Homily L1-B Lent, First Week, cycle B

I remember the water. I don't remember why we were so late, but I remember the water. It was pitch dark when we arrived at the camp. It was literally one of those “cannot see the hand in front of your face moments”. In the 60's an hour west of Portland, there was no light pollution. We could not take a step without flashlights. I remember that it was hot. We were all hot and sticky from the car ride. As soon as we arrived, we all headed down the steep slope to the lake, stripped to our shorts and jumped in the water. It felt like cool silk on our skin. It cleansed us and restored us, but I'll never forget that feeling on swimming in cool silk.

Today's readings talk about Noah and the flood and Jesus in the desert; too much water and too little water. The flood in Noah's time washed away all that was bad in the world and allowed a fresh start. We see in our sacrament of Baptism, the same cleansing. Our original sin is washed away along with any other sin we may have committed. (I feel compelled to remember our adult RCIA candidates who will be baptized here.) But Baptism does more that that. It joins us into this family, this community of Christians. If you glance around the church, you will see your brothers and sisters in Christ. We are all united in Christ in our baptism. Those you see here are just a small part of the family. All the baptized in the world are our brothers and sisters in Christ. We remember the washing away of Original Sin, but sometimes we forget that we are here together with Christ, still alive and with us, every day.


When you came into Church today, is was still winter. In a few short weeks, it will warm up and we will see the beginning of the spring rains. Do you remember how everything can be a bit grimy and dusty after a winter? Then the spring rain comes and cleans everything up so nicely. The sidewalks are clean and there is a wonderful fresh smell in the air. Then, as God promised, he sends a rainbow for us and Him to see. I know what I do when I see a rainbow. I always look around to point it out to somebody. I want to share the vision with those around me, my community. I'm always a bit disappointed if I am alone and cannot share the rainbow with somebody.


Picture Sunday Mass with me, as a spring rain. Our lives have gotten a little grimy and dusty. We step away from those lives for just an hour and turn our focus to God. His Word and His Eucharist cleanses us. We join our brothers and sisters in the community of the baptized and praise our God in word and song as he washes the dust from our souls. The priest (or deacon) combines water and wine. Wine to represent Christ, water to represent us. We partake in His communion and sit and reflect afterward in the rainbow of God's love. If more Catholics saw the Sunday Mass that way, we'd be building an addition on the Church to seat them all.


Sunday Mass can help us stay clean, but once in a while, we get filthy dirty either from work or play. You know the kind of dirty that I am talking about. The kind where your mother would hose you off before she'd let you come in the house. She'd make you leave your closes in a pile by the door and run you right into the shower. Physical dirtiness can be taken care of pretty quickly. We've all removed that kind of dirt. Spiritual dirtiness takes just a little more effort.


Jesus was in the desert being tempted by the devil. We can only presume that Jesus did not have a lot of life giving water in the desert. He was probably thirsty. As any human being would be, Jesus was tempted. Because of this, He knows our struggles and how hard temptation is to resist. When we succumb to temptation, Jesus wants to reach out and heal us. He wants to help us out of that personal dessert where we feel dirty and dry and dusty and wash us again in those waters we first saw in Baptism. Reconciliation can be that hose that washes us off before we come into the house. Every Wednesday night this Lent, priests will be available for the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Come and let the healing waters flow over you once again. Hear those words n the absolution: “You were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ”


Water cleanses and unites us in Baptism, Water represents us in the Eucharist, Water cleanses us again in Reconciliation. Come to the water...the silky refreshing water.