Our Venerable Father Gerasimus of the Jordan (475)
Great Fast Day 10. Abstention from meat and foods that contain meat.
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Proverbs 5:15-6:3
The opening lines from today’s reading instruct us to seek first the well that is ours. The well that is given to us and is flowing—that is fresh, abundant and clean. To value it as a sacred treasure which fulfils the thirst within each of us. This passage in Proverbs, according to St. Cyril of Jerusalem, is referring to the Sacred Scriptures. The Word of God is given to us to instruct, refresh our thirst, to bless, create meaning, enlightenment, bring fulfilment and unite us with the living God. Remember the Lord’s promise that, “whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst; the water that I shall give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” (John 4:14). The Lord is calling us to turn first to the Word of God and be refreshed in it. How often do we seek the well of the waters of this world when we turn to the materials published either in written or televised form? Most often these wells are shallow and are distractions which only bring temporary enjoyment, but lack any real substance. This Lenten period let us dive into the Bible—the well which may be collecting dust on our coffee table—and drink deeply from the source that will create a spring in us.