Lay of the Land

Learning the landscape of the Holy Land

03/15/2021

John 4:43-54 At that time Jesus left [Samaria] for Galilee. For Jesus himself testified that a prophet has no honor in his native place. When he came into Galilee, the Galileans welcomed him, since they had seen all he had done in Jerusalem at the feast; for they themselves had gone to the feast. Then he returned to Cana in Galilee, where he had made the water wine. Now there was a royal official whose son was ill in Capernaum. When he heard that Jesus had arrived in Galilee from Judea, he went to him and asked him to come down and heal his son, who was near death. Jesus said to him, “Unless you people see signs and wonders, you will not believe.” The royal official said to him, “Sir, come down before my child dies.” Jesus said to him, “You may go; your son will live.” The man believed what Jesus said to him and left. While the man was on his way back, his slaves met him and told him that his boy would live. He asked them when he began to recover. They told him, “The fever left him yesterday, about one in the afternoon.” The father realized that just at that time Jesus had said to him, “Your son will live,” and he and his whole household came to believe. Now this was the second sign Jesus did when he came to Galilee from Judea.

What is one of the first things you do when you move to a new city, or even before you move there? You learn the lay of the land, that is, you try to discover how and where the major landmarks are laid out. For example, before coming to Fort Smith, you will want to know where the school and churches and hospitals are located, especially the magnificent Church of the Immaculate Conception; where the low rent district and the high rent district and the entertainment district is found; where do you find the best shopping and the really good restaurants, where are the banks, the city offices and the convention center. After living in Fort Smith for over seven years, I still get lost driving around town. In other words, when we learn the lay of the land we seem more like a citizen, whereas if we do not know the landscape, we feel like a foreigner.

One reason the Bible feels so foreign to many Catholic Christians is we do not know the lay of the land, that is, the lay of the Holy Land. Until we learn where and how the major landmarks are laid out, the Bible, and even Jesus himself, will seem obscure and out of reach. May I give you a quick “mental map” of the Holy Land, so you will not feel like a foreigner when you read the Bible? The Holy Land is about the size of New Jersey and can be divided into three districts or areas.

In the north is the area of Galilee, which contains the cities of Nazareth, Capernaum and the Sea of Galilee. In the middle is Samaria, where Jesus met the Samaritan woman in Jn 4 and where he told the parable of the Good Samaritan in Lk 10. And in the south is the area of Judea, where we find Jerusalem, and the Jerusalem Temple. All three areas or districts are connected by the Jordan River, which originates in the north and flows out of the Sea of Galilee, travels south along Samaria, and ends in the Dead Sea in Judea. So, in summary: the Holy Land is comprised of three regions all connected by one river.

Now listen to how today’s gospel reading from Jn 4 begins and ends, and keep your mental map handy. We read in Jn 4:43, “At that time Jesus left [Samaria] for Galilee.” With our quick and dirty mental map, you know that Jesus is moving from the middle region of Samaria, to the northern region of Galilee. Here is the last verse of the gospel from Jn 4:54, “Now this was the second sign Jesus did when he came to Galilee from Judea.” Again, our mental map comes to the rescue reminding us about the southern region of Judea, where Jesus actually cleansed the Jerusalem Temple the first time (he would do it again the last week of his life at the beginning of Holy Week), and moved north to Galilee, where he conducted the lion’s share of his three-year ministry.

Sometimes, we think Jesus was just sort of this itinerant preacher who arbitrarily moved from two to town and accidently ended up in Jerusalem in time for the Passover and his crucifixion. Nothing could be farther from the truth. Rather, when you study the lay of the Holy Land, you discover how strategic every step was that Jesus took. Sometimes the map of the Holy Land is called “the fifth gospel.” Why? Because along with Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, the lay of the Holy Land gives us a wide window into the mission and ministry of the Messiah. Otherwise, we feel like foreigners in the Holy Land, like someone who just arrived in Fort Smith and does not know where Immaculate Conception Church is.

My friends, a very helpful spiritual exercise is to create a mental map of your own life, where you have traveled and the places you visited. It will tell you a lot about yourself and the kind of person you are and the king of Christian you are. Your feet do not lie. Do you know who has already made a digital map of your life? Your smart phone has. Sometimes after I visit a family for dinner, I get in my car and the phone says: “Ten minutes to Immaculate Conception Church.” Wow. Someone is mapping my movements.

I am convinced that our steps on earth are not arbitrary or haphazard but rather guided by God’s providence and plans for us, just like Jesus’ steps were. Today learn the lay of the Holy Land and you will discover who Jesus is. Take time to learn the lay of your own holy land and you will discover who you are in a whole new way. Then, you may not feel like a foreigner in your own life.

Praised be Jesus Christ!