THE LIVING WATERS

Whenever the man switched on the radio or the television to listen to the news, all that he got was bad news. There was a never ending war in the middle east. Foreign and domestic markets were faring poorly, and this did not bode well for the average guy on the street. There was murder and mayhem on the streets and it seemed that the police and the authorities could hardly cope. Corruption was rife in government and it reached up to the highest levels it seemed. It looked as if there was no end to the trouble that the ordinary citizen faced in his daily life. All this made him very despondent and he wished that he could just get away from it all for a while. He decided that he would go to Church for communion, and a bit of a break from the awful routine he endured each day. Once he was sitting in the pews and the service began, he was already feeling better, and gradually started to forget about all the trouble and strife in the world. Then the congregation repeated The Creed after the Priest in preparation of the Mass. When he got to the part that said ‘Peace shall reign forever and ever and His kingdom will have no end,’ it was as if a heavy load was lifted from his shoulders. These were the first words of hope and joy that he had heard in a long time. Then when he went to the front to receive the Holy Communion and said ‘Amen’ after the words ‘The Body of Christ,’ and ‘The Blood of Christ,’ he felt made whole for the first time in the longest time. When he left the little parish at the end of the service he was at peace with the world once more. He had drunk from the fountain of life again. He had taken part in the sustenance of the word once more. His life was made complete for an instant and needed to fear none of the great evils he faced in the world each day. Love was the only answer to all the pain and suffering out there. Salvation comes from within. He was free once more from all mortal chains. There is no news like the Good News. He smiled to himself as his spirit rested in the salvation of the Lord yet again. Love does indeed conquer all.