The Woman at the Well

A few weeks ago in an interview with the Financial Times, Howard Schultz, the chief executive of Starbucks noted that in the days after the fall of Lehman Brothers in 2008 he saw the impact the financial crisis was having on the company he had created. “I was seeing something dying that was an extension of myself and I had no influence…This was never a job, this was not a company, this was my life’s work and I was watching it fade away. It was turning into something I didn’t admire.”

I thought of that interview as I read the scripture reading this past Sunday, the 3^rd Sunday in Lent. It is the first of the three “baptismal” passages that accompanies the elect on their path to baptism at Easter – the story of the Samaritan woman at the well (John 4:5-42).

Jesus was sitting at Jacob’s well when a woman from Samaria came to draw water. Jesus asked her for a drink. She was stunned that he was talking to her – first of all because she was a Samaritan, but also because she was a woman – not the kind of person that a Jewish man would engage. But nonetheless a conversation ensues and Jesus offers her “living water” that will quench her deepest thirst and longings.

Like many of John’s gospels the story of the Samaritan woman at the well has many layers of meanings. When I think about how this applies to the work of Catholic Charities I see perhaps another teaching to take away from it.  As Catholic Christians we are joined in baptism to God and to each other, and are called to continue God’s work on earth. That includes literally providing the water of life to our brothers and sisters who are poor – people who normally would not cross our paths in daily life.  This is when I thought of the Shultz interview.

I imagined Jesus encountering the Samaritan woman and thinking “I was seeing something dying that was an extension of myself” before he offered her a new way of life.  In the work that we do at Catholic Charities I see men, women, and children living in poverty in America and I think too that we are seeing something dying that is an extension of ourselves.  It is our mission as Easter people to walk in Jesus’s footsteps, which includes serving the poor. If we fail to improve their condition, as individuals and as a society, then something within us is dying, too, and we may be turning into something we shouldn’t admire anymore, either. 

Unlike Schultz, we are not without influence.  We can look at each person we pass on the street and see if she or he is a Samaritan woman in need of a helping hand. We can stop, and we can help – not just by providing a meal or a bed for the night, but also by connecting with them as humans and finding programs that will help them regain their footing.  We have influence in our city halls, and legislatures, and Congress. We can advocate for policies that are based on the belief that every life is a vocation worthy of fulfillment.

Schultz notes that “The challenge for the retail business is the human condition. We’re only as good as that moment, that fragile moment, when we please or hopefully don’t disappoint the customer.” Imagine what kind of an impact we could have on poverty in America if we operated with a similar sense of urgency.  In every human life there are fragile moments. For the Samaritan woman it was the moment of her conversion, from which she gained strength. For the poor those fragile moments too often result in despair.

So the question becomes, are we pleasing or disappointing God when in America two parents work at minimum wage jobs but still can’t pay the rent? Or when we decide that we would rather spend our money on the latest electronic gizmo than pay for nutrition programs for expectant mothers?  In a few weeks we will renew our baptismal vows and once again be offered living water.  I ask everyone to reflect on how we can better bring the Easter promise to everyone in our nation who comes to the well.

Comments

[Flakita]

We have Samaritan's too and although we haven't had a need yet, we look fowrrad to sending our monthly check to someone else's need. We joined almost a year ago when we heard of it from Vision Forum. And Alissa, yes, you don't submit a need if it is under $300. And you always pay the first $300 of any need that you submit. They base this off of the Galatians 6 passage of both bearing your own burdens and also sharing your burdens. They thought $300 was a fair amount that a family could bear themselves. We think it's cool though, because if you have had to go to a variety of Dr.'s for one problem, or something like that, you submit it altogether as one need. And for a pregnancy, the entire thing is considered one need even though that need lasted 9 months, and even if there are unexpected complications from it.Part of Dough Phillip's plug for it was also to not need to rely on the government for help, which resonated with us. We had government help with previous pregnancies and now know this is so much better because it is relying on God and His people to meet our needs instead of the world. Now, we didn't have the $$ to pay for Samaritan's when we were relying on the gvt., so I am not sure what was the best thing then, but now we squeeze it in our budget because we believe it's a wonderful biblical thing. AND the other awesome thing is if you are part of a sharing ministry like Samaritan's then you are exempt from getting mandatory insurance with the health care reform, so you are not paying into the abortion industry.

[Elena]

DeAnne-I met you on Saturday at the Power of Moms Retreat. (I took the photo of you and Linda in the kitchen, rmbeemer?) I very much enjoyed your presentation. I was touched by the poem' you read toward the end, with the play on words from the bible story, about a mother putting frozen pizza in the oven. I would love to hang that on my fridge to read every day! Is it in the book? If so, I guess I'll find it soon. I'm heading out to get that book very soon.Thanks for your wise words. You were great!

[Arlen]

YOU SHOULD NOT BE CELEBRATING THE FOUNDER OF STAR BUCKS WHO IS A DONOR AND SUPPORTER OF GAY "MARRIAGE" --- WITNESS TO THE TRUTH FOR THE TRUTH SHALL SET YOU FREE