourishment of light, and they grow and bloom for everyone enchantment.
We are like the potted plant. We, as in Moses and the rest of the people, thrive in getting direct information from our God. When our Eternal Father uses his GPS and tells us where to go to find sun, and where to turn to find the land where the milk and honey flow, we smile, turn, and go without hesitation.
We are blessed because we have an uncomplicated eternal father... May we learn from his example, so we too can be uncomplicated parents... So we can teach our children, and the children of our children, with simple instructions, about who they are, about where they are and where they are supposed to go, and especially about who their Eternal Father is.
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2ND Reading, from the Letter of the Apostle Paul to the Romans
If the school principal asked you for a favor, it is very likely that as a parent you would do it. If the president of the country asked for a favor too, one could bet on the same reaction. Now, how about if the one asking for a favor was one of the homeless men who wanders the city central park?
Circumstances make a difference on whether or not a person would respond to someone else's request for a favor.
At the time when Paul wrote his letter, the Romans had barely found their peace with God, thanks to Jesus' sacrifice. Paul text enlightens the readers to the fact that, when Jesus sacrificed his body on the cross (for our salvation), we were not in the same category of the school principal or the country's president. At the time, we were not even on the homeless man category. At that time, we were mere sinners without any credit in our pockets; sinners who had done nothing to deserve such love, dedication, and sacrifice, like the one given by our Lord Jesus.
May we find sustenance in sacrificing for others, even if they are of no meaning to us or to our society.
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The Gospel according to John 4: 5-42
This Gospel presents us a thirsty Jesus, who -while engaging in conversation with a Samaritan woman-, asks her for a drink of water. Jesus not only asks, but he also offers her the waters of life that will calm her thirst forever. She is a believer and she tells the good news of this man, to the rest of the people in town.
Upon returning to Jesus, the disciples question his motives for speaking to the woman, and furthermore, they fail to understand why would he accept goods from her or from the rest of the Samarians who have joined her. She had returned to the water well accompanied by many men and women whom she had told about the stranger who knew "everything" about her.
Do we have to find reasons for good deeds? Do we need justifications for being on the receiving or on the giving end of good deeds?
Jesus did not think twice when he asked the Samaritan woman for water. He simply did. Could it be possible that he had an ulterior motive? In "helping" Jesus, the Samaritan woman was more acceptant to receive from Jesus the waters of life. After having helped Jesus, the Samaritan woman opened up and went for more town people, who just like her, had a whole lot to gain from Jesus' "special waters."
Let us learn from Jesus... May we be open our hearts to share our wealth with others, regardless of their past or their present... May our hearts be filled with God's love, so much, so to the brim, that we become unable to pick and choose who will be the recipients of that love.
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