John 4:1-15

In this morning's readings we encounter Jesus at a well talking to a Samaritan woman about water. He asks her for something simple, "Give me a drink." She challenges him, "How is it that you, a Jew, ask a drink of m, a woman of Samaria?"

I wonder what the tone of voices might have been. Was Jesus just starting a conversation with anything that might have been handy to say? Did he start with the idea of telling her about ultimate realities? Or was he just thirsty? For those of us who focus solely on Jesus' divinity, then it was an intended conversation. He planned it that way. But for those of us who think of Jesus as fully human, with all that we have experienced, it answer is less sure.

If Jesus was more like us than we sometimes think, maybe he was really asking for a drink of water because he wanted one. However, when he was answered not with a personal response to him as an individual, but instead with one that echoed racist and tribal overtones, he changed his direction.

I do not pretend to be a scholar who can give an adequate discourse on the relationships between Jews and Samaritans. However, it seems clear from this story and others, that it was a conflicted relationship. Somebody felt superior to somebody else and it damaged them both.

In this exchange, the woman at the well is not afforded the honor of a name. She is not single nor married. She is only a Samaritan. When she responds to Jesus, he is only a Jew.

But then Jesus changes that. He offers her the truth. He tells her about her life and then she spreads the word. She becomes one of the best evangelists, not by her understanding about Jesus, but by her questions and experiences freely shared.

How I wish I could be more like her!