Jaime L. Waters preaches for the Third Sunday of Lent, offering a reflection on repentance:
"Repentance allows us to turn our attention to aspects of ourselves and our lives that need more care and correction. The gardener acknowledges the ways that the tree has failed and commits to cultivating the earth and adding nutrients to nourish the tree and help it grow. The gardener asks for time, recognizing that renewal might not happen overnight. Then, the parable simply ends unresolved which I think is very fitting. The missing resolution and the lack of conclusion might signal that we need to finish the story. We have the opportunity to give time and care to nourish ourselves (and others too), and the results hopefully will be very positive! Today’s Gospel reminds us to be intentional about our spiritual growth and development, turning away from sin and turning towards God, so that we, too, may bear fruit."
Jaime L. Waters teaches Scripture at DePaul University in Chicago, Illinois. She is associate professor of Catholic Studies and the author of Threshing Floors in Ancient Israel: Their Ritual and Symbolic Significance (Fortress Press, 2015) and the forthcoming book What Does the Bible Say About Animals? (New City Press, 2022). Waters is also a contributor at America: The Jesuit Review of Faith & Culture. She holds a Ph.D. from Johns Hopkins University, M.A. from Yale University, and B.A. from Boston College. Visit www.catholicwomenpreach.org/preaching/03202022 to learn more about Jaime Waters, to read her preaching text, and for more preaching from Catholic women.
