So reads the inscription on Ivan Mestrovic's fountain depiction of Jesus with the Samaritan woman that welcomes visitors to Notre Dame Seminary in New Orleans. There was nothing life-giving, however, about the water that submerged that inscription and much of the city when Hurricane Katrina unleashed its flood of destruction, chaos, and death in a scene more reminiscent of Noah's flood than John's Gospel. But just four months later – as the Notre Dame community rededicated its building with holy water to begin the spring semester at home – Christ's words of hope and the mystery of the resurrection have leapt to life in a powerful way.

Everyone on the Gulf Coast has a story to tell about those stormy days. At Notre Dame, a skeleton crew of seminarians and faculty spent three endless days patching the roof, repairing broken windows, saving priceless Medieval Bibles and thousands of library books from rising waters, fueling thirsty generators, and caring for sick and elderly guests who sought refuge in our sturdy, four-story, 1920s brick building during the worst storm the city has ever seen.

We saw the worst of it – the opportunists raiding the nearby drug store, the sick going door-to-door in desperate search for insulin or oxygen tanks, the dead lying in the street. We saw the best of it, too – starry night skies in Mid City, firefighters miraculously waiting to take one of our critically-ill guests to life-saving care when we ferried her to dry land, paramedics delivering a baby in an ambulance surrounded by flood water after they bravely ventured out into our neighborhood to do whatever good they could.

But more compelling than any of this is what happened next, the story of the life-giving waters that poured forth from God through so many people and institutions in so many ways. Offers of unreserved and overwhelming prayer and support instantly flowed in from individuals, churches, seminaries, and the like from all over the country. Due largely to this astonishing kindness of material and spiritual support, for which the Notre Dame community is profoundly and forever grateful, we were able to transition into a temporary location at St. Joseph's Abbey an hour north of the city just a month after the storm. The famous Benedictine hospitality made it possible by the grace of God for us to salvage the fall semester with only minor adjustments while our remarkably dedicated staff worked tirelessly to repair our New Orleans home even while many of their own homes were destroyed.

There was – and remains – enormous uncertainty about the future of the city, but the seminary and Church's presence here was never in doubt. New Orleans is an intensely Catholic city with St. Louis Cathedral occupying its geographic heart, Catholic schools educating its young minds, and the liturgical calendar providing the rhythm for its festive soul. It was important for the community, especially for our neighborhood, that the Church by way of the seminary return to the city, bringing with it Christ's message of hope and redemptive suffering at a time when the latter is abundant and the former in short supply.

Returning was important to the seminarians, too, whose optimistic spirit has buoyed our effort to return. Veterans like Student Association President Todd Derbes will tell you, "In a certain sense our vocation is to the city, its people, its culture, and to the Church that has been here for more than 250 years. This is a homecoming to a place that is at a critical moment in its history. All of us felt it was important to be near the people during this crucial time." And even the newest seminarians – like Jerry Strange from the Diocese of Nashville who had spent barely a week at Notre Dame prior to Katrina – see the importance of returning to the city. "There was never a thought of leaving here. If I made a judgment based on the physical condition of the building or the city, maybe I wouldn't be here. But once I met the people, this was home, and it was important to return as a statement of hope to the community."

The presence of these seminarians, of this seminary, of the Church at-large in the community testifies that in the hands of Jesus, water becomes life-giving, not destructive. As we rededicated the seminary, washing the grounds in Christ's living water in stark contrast to the murky floodwaters that covered it not long ago, we once again placed our lives and our future in his hands. It is our prayer, joined with the thoughtful prayers of so many others, that our presence will lead people throughout the city to join the Samaritan woman in placing their lives in Christ's hands so that Katrina's waters of destruction and despair might become for them Christ's waters of new and eternal life.

Very Rev. Patrick J. Williams is president of Notre Dame Seminary in New Orleans, Louisiana.