Reading 1 Ez 47:1-9, 12
back to the entrance of the temple of the LORD,
and I saw water flowing out
from beneath the threshold of the temple toward the east,
for the façade of the temple was toward the east;
the water flowed down from the right side of the temple,
south of the altar.
He led me outside by the north gate,
and around to the outer gate facing the east,
where I saw water trickling from the right side.
Then when he had walked off to the east
with a measuring cord in his hand,
he measured off a thousand cubits
and had me wade through the water,
which was ankle-deep.
He measured off another thousand
and once more had me wade through the water,
which was now knee-deep.
Again he measured off a thousand and had me wade;
the water was up to my waist.
Once more he measured off a thousand,
but there was now a river through which I could not wade;
for the water had risen so high it had become a river
that could not be crossed except by swimming.
He asked me, “Have you seen this, son of man?”
Then he brought me to the bank of the river, where he had me sit.
Along the bank of the river I saw very many trees on both sides.
He said to me,
“This water flows into the eastern district down upon the Arabah,
and empties into the sea, the salt waters, which it makes fresh.
Wherever the river flows,
every sort of living creature that can multiply shall live,
and there shall be abundant fish,
for wherever this water comes the sea shall be made fresh.
Along both banks of the river, fruit trees of every kind shall grow;
their leaves shall not fade, nor their fruit fail.
Every month they shall bear fresh fruit,
for they shall be watered by the flow from the sanctuary.
Their fruit shall serve for food, and their leaves for medicine.”
Responsorial Psalm PS 46:2-3, 5-6, 8-9
God is our refuge and our strength,
an ever-present help in distress.
Therefore we fear not, though the earth be shaken
and mountains plunge into the depths of the sea.
R. The Lord of hosts is with us; our stronghold is the God of Jacob.
There is a stream whose runlets gladden the city of God,
the holy dwelling of the Most High.
God is in its midst; it shall not be disturbed;
God will help it at the break of dawn.
R. The Lord of hosts is with us; our stronghold is the God of Jacob.
The LORD of hosts is with us;
our stronghold is the God of Jacob.
Come! behold the deeds of the LORD,
the astounding things he has wrought on earth.
R. The Lord of hosts is with us; our stronghold is the God of Jacob.
Verse Before the Gospel Ps 51:12a, 14a
give me back the joy of your salvation.
Gospel Jn 5:1-16
There was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.Now there is in Jerusalem at the Sheep Gate
a pool called in Hebrew Bethesda, with five porticoes.
In these lay a large number of ill, blind, lame, and crippled.
One man was there who had been ill for thirty-eight years.
When Jesus saw him lying there
and knew that he had been ill for a long time, he said to him,
“Do you want to be well?”
The sick man answered him,
“Sir, I have no one to put me into the pool
when the water is stirred up;
while I am on my way, someone else gets down there before me.”
Jesus said to him, “Rise, take up your mat, and walk.”
Immediately the man became well, took up his mat, and walked.
Now that day was a sabbath.
So the Jews said to the man who was cured,
“It is the sabbath, and it is not lawful for you to carry your mat.”
He answered them, “The man who made me well told me,
‘Take up your mat and walk.’“
They asked him,
“Who is the man who told you, ‘Take it up and walk’?”
The man who was healed did not know who it was,
for Jesus had slipped away, since there was a crowd there.
After this Jesus found him in the temple area and said to him,
“Look, you are well; do not sin any more,
so that nothing worse may happen to you.”
The man went and told the Jews
that Jesus was the one who had made him well.
Therefore, the Jews began to persecute Jesus
because he did this on a sabbath.
THE WATER FOUNTAIN
"There is a stream whose runlets gladden the city of God, the holy dwelling of the Most High. God is in its midst." –Psalm 46:5-6
In less than three weeks, hundreds of thousands of catechumens will be baptized on Easter Vigil. At that time, the billion Catholics in the world will be asked to renew their baptismal promises. In preparation for this greatest event of the year, the Church will read to us on Easter Vigil how the Lord used the waters of the Red Sea to free His people after their Exodus. On Good Friday, the Church will also read in the Liturgy of the Passion how blood and water miraculously flowed from the side of the crucified, dead, and pierced Jesus (Jn 19:34). Today the Church proclaims Ezekiel's prophecy of the miraculous, world-changing river flowing from God's Temple (Ez 47:1ff). In today's Gospel reading, we hear of the miraculous healing pool of Bethesda (Jn 5:1ff). The Church is proclaiming through the Scriptures that the Lord has done and has promised to do His greatest works through water. Truly the waters of Baptism are among His greatest works. Therefore, our most important decision in life is to give our lives totally to Jesus and thereby live our Baptisms.
Fast and pray in preparation for the renewal of your baptismal promises. Go to Confession. Forgive and be forgiven (see Mt 6:12). Obey God, especially in the most difficult circumstances. Prepare to renew your baptismal promises.
| PRAYER: | Father, I will "come to the water" (Is 55:1). |
| PROMISE: | "Wherever the river flows, every sort of living creature that can multiply shall live, and there shall be abundant fish, for wherever this water comes the sea shall be made fresh." –Ez 47:9 |
| PRAISE: | St. John of God, patron of the dying, rescued the dying from a burning hospital. |
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