12th March
Third Sunday of Lent
Whoever drinks the water that I shall give will never thirst again
Readings:
Exodus 17:3-7
Psalm 94:1-2,6-9
Romans 5:1-2,5-8
Gospel Acclamation: Glory to you,
O Christ, you are the Word of God!
Lord, you are really the saviour of theworld;
give me the living water, so that I may never get thirsty.
Gospel – John 4:5-42
Jesus came to the Samaritan town called Sychar, near the land that Jacob gave to his son Joseph. Jacob’s well is there and Jesus, tired by the journey, sat straight down by the well. It was about the sixth hour. When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her, ‘Give me a drink.’ His disciples had gone into the town to buy food. The Samaritan woman said to him, ‘What? You are a Jew and you ask me, a Samaritan, for a drink?’ – Jews, in fact, do not associate with Samaritans. Jesus replied: ‘If you only knew what God is offering and who it is that is saying to you: Give me a drink, you would have been the one to ask, and he would have given you living water.’
‘You have no bucket, sir,’ she answered, ‘and the well is deep: how could you get this living water? Are you a greater man than our father Jacob who gave us this well and drank from it himself with his sons and his cattle?’
Jesus replied: ‘Whoever drinks this water will get thirsty again; but anyone who drinks the water that I shall give will never be thirsty again: the water that I shall give will turn into a spring inside him, welling up to eternal life.’
‘Sir,’ said the woman, ‘give me some of that water, so that I may never get thirsty and never have to come here again to draw water.’ ‘I see you are a prophet, sir’ said the woman. ‘Our fathers worshipped on this mountain, while you say that Jerusalem is the place where one ought to worship.’
Jesus said: ‘Believe me, woman, the hour is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. You worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know: for salvation comes from the Jews. But the hour will come – in fact it is here already – when true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and truth: that is the kind of worshipper the Father wants. God is spirit, and those who worship must worship in spirit and truth.’
The woman said to him, ‘I know that Messiah – that is, Christ – is coming; and when he comes, he will tell us everything.’
‘I who am speaking to you,’ said Jesus ‘I am he.’
Many Samaritans of that town had believed in him on the strength of the woman’s testimony when she said, ‘He told me all I have ever done’, so, when the Samaritans came up to him, they begged him to stay with them. He stayed for two days, and when he spoke to them many more came to believe; and they said to the woman, ‘Now we no longer believe because of what you told us; we have heard him ourselves and we know that he really is the saviour of the world.’
Meditation
The woman here is a type of the Church, not yet justified, but just about to be and part of the resemblance is that she comes from a foreign people. Although neighbours, the Samaritans were foreigners; in like manner the Church was to come from the Gentiles, and to be alien from the Jewish race. (Tract. xv. c. 10) Jesus thirsts after that woman’s faith just as He thirsts for the faith of those for whom He shed His blood. (lxxxiii. Quæst. 64) … St. Augustine
Saint Patrick, “Apostle of Ireland ”
St. Patrick, was born at Kilpatrick, near Dumbarton, in Scotland, in the year 387; died at Saul, Downpatrick, Ireland, 17 March, 493. His father was a deacon and an official. At age 16 Patrick was kidnapped by Irish raiders. He was a herdsman for 6 years before escaping and reuniting with his family, deciding to consecrate his life to God. After some years in St. Martin’s monastery, he placed himself under the guidance of the saintly bishop Germaine who ordained him a priest. One day he had a vision where children from Focluth, by the Western Sea, cried to him: “O holy youth, come back to Erin, and walk once more amongst us,” Patrick, reluctant at first, eventually went back and his many difficult and dangerous missionary works were very fruitful as we all know. About his writings, scholars have said, “The moral and spiritual greatness of the man shines through every stumbling sentence of his ‘rustic’ Latin.” In another vision he also learned that he would die in Saul. By the 7th century, St. Patrick had become a legend and stories such as driving the snakes out of Ireland, raising 33 dead people, or having used a shamrock to explain the Holy Trinity, became inseparable from the man.
St. Patrick, pray for us.
READINGS FOR NEXT SUNDAY (4th of Lent)
- Samuel 16:1-13.
- Psalm 22.
- Ephesians 5:8-14.
- John 9:1-41.
ST. PAUL’S LENTEN ALMS
Our retiring collections throughout Lent will go to help our “Hogar San Anibal”, Home for Disabled Children in Peru. Please look for the donation box on the way out. Thank you for your prayers and support.
PARISH FINANCES 2023
Our 2022 finances have been published. Please look for the spreadsheet at the shop. For more information, just make an appointment at the parish office, we’ll be happy to assist you.
PASSION PLAY 2023
Our Passion Play will be on Palm Sunday 2 April 4pm on Agia Kyriaki grounds. Mark your calendar, pass the word around and invite many people. If you’d like to join us acting, or assist in any way, contact Fr. Fernando asap please.
CHOIR SINGERS
We need temporary singers for Holy Week and Easter celebrations. Volunteers must attend rehearsals. For info please contact Wendy Burdon at 99 04029.
ST. PATRICK’S LUNCH
Join us! Friday, 17 March 1pm at The Local in Chloraka. €20 Buffet lunch. Entertainment by Joe Mac. Contact Fr. Jim 99793169
FISH AND CHIPS AT NEO’S
Friday 31 March, 1:30pm, €15 includes first drink. Contact Fr. Jim.
CARITAS PAPHOS
Thank you for your donations of non-perishable foods. For clothing / household item donations, you may drop them off at the priest house. For info, please contact Fr. Fernando.
COFFEE SHOP
Join us for some tea or coffee, shop bric a brac, enjoy community time. Volunteers needed, please contact Fr. Jim.
Mass Schedule for this week
- Mon, Tues and Thurs …….. 9 am at Agia Kyriaki.
- Wednesday ………… 12, preceded by Holy Hour.
- Fridays of Lent ………… Mass 11:30 followed by Stations of the Cross.
- Sat ……………………… 4 and 6pm AK. /// 6 pm Polis.
- Sun …………………… 10am (Latin), 11am (Polish), 12pm (English) in AK.
Sri Lankan Mass: Every 3rd Sunday of the month at 1:15 pm.
Filipino Mass: Every last Sunday of the month at 12 pm.
Maronite Mass: Sunday at 9 am, Info: Fr. Youakim 9981 4316.