Theme Synod Week 2: A Communion that Radiates
Today we begin to reflect on B.1 of the Instrumentum Laboris, ‘A Communion that radiates.’ The theme that emerged most frequently in our sessions last week was formation. So how can we all be formed for communion that overflows into mission?
In John Chapter 4, we hear of the encounter of Jesus with the woman at the well. At the beginning of the chapter she is alone, a solitary figure. By the end, she is transformed into the first preacher of the gospel, just as the first preacher of the resurrection will be another woman, Mary Magdalene, the Apostle of the Apostles: two women who launch the preaching first of the good news that God has come to us, and then the resurrection.
How does Jesus overcome her isolation? The encounter opens with a few short words, only three in Greek: ‘Give me a drink.’ Jesus is thirsty and for more than water. The whole of John’s gospel is structured around Jesus’ thirst. His first sign was offering wine for the thirsty guests at the wedding in Cana. Almost his last words on the cross are ‘I am thirsty’. Then he says, ‘It is fulfilled’ and dies.
Source: Vativan News
