“We are All Fallen”
Father Peter Fitzgibbons
March 7 – 8, 2026
Gospel: John 4:5-42
When I was a young priest, and that was quite a while ago, I would hear priests say they didn’t like going to hospitals. Well, I don’t like going to meetings, but I still go. But that begs the question: who actually likes going to hospitals? Does anyone really enjoy it? Unless you are there to have a baby, most of the time being in the hospital is not much fun. I have had chaplain students shadow me as I made my rounds at the VA Hospital. Some of them wouldn’t go into smelly rooms because they hadn’t become nose-blind. They saw a lot of stuff, especially in the trauma center. It’s not like what you see on television, but you get used to it. One of the students who was shadowing me left and went somewhere else after I told her that, in order to put her ministry into perspective, she needed to realize that every patient in that hospital has been taught to kill on command, and a lot of them have. This is not Atrium or Novant. It’s a whole different cast of characters you have here. She did not stay very long after that. Was it something I said? But it was the truth, and she needed to be prepared for that.
One question that Jesus never asked in the Gospel: “Do you feel called to it?” Many priests don’t like going to prisons. I’m not crazy about it either, but the guards let me out. Even so, it’s not in the top 10 things on my bucket list. When Willie Sutton was asked why he robbed banks, he said, “Because that’s where the money is.” Why do I go to prisons? Because that’s where the sin is. Most priests probably wouldn’t want to do what I did for Uncle Sam for a long time, and I can understand that. You can get killed doing the type of work I used to do. But priests are called to go to the vilest places on earth for the salvation of souls. “I don’t feel called to it.” Jesus didn’t ask if you feel called to it; He said just do it. We are all called, each in our own vocation, to seek out the vilest people and bring the light of the Gospel to them. Many people wouldn’t do what I have done, and I wouldn’t recommend it. However, we are supposed to seek out everyone who was created by God. I was at a funeral the other day and was talking to the wife of the guest of honor, who was lying nearby. She was telling me about her husband and some of the things he had done, and I said, “He was a child of God. Nobody gets better than that.” God loves that man with an infinite love, and He loves us. Jesus died on the cross because He loves us.
In today’s Gospel, Jesus went to the Samaritan woman, the so-called fallen woman. By the way, we are all fallen. If you read the longer version of the Gospel, she was living with a guy and had several husbands before that. Jews considered Samaritans to be dogs, and they did not like them at all. The Samaritan woman had been ostracized, which is why she was at the well at noon, during the hottest part of the day. Nobody goes outside at noon in the Middle East, especially a woman alone. The American Army does because we are stupid, but none of the civilians do. We go outside and walk around with 60 pounds of gear that Uncle Sam gave us. I can tell you that it’s very slimming. But even though our Lord was hot, hungry, and thirsty, He went out to search for the Samaritan woman. We are called to do the same, to seek the fallen and most vile. We are called to bring Christ to those people because He loves each of them. Did Jesus berate the woman? No. Did Jesus threaten the woman? No. Instead, He gave her hope. He showed her His love. God, Himself, went out and retrieved her soul. Each of us, in our own vocation, shares in that work as God opens the pathways for us. We have had patients in the VA Hospital who committed murders. What do I say to them? I ask them, “Are you sorry for everything you have done wrong?” Nobody is too vile and reprehensible for us to show the love of Christ. Nobody.
There was a patient in room 12, and I was talking to his wife. She said her husband wanted to be baptized. Okay. However, his church had to vote to approve his baptism. So, I advised her to go to church on Sunday and ask the pastor after the service for permission for me to baptize her husband. If the church approves the baptism, I’ll be back next Friday, and I’ll baptize him. When I returned the following week, I asked the wife how the vote went at her church. The wife said the church voted for her husband to be baptized. I asked her husband if he wanted to be baptized, and he said yes. So, I got some water and baptized him right there. Another soul for Heaven. It’s what we are supposed to do.
Nobody is beyond God’s mercy. We are all children of God, and nobody gets any better than that. Whether comfortable or not, go and bring Christ to people, even to the most vile and reprehensible. When I go to Felon University (the prison) over by the airport, you don’t think that’s a monastery filled with monks, do you? But God wants them to be saved, too. He does not want anyone to be lost. Who is going to bring Christ’s love to them other than us? We are the hands and feet of Christ to bring salvation, even to the most repugnant places, to those who have wandered away.
Father’s Reflections:
Yesterday, I had a funeral at Stanly Funeral Home. They had the choir from a Primitive Baptist church sing for them, and the choir was very good. I always wondered if they had flush plumbing, but apparently, they don’t have musical instruments. They sang a few hymns, without instruments, before we started, and after the funeral service, I told the choir, “I appreciate your singing for us. You have beautiful voices. If you aren’t busy on Sunday morning around 9:30, I could use you.” While the family loved what I said, not a single choir member smiled. Some people have no sense of humor. I have another funeral there on Monday.
I get calls from people who think their houses are haunted. So, I go out and bless the house, and they no longer have any problems with hauntings. People ask me, “Are you afraid?” No, I know a Guy. Do you know Who I work for?
How will you apply this message to your life? _________________________________________
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