Catholic Journal
Living in the Freedom of God’s Sons and Daughters

Living in the Freedom of God’s Sons and Daughters

The story of the woman at the well is a story of reconciliation and healing. The woman is obviously not popular in her village. She probably was a great sinner—and she knew it. To avoid encountering gossipy women, she chose to get water during the heat of the day rather than early in the morning when it was cooler. She thought it was safe to go to the well and then she encountered Jesus. He engages her in conversation which was considered taboo in first century Palestine. He tells her things that she thought no one else knew. Jesus draws her out of her fear and urges her toward conversion and healing. As a result of her conversation with Jesus, she is able to bring the town to conversion as well.

When we encounter Jesus in the Sacrament of Reconciliation, we are drawn out of our fear and complacency and called to proclamation and service. Sin is insidious. We sin because it’s fun to do. If it weren’t, we would not do it. Let’s face it would you rather eat a Sander’s hot fudge cream puff or an oat cake? The oat cake is certainly healthier, but the cream puff is so decadent and delicious. Sin (and the resulting guilt) makes us withdraw from society and even from ourselves. It makes us avoid people. It prevents us from being open and engaging. In short, sin isolates us. But Jesus breaks through the barriers that sin presents. In the sacramental encounter in the confessional, we lay bare our souls and Jesus (speaking through the priest) reminds us to worship God in spirit and in truth. Jesus releases us from our sinful thoughts and actions and calls us to change our ways. In freeing us from our sins, Jesus invites us to go forth and be witnesses to the Gospel.

The Sacrament of Reconciliation is our well of forgiveness. Each of us is like the woman. Each of us needs healing and conversion. But it is God’s action that moves us toward reconciliation. Notice that Jesus speaks first to the woman. He interrupts her isolation. He forces her to come to terms with herself. So too in our sinfulness: Jesus invites us to utilize the sacraments of healing to draw us out of the isolation of sin and renew ourselves as a son or daughter of God. Once we have been restored and reconciled to God, we then become instruments of reconciliation and healing for others.

May our encounters with the Sacrament of Reconciliation this Lent be opportunities for renewing our Baptismal commitment and learning to live in the freedom of God’s sons and daughters. May this freedom give us the courage to go out and truly be witnesses for the Gospel.

Msgr John Kasza

REVEREND MONSIGNOR JOHN KASZA was ordained a priest for the Archdiocese of Detroit in 1993. He holds a B.A. in History from Wayne State University, Detroit and an Master of Divinity from Sacred Heart Major Seminary. He earned his doctorate in Sacramental Theology from the Pontifical Athenaeum Sant’Anselmo in Rome in 1999. Msgr. Kasza has served as an assistant professor of sacramental theology, liturgy and homiletics at Sacred Heart Major Seminary and has also taught at the Liturgical Institute at St. Mary of the Lake University in Mundelein, Illinois. He most recently served as Secretary to both Adam Cardinal Maida and Archbishop Allen Vigneron and was Vice Chancellor of the Archdiocese of Detroit. In July of 2009, Msgr. Kasza became the Academic Dean at SS. Cyril and Methodius Seminary in Orchard Lake, Michigan. Monsignor is currently pastor of St.Therese of Lisieux parish in Shelby Township, Michigan and has authored several articles. His book, Understanding Sacramental Healing: Anointing and Viaticum, is available through Amazon.