Year C readings.
Dear brothers and sisters, as we continue our Lenten journey, today’s readings call us to reflect on God’s mercy and our need for repentance. They remind us of His faithfulness, His patience, and His invitation to conversion.
Our first reading from Exodus presents one of the most powerful encounters in Scripture—Moses and the burning bush. This moment marks the beginning of Israel’s liberation. God sees the suffering of His people and calls Moses to be His instrument of salvation. Moses, an ordinary shepherd, is chosen by God to lead His people out of slavery into freedom.
But notice how the encounter begins. Moses sees a bush that is burning but not consumed. He turns aside to investigate, and then God calls his name: “Moses, Moses!” This is significant. Before Moses can receive his mission, he must first recognize God’s presence. And where does this encounter take place? On holy ground.
Lent is our time to recognize that we, too, are standing on holy ground. God calls us by name, inviting us into a deeper relationship with Him. Like Moses, we may feel unworthy or unprepared. But God reassures us: “I AM WHO AM.” He is the eternal, faithful One who is always with us. Just as He rescued the Israelites from Egypt, He desires to rescue us from whatever enslaves us—sin, fear, doubt.
In the second reading, Saint Paul reminds the Corinthians of Israel’s journey through the desert. They had received great blessings from God: passing through the Red Sea, receiving manna from heaven, and drinking water from the rock. Yet, many of them turned away from God. Paul warns us: “Whoever thinks he is standing secure should take care not to fall.”
This is a sobering reminder. It is easy to become complacent in our faith, thinking that because we go to Mass, pray, and do good works, we are automatically in good standing with God. But Paul challenges us to examine our hearts. Are we truly faithful? Or are we like the Israelites, receiving God’s blessings but failing to trust in Him fully? The Gospel brings this message to a climax. People come to Jesus with a tragic story—Pilate has slaughtered Galilean worshippers. They want to know: Were these people worse sinners than others? Jesus responds bluntly: “By no means! But I tell you, if you do not repent, you will all perish as they did!”
This is a hard teaching, but Jesus is not being cruel—He is being truthful. He is telling us that disasters and suffering should not lead us to judge others but to examine our own lives. Tragedies remind us of life’s fragility and the need for repentance. We do not know how much time we have, so we must turn to God now.
To illustrate this, Jesus tells the parable of the barren fig tree. The owner wants to cut it down because it bears no fruit. But the gardener pleads: “Leave it for this year also, and I shall cultivate the ground around it and fertilize it.” This is God’s mercy. He gives us time, nurturing us, offering His grace. But there is also an implied warning—if we remain unfruitful, if we continue to resist conversion, there will be consequences.
So, what does it mean to bear fruit? It means living a life of love, forgiveness, and faithfulness. It means letting go of sin, reconciling with others, and growing in holiness. Lent is the season to nourish our spiritual roots, through prayer, fasting, and almsgiving, so that we can produce the good fruit that God desires.
Brothers and sisters, today’s readings offer us both a challenge and a hope. God is calling each of us by name. He is patient, but He also expects a response. Let us not delay. Let us turn to Him with repentant hearts so that we may bear abundant fruit and share in the joy of His kingdom.
Homily for the Third Sunday of Lent C (Short Gospel)
Water is essential for life. Without it, we cannot survive. This is why the Israelites, wandering in the desert, cried out in thirst, questioning whether God was still with them. This is why the Samaritan woman came to the well in the heat of the day, seeking to quench her thirst. And this is why Jesus speaks of a different kind of water—a living water—that satisfies far beyond the physical.
In the first reading from the book of Exodus, we see the Israelites struggling with thirst in the wilderness. Their physical need overwhelms them, and in their desperation, they begin to doubt God’s presence. “Is the Lord in our midst or not?” they ask. How often do we, too, question God’s presence when we face suffering? When we encounter hardship, it is easy to fall into despair, to think that God has abandoned us.
But God does not abandon His people. He instructs Moses to strike the rock, and from it, water gushes forth, sustaining the Israelites in their journey. This act is not just about satisfying physical thirst—it is a sign of God’s unwavering providence. It is a foreshadowing of the living water that Christ will later offer, the water that flows from His pierced side on the Cross, bringing eternal life.
In the Gospel, we encounter another thirsty soul: the Samaritan woman at the well. She comes to draw water, unaware that she will soon encounter the source of all life. Jesus asks her for a drink, but in doing so, He invites her into a deeper conversation—one that will change her life forever.
The woman is initially skeptical. She is a Samaritan, and Jesus is a Jew—two groups that traditionally avoided interaction. Yet Jesus breaks these social barriers, revealing that the gift He offers is for all people. “If you knew the gift of God,” He says, “and who is saying to you, ‘Give me a drink,’ you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.”
What is this living water? It is the grace of God, poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit. It is the gift of salvation, which cleanses us, refreshes us, and gives us eternal life. Unlike ordinary water, which temporarily satisfies, the living water that Christ gives will never leave us thirsty again. It becomes a spring within us, welling up to eternal life. As the conversation unfolds, the Samaritan woman begins to recognize Jesus as more than just a prophet. She longs for this living water and expresses her deep spiritual hunger. Jesus reveals to her that true worship is not about a specific place, but about worshiping the Father “in Spirit and truth.”
This is an invitation to a deeper relationship with God. It is not enough to go through the motions of faith—we are called to worship with our whole hearts, allowing the Holy Spirit to transform us from within.
In the second reading, St. Paul reminds us that “hope does not disappoint.” This is the message of Lent: that even in our struggles, even in our thirst, God is present. He proved His love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners.
The Samaritan woman came to the well burdened by her past, but she left transformed, proclaiming Christ to her people. The Israelites doubted, yet God provided for them. And we, too, are invited to trust in the Lord, to drink deeply of the living water He offers, and to let it become a source of renewal in our lives.
As we continue our Lenten journey, let us ask ourselves: Where do we seek to quench our thirst? Do we turn to worldly things that leave us empty, or do we turn to Christ, the true source of life? May we, like the Samaritan woman, open our hearts to the gift of living water, so that we may never thirst again.