Dear Parish Family,
This Third Sunday of Lent, we hear about Jesus' encounter with the Samaritan woman at the well. This woman went to the well at noon (in the heat of the day) precisely because she didn't want to meet anyone there. We can assume she felt rejected among the other Samaritan women (who went to the well in the cool of the morning) because of her five former husbands and because the man she was living with was not her husband. This rejection likely led her to feel abandoned, unlovable, and somewhat hopeless in her own future. You can almost hear her say, "Why even bother with marriage with my current boyfriend? If he's like all the other men I've been with, he'll just end up hurting me again. At least without marriage it will be easier to get out of the relationship once things turn bad, and I won't feel so ashamed in front of everybody else." It is in this state of heart that Jesus meets the Samaritan woman at the well.

Like this hurting woman, all of us have wounds in our hearts that lead us to believe the lie that it's better not to draw close to others or to God because we'll only end up getting hurt again. Scripture shows how we all can relate to this experience of our fallen nature. Men and women of every age have become disillusioned because of the broken realities of our world and our very lives. It is easy to give up hope here. Jesus meets us precisely in this state of affairs. By gentle nudging, He gets us to open up to our thirst for communion and intimacy, our desire to love and be loved in a total and unconditional way. God only knows how to love in this unconditional, total way. He shows us that He alone can give this kind of love that we so desperately need and want. He shows us how, like Him, we too can become wells of lifegiving water to quench the thirst of those who need and desire love. 

We live in secular times where this need and desire for God's unconditional love, awakened by faith, is stifled in so many unsatisfactory ways by our culture. Indeed, many in our society, like this Samaritan woman, have become numb or disillusioned to the point that they don't even know that they thirst to love and be loved unconditionally! Jesus wants to work with, in, and through you and me to awaken all souls to the deepest desires of their heart which can be fulfilled in Him! God is love. For this our souls thirst, and only God can quench that thirst within us.

Fasting and Abstinence
If you would like a refresher on the Lenten practices of fasting and abstinence, please visit  https://hallow.com/blog/lent-fasting-rules.

Keeping the Faith Strategic Plan for Catholic Elementary Schools
I am delighted to include the Keeping the Faith Summary Plan for Catholic Elementary Schools in this weekend's bulletin. Every parish, regardless of whether they have a school or not, is called upon to support and promote Catholic elementary education as a means of catechesis and evangelization for young disciples of Christ. The Keeping the Faith Strategic plan highlights six key areas to strengthen our Catholic schools: Catholic Identity, Academic Excellence, Leadership & Talent, Finance, Governance, and Marketing. Please review the summary plan to stay informed on the plan as it unfolds here in our local Lake-Geauga region, and throughout the diocese. Our school principal, Mrs. Julie Fedak, will include her remarks about the plan in the bulletin for the next two weekends. 
Keeping the Faith Strategic Plan3/12/23 Bulletin

9 Nights of Night Prayer at St. Patrick Parish
St. Patrick Parish is one of 9 host parishes in our diocese for this round of “9 Nights of Night Prayer.” Come to St. Patrick Church to any or all nights from Friday, March 17 through Saturday, March 25. The church doors open at 8:00 pm, and night prayer begins at 8:15 pm. This is an opportunity to pray Night Prayer, the short, ancient prayer of the Catholic Church in nine beautiful churches of our diocese.  Every night, all nine of these churches will be open for those who come to church often, those who have never been, and everyone in between. Learn more at https://www.dioceseofcleveland.org/9nights.

I am yours in Christ,
Fr. Scott Goodfellow