Water for the Thirsty

4th Sunday of Advent (C)

Readings: Micah 5:1-4; Psalm 79 (80): 2-3, 15-16, 18-19; Hebrews 10:5-10; Luke 1:39-45

Picture: By Johnny McClung on Unsplash

My dear friends, what is it like to experience a burning thirst? And what does it feel like when that thirst is finally satisfied? As we’ve probably seen in the news, in recent days, attention has again been drawn to the dire water crisis in Gaza. According to a report by Human Rights Watch, between October 2023 and September 2024, Palestinians in Gaza had access to only a few litres of water a day in many areas, far below the 15-litre-threshold for survival. Here in Singapore, on the other hand, despite water being so accessible, it is said that many of us are often so busy that we even forget to drink. Yet whether it’s due to scarcity or neglect, we know that if we our bodies don’t get enough water, they become dehydrated, and we fall sick. So what a great relief it is when long-dehydrated bodies finally receive the water they need!

The joyful relief that comes from satisfying a burning thirst. Isn’t this what we find in our scriptures today? Although it may not be so obvious, the first reading is actually addressed to a people burning with thirst of a particular kind. A people besieged by their enemies, and feeling abandoned by their God. A people suffering the dire consequences of their own wilful refusal to drink from the life-giving stream of God’s presence in their lives. To this spiritually dehydrated and despairing people, God promises to send a saviour. A mysterious new ruler, who will feed and shepherd them. Leading and guiding them into the peace of God’s kingdom. And we believe that this promise finds its ultimate fulfilment, and the people’s thirst its final satisfaction, in Jesus.

But, in our scriptures today, we find more than just a thirsty people. Incredibly, in the second reading, we also discover the image of a thirsty God. Except that God’s thirst is not for what we may expect. Not for what the Law lays down as the things to be offered. Not for ritual sacrifices for sin, but for humanity to become holy. For God’s thirst is born not of a desire for domination, but of love. God wishes everyone to turn back to God, so that God can satisfy our burning thirst. And again, as in the first reading, this comes about through Jesus. God’s will is for us to be made holy by the offering of his body made once and for all by Jesus Christ.

All of which helps us to better appreciate the deeper significance of that delightful encounter in the gospel. More than just a conversation between two expectant first-time mothers, what we find here is the meeting of two mutually satisfying thirsts. On the one hand, the older woman and her unborn child represent the thirsty people. In Abraham, they were chosen to be a blessing for all the nations. But owing to their disobedience, for so many generations, they have remained barren. Then now, with the miraculous conception of John the Baptist, a new hope has dawned. The promise of a renewed willingness to return and to drink deeply of God.

On the other hand, the younger woman and her unborn child represent the efforts of our thirsty God, who lovingly and mercifully reaches into the dryness of our hearts and of our world, to bring forth a refreshing stream of life-giving water.  And it’s striking how all this is made possible through humble obedience. First of all, the obedience of God’s only begotten Son, the Eternal Word, who humbles himself to take on human flesh, eventually dying on a cross, before being raised up again on the Third Day. And, second, the obedience also of Mary his Mother, whose precious consent to God’s will makes such a great blessing accessible to us all. 

Humble obedience to God’s will. This is what mediates the meeting and mutual satisfaction of the respective thirsts of humanity and of God. This is what the second reading labels holiness, and what the gospel calls blessedness. The same holiness and blessedness that both John and Elizabeth somehow recognise, in Mary’s greeting. Prompting the child to leap for joy, and his mother to cry out in wonder: Of all women you are the most blessed, and blessed is the fruit of your womb… Yes, blessed is she who believed that the promise made her by the Lord would be fulfilled.

What a great relief it is, when long-dehydrated lives finally receive the water they need! And how important it is for us to keep pondering this blessedness. For as rich and modern as our society may be, don’t we still see painfully obvious signs of thirst? Not just in the recent news reports of alleged vice activities uncovered in the heartlands, or the record $12.2 billion in bets placed with Singapore Pools in the last financial year, or the puzzling Labubu craze. But also in the various bad habits and addictions, as well as the mental health issues, which cause such suffering to so many.

Sisters and brothers, what can we do to help one another better allow God to satisfy our burning thirst this Christmas?