March 21st

March 21, 2023
Tuesday of the 4th Week of Lent
Mr. Ochoa: Athletic Director/Spanish Teacher
Readings: Ez 47:1-9, 12/Jn 5:1-16
In the first reading from the Book of Ezekiel, we are reminded of
Ezekiel’s vision of hope, through the healing waters of the river of life, that
would bring life and healing to the land and its people during a time of
idolatry and social injustice. This vision reveals God's love for us and
reminds me of the waters that were used during our Baptism. Like the river
of life in Ezekiel’s vision, the waters of Baptism are God’s living water that
washed away our Original Sin. 
In today's Gospel reading, we read about Jesus miraculously healing a
man in Jerusalem, at the Pool of Bethesda, who had been ill for thirty-eight
years. Jesus saw the ill man lying there, already knowing that he had been
ill for a long time, and asked him, “Do you want to be well?” The ill man
responded, “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 was healed. He stood up, took his mat, and walked. Jesus later
found the man in the temple area and said to him, “Look, you are well; do
not sin anymore.”
What we can learn from today’s Gospel reading is that nothing is
impossible for God. He already knows all the challenges, trials, and fears
that we have in our lives. The remedy to all our issues is presenting them
to God, just like the ill man admitted his illness and desire to be healed.
Let’s not be stuck on our own mat that is padded down with anger,
jealousy, illness, worries, or sin. 
During this Lenten season, may we all be grateful for the gifts that
God has given us, and remember to seek God’s healing grace and
forgiveness through prayer and the sacrament of confession.