Lent is the liturgical season which invites believers to grow in awareness.  We are challenged to face a possible reaction to our sinfulness with denial.

During his ministry, Jesus constantly confronted evil spirits.  These exorcisms were hardly Hollywood productions.  Some were very dramatic, but others were low key.  At the core of all of these exorcisms is Jesus, and others who face reality and name the evil.

In today's Gospel, the woman is exorcized by her dialog with Christ at the well.  In the course of their conversations, she faces the evils of her cynicism, her life style, and her ennui.

In his book, People of the Lie, M. Scott Peck writes: “It is not their sins per se that characterize evil people; rather it is the subtlety and persistence and consistency of their sins."  This is because the central defect of the evil is not the sin but the refusal to acknowledge it….  Evil is a failure to meet the shadow….  It is the basis for the title, People of the Lie.

In those places where the scrutinies are observed as the elect move toward baptism at the Easter Vigil, we pray, "Help them to acknowledge their sins and the weaknesses that burden them."

We who are baptized are likewise invited through this Gospel to face the evil that still is in our behavior, to name it and to bring it to God for exorcism.  We need to bring these questions to prayer, "What are the demons that have hold in my life?  What enslaves me?"  It may be that during these prayerful reflections, like the woman at the well, Jesus will gently but firmly lead us to recognize and name those sins and then yield to his power to exorcize them.  Such a conversion makes our baptismal discipleship more authentic and continues our growth in holiness.

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