Meetings at Wells

As a part of my sabbatical, I am visiting other churches, observing different ways of worship.  I love a good sermon, and today I was blest with one.  From previous posts, you might be aware that I love the stories of the bible, and some of my most enjoyable sermons are those that unpack the stories of the bible and offer new discoveries and thoughts around well known passages.

Today's sermon was focused on the Samaritan woman at the well, from the gospel of John (4:1-42).  It's a long story, complex and full of meaning.  One difficulty in preaching on this passage is deciding on what aspect you are going to focus and then sticking with it.  The preacher talked a bit about bad theology and the preconceived ideas around this story.  For example, that the woman was one of low virtue because she has been married five times and was now living with someone who was not her husband.  We were reminded today though that no where in this passage does Jesus talk about sin and repentance.  This woman may have been the victim of multiple divorces because of her barrenness.  The man she is living with now may have been the brother of her most recent husband, as the custom in those days was that the brother was to care for his dead brother's wife.  This Samaritan woman is inquisitive, she challenges Jesus' words, she is witty, and she is the first apostle in the gospel of John.  She was the first to share her story of Jesus, to witness, with others. 

One aspect of the story that was new to me was around the setting of the story.  Jesus is in Samaria, which in itself is unusual, as there is great animosity between the Jewish and Samaritan people.  Jesus, tired from his journey, decides to rest by a well, Jacob's well.  The preacher described this place as a romantic spot, a place where people came to be betrothed.  Meetings at wells is mentioned other times in our bible, i.e. the place where Isaac's wife, Rebecca, was found, where Jacob first fell in love with Rachel, and where Moses met his wife, Zipporah.  Even if this well wasn't the same well, the people hearing John's gospel would have recognized the significance.  When two people (usually a man and woman) meet at a well, something significant happens, usually a marriage. 

The preacher asked us to imagine Sleeping Beauty being asleep and being awoken by a kiss or the Princess kissing the frog and the frog transforming into a prince.  These are common motifs in our current culture.  For first century people familiar with the Hebrew Scriptures, this coming together at a well, one coming to rest after a long journey, and one offering the other water, was a common motif for some kind of transformation or new kind of relationship.  I'm not suggesting a romantic relationship between Jesus and the Samaritan woman, but it was possibly symbolic of the connection between these two people. 

To me this is another example of the ties the Christian stories with the Hebrew stories and that without truly understanding the Hebrew stories, we cannot full understand the intricacies of the stories about our Jewish saviour, Jesus, who had Jewish disciples, who was challenged by Jewish authorities, and who was raised by a Jewish family and in a Jewish culture.  Even the Samaritan woman recognized Jesus' Jewishness and challenged him on his authority in Samaria.  But even the Samaritan woman recognized in this man something special.  He claimed to be the Messiah.  Was he?  Whether he was or not, he was important enough to her to make sure her community knew about him and that he was welcomed among them to continue teaching and sharing stories with them.  May we all be so bold.