Understanding

St. Augustine asks us to review the story of the encounter of Jesus and the Samaritan woman with new eyes. I have been incredibly moved by his meditation on this encounter, and I wanted to share it here. I was most moved by the part in which Jesus says to the woman, "Call your husband."

St. Augustine asks us to view our soul, in the person of the woman who comes to Jesus as He is resting by the well. He invites us to see our soul in this dialogue, so that we may see what Our Lord is asking from us. Augustine says, "For it may be that He (Jesus) is saying also to our soul, "Call your husband." Let us inquire also concerning the soul's husband. Why is not Jesus himself already the soul's real husband?"

Our Lord, has been explaining to the woman that He will give her water that will cause her to never thirst again. But the woman apprehends this to be water of the flesh, as opposed to the waters of the spirit. It is at this point that Jesus asks her to call her husband. Augustine points out, that perhaps it was through her husband, that Our Lord intended to teach her. Perhaps, like the woman, our soul is focused more on the flesh than on things of the spirit. St. Augustine asks us to find the husband of our soul, so that we can apprehend what God is saying to us.

Augustine continues to show, that it is understanding that is the husband of the soul. For it is the understanding that rules and guides the passions and the senses. Therefore, Jesus is saying, "you stand here before Me, but you can not, as yet, hear what I long to tell you until you call forth your husband, that is, understanding." In a profound insight, Augustine shows that the soul, when governed by understanding, not only has Christ's presence shed upon it, but is now capable of ENJOYING His closeness. Beautiful!

Lent, then, is an opportunity for us to "Call forth the husband," of our souls. We can, with God's grace, temper our passions and bring them under the guidance of understanding, or as St. Thomas would say, of prudence. For then, on Easter Sunday, with our husband (understanding) at the helm, we will not only bathe in the presence of Our Resurrected Savior, but ENJOY Him in the fullest!

Obviously, this is a tiny summary of an incredibly beautiful meditation from St. Augustine, the entirety of which can be found at: http://www.newadvent.org/fathers/1701015.htm