Dear Parishioners,

The centerpiece of our liturgy this weekend is the dialogue between the Samaritan Woman and Jesus who comes to the well for a drink. What I love about this dialogue is that she is speaking in very plain, “down to earth” language and Jesus is “up in the air” with his references to “living water”. It always seems to me that their words are whizzing by each other! Part of the background, of course is that Jews and Samaritans at that time regarded each “other” as the enemy who would be more like to have an argument than a conversation. As the dialogue continues, however, the woman “gets” what Jesus is talking about. She comes to believe him and belief in him. She is one of the first “evangelizers” as she goes to the townspeople and urges them to see for themselves who this Jesus is. 

This Sunday during the 11:30 liturgy, five people who have come to meet Jesus through the faith and witness of others in the RCIA program will experience the first “Scrutiny” which gives them the opportunity to look deeply into themselves and ask for God’s grace to enter fully into the journey toward the “Living Water” of baptism. They are also asking the Xavier community to pray for them and with them. Despite what I said about Jesus’s words being “up in the air”, the element we focus on this week is “water” (not air!) Again I invite you to come to the baptismal font and see for yourselves these elements of earth, fire, and water that symbolize our continuing call to conversion and transformation during this Lenten Season.
 

Given the “interfaith” conversation between the Samaritan woman and Jesus, I wanted to share with you a “creed” that was sent to me by one of our parishioners. I think it’s very timely!

In Christ,

Fr Bob

 

I believe in Almighty God,

who guided the people in exile and in exodus,

the God of Joseph in Egypt and Daniel in Babylon,

the God of foreigners and immigrants.

I believe in Jesus Christ, a displaced Galilean,

who was born away from his people and his home, who fled his country with his parents when his life was in danger. When he returned to his own country he suffered under the oppression of Pontius Pilate, the servant of a foreign power. Jesus was persecuted, beaten, tortured, and unjustly condemned to death. But on the third day Jesus rose from the dead, not as a scorned foreigner but to offer us citizenship in God’s kingdom.

I believe in the Holy Spirit, the eternal immigrant from God’s kingdom among us,who speaks all languages, lives in all countries, and reunites all races. I believe that the Church is the secure home for foreigners and for all believers.

I believe that the communion of saints begins 

when we embrace all God’s people in all their diversity.

I believe in forgiveness, which makes us all equal before God, and in reconciliation, which heals our brokenness.

I believe that in the Resurrection God will unite us as one people in which all are distinct and all are alike at the same time.

I believe in life eternal, in which no one will be foreigner but all will be citizens of the kingdom where God reigns forever and ever. Amen.