The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today encourage us to continue to seek the healing help of God for long term divisions with friends, family, and our community.
The reading from the Prophet Ezekiel is a vision of Water Flowing from the Temple.
* [47:1–12] The life and refreshment produced wherever the Temple stream flows evoke the order and abundance of paradise (cf. Gn 1:20–22; 2:10–14; Ps 46:5) and represent the coming transformation Ezekiel envisions for the exiles and their land. Water signifies great blessings and evidence of the Lord’s presence (cf. Jl 2:14).
* [47:8] The sea: the Dead Sea, in which nothing can live. This vision of the Temple stream which transforms places of death into places of life is similar in purpose to the oracle of dry bones in 37:1–14: it offers the exiles hope for the future. (Ezekiel, CHAPTER 47 | USCCB, n.d.)
Psalm 46 praises God’s Defence of His City and People.
* [Psalm 46] A song of confidence in God’s protection of Zion with close parallels to Ps 48. The dominant note in Ps 46 is sounded by the refrain, The LORD of hosts is with us (Ps 46:8, 12). The first strophe (Ps 46:2–4) sings of the security of God’s presence even in utter chaos; the second (Ps 46:5–8), of divine protection of the city from its enemies; the third (Ps 46:9–11), of God’s imposition of imperial peace. (Psalms, PSALM 46 | USCCB, n.d.)
In the Gospel of John, Jesus Heals on the Sabbath
* [5:3] The Caesarean and Western recensions, followed by the Vulgate, add “waiting for the movement of the water.” Apparently an intermittent spring in the pool bubbled up occasionally (see Jn 5:7). This turbulence was believed to cure.
* [5:4] Toward the end of the second century in the West and among the fourth-century Greek Fathers, an additional verse was known: “For [from time to time] an angel of the Lord used to come down into the pool; and the water was stirred up, so the first one to get in [after the stirring of the water] was healed of whatever disease afflicted him.” The angel was a popular explanation of the turbulence and the healing powers attributed to it. This verse is missing from all early Greek manuscripts and the earliest versions, including the original Vulgate. Its vocabulary is markedly non-Johannine.
* [5:14] While the cure of the paralytic in Mk 2:1–12 is associated with the forgiveness of sins, Jesus never drew a one-to-one connection between sin and suffering (cf. Jn 9:3; Lk 12:1–5), as did Ez 18:20. (John, CHAPTER 5 | USCCB, n.d.)
Steve Scholer consults AI for a definition of the individual aspects of spiritual wellness.
The spiritual wellness we seek is so important to our overall well-being and contributes to our improved mental health, stress management, and resilience. It is a personal and unique journey that is cultivated through our continued self-reflection, prayer and meaningful connections.
But like the man at the pool, we often have shallow reasons for not fully committing to improving our relationship with God. Instead, we fixate on obstacles to our wellness that often seem insurmountable.
Jesus had a simple directive to the man at the well, one that pushed him past his roadblock: "Rise, take up your mat, and walk."
As we continue in the second half of our Lenten journey, let us reflect on those powerful words of Jesus. Perhaps in doing so, we will realize that there are no impediments to our spiritual wellness. No magical waters we need to step into. Jesus is simply telling us to, “Rise, take up your mat and walk.” (Scholer, n.d.)
Don Schwager quotes “Christ our physician,” by Augustine of Hippo, 430-543 A.D.
"Our wound is serious, but the Physician is all-powerful. Does it seem to you so small a mercy that, while you were living in evil and sinning, He did not take away your life, but brought you to belief and forgave your sins? What I suffer is serious, but I trust the Almighty. I would despair of my mortal wound if I had not found so great a Physician." (excerpt from Sermon 352,3)
The Word Among Us Meditation on Ezekiel 47:1-9, 12 comments on the wonderful promise this vision must have been for the Jews who had been exiled to Babylon: God was going to restore the Temple and bring them back home!
Today, take heart from Ezekiel’s vision. Trust that as you faithfully journey with the Lord, he will bring you to a place where you “shall bear fresh fruit”—because your nourishment is from him (Ezekiel 47:12)!
“Jesus, stay by my side as I journey through Lent! Help me to trust in your promise of refreshment and restoration. ” (Meditation on Ezekiel 47:1-9, 12, n.d.)
Friar Jude Winkler comments on the vision of Ezekiel of the reconstruction of the Temple as a source of life from his place as an exile in Babylon. Archaeologists have located a five portico pool in Jerusalem that is located next to a shrine to the pagan god of healing. Friar Jude notes that we sometimes have fear to “move on” and, like the Pharisees, delay our compassion and help by “administrative rules”.
Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, introduces religion scholar Diana Butler Bass who ponders the crowd’s outrage after Jesus’ first sermon in Nazareth (Luke 4:18–30)—and the courage required to resist it. Butler Bass asks “What do you do when the mob turns ugly? When widows and lepers, when LGBTQ people and immigrants, are afraid and treated cruelly—and when a brave prophet calls out the self-righteous? What do you do when there’s a lynch mob or a cross-burning?”
It was frightening for them; it must have been hard to go against their family, friends, and neighbors. As they followed the mob to the bluff, they must have worried that if they spoke up they could be thrown off, too. But instead of submitting to the tyranny of the “all,” maybe they formed a little alternative community in solidarity with each other. When Jesus was herded to the cliff, perhaps it was they who saw an opening—made an opening—and helped him escape. He passed through the midst of them and went on his way.
That is, indeed, a miracle. The bystanders find the courage to do something.
If Jesus needed that, so do we…. We must form squads of love and make a path through together … no matter how fearsome the mob.
And that’s the overlooked miracle of Luke 4: Only a community—even one that goes unnoticed in the crowd—the band that refuses to join the rabble—can keep us from going completely over the edge. (Rohr, n.d.)
We consider the importance of hope that is rooted in our experience of the love of God that our efforts, aided by the Spirit, will bring truth, compassion, and love to our daily journey.
References
Ezekiel, CHAPTER 47 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Bible Readings. Retrieved April 1, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/ezekiel/47?1
John, CHAPTER 5 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Bible Readings. Retrieved April 1, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/john/5?1
Meditation on Ezekiel 47:1-9, 12. (n.d.). Retrieved April 1, 2025, from https://wau.org/meditations/2025/04/01/1238651/
Psalms, PSALM 46 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Bible Readings. Retrieved April 1, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/psalms/46?2
Rohr, R. (n.d.). Not Joining the Crowd. CAC Daily Meditations. Retrieved April 25, 2025, from https://cac.org/daily-meditations/not-joining-the-crowd/
Scholer, S. (n.d.). Daily Reflection Of Creighton University's Online Ministries. Creighton University's Online Ministries. Retrieved April 1, 2025, from https://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/040125.html
Schwager, D. (n.d.). Walk and Sin No More. Daily Scripture net. Retrieved April 1, 2025, from https://www.dailyscripture.net/daily-meditation/?ds_year=2025&date=apr1
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