Reflections on the Readings for Sunday 27 March 2011 Exodus 17:3-7; Psalm 95:1-2, 6-9; Romans 5:1-2, 5-8; John 4:5-42 . An 18th Century painting of the Jesus at the well with the Samaritan woman by Angelika Kauffman Jesus’ interaction with the unnamed Samaritan ‘Woman … Daily Scriptureis also available. Catholic Online offers these reflections of the great Bishop of Hippo, Augustine on this passage as we all continue our Lenten Pilgrimage of conversion: A Samaritan Woman Came to Draw Water, From a treatise on John by Saint Augustine, bishop. The Samaritan woman in this Sunday's gospel narrative exemplifies the search that everyone has embarked upon. One of the encounters is between Jesus and a Samaritan woman, who is often referred to as the woman at the well. background-size: 120px !important; Being a woman with a “reputation,” having had a string of husbands and living loosely with yet another man, … The Samaritan woman develops trust in the man who dares to speak to her, who, as a Samaritan and a woman, was a marginalized person in Jewish society. He sees her as a symbol for the Gentiles who are called to conversion and faith and who are promised the gift of the Holy Spirit in abundance. The Samaritan woman’s spirit is enlightened, accelerated, and illuminated by Jesus. In fact, we are transformed into missionary disciples, who go forth to bring the Good News to others, like the Samaritan woman did and like Mother Teresa did, going forth then to spread the love of Christ and satiate His thirst for the salvation of souls. All Rights Reserved. The spiritual thirst of the Samaritan woman was recognised by Jesus. She had been married five times and was living in sin with a man who wasn’t her husband. We often assume, perhaps from outward appearances, that we know what is going on in the lives of others. Happy Easter, christ is risen. I’m nobody! She has been living a sinful life. This struck me on a number of occasions when I’d hear people ask the question about being “saved”. ©2019. No person is so right that they can’t learn something new or is so wrong that they can’t teach something new. Jesus was able to look beyond the cultural expectations; he was not tainted by the hatred and prejudice prevalent at the time. It was about noon. In what might seem, for some, a male-dominated Church, the role of women in the Church – including women's role in the family, the local church, schools and parish community - has been pivotal in every generation. 12 Are you greater than our ancestor Jacob, who gave us the well, and with his sons and his flocks drank from it?”, 13 Jesus said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, 14 but those who drink of the water that I will give them will never be thirsty. Her marital history, however, does not make her a sinner. In the Jewish faith, water was used often as a powerful metaphor. The answer is in the very next verse — when Jesus tells the woman her own story and she realizes he is a prophet. This struck me on a number of occasions when I’d hear people ask the question about being “saved”. display:block; An outcast in her own community, the Samaritan woman even despised herself, but Jesus recognised her spiritual thirst and engaged with her. Who are you? Reflection on Jesus and Samaritan woman . Second, her gender presented an obstacle. But can we find at least one person in our life who really does quench our deepest thirst? This Samaritan woman goes to the well in the heat of the day most likely because she wanted to avoid running into others who would look on her as a tainted woman. However, when Jesus . The Samaritan woman was a foreigner from a despised religious group, but her story made a clear statement about the role of women in the early Christian communities. The Samaritan woman is a beautiful exemplar of the transformative effects of a true encounter with Jesus. February 26, 2007 The woman at the well A lenten reflection by Brendan Comerford This year 2007, we’re listening to the scripture readings for Year C in the Sunday Lectionary, yet the liturgical instructions tell us that for The Third Sunday of Lent we can use the readings for Year A if we wish! March 17, 2017 | Reflections From Sr Mary. What makes this world so lovely is that somewhere it hides a well. Righteousness follows from the conversation. As with Nathanael … I’ll note that the Jews and Samaritans, in general, weren’t friendly to each other. Samaritans were considered outsiders and were looked down on by the Jewish people. Absolutely. The woman was not silent, nor was she limited to the private world of women. There are many people who thirst for healing, but they do not know how to go about encountering Jesus – perhaps they are too afraid, unsure or embarrassed to talk to God; perhaps they feel excluded or intimated by others whose main agenda is to recognise and highlight their faults. 4 Now Jesus learned that the Pharisees had heard that he was gaining and baptizing more disciples than John — 2 although in fact it was not Jesus who baptized, but his disciples. The Samaritan woman didn’t go through the women’s ministry at a church. Jesus said this words to Samaritan woman as well as to Christians of today. How can your parish recognise and offer continued support. The grace of God is always there for everyone. For centuries Jews and Samaritans had rejected each other. Bishop Donal's third reflection for consideration is outlined below. Have you ever felt like you were too far gone to be of any use to God? The Samaritan woman at the well is no angel. The conversion of the Samaritan woman brought forth the conversion of others. What was that sin? It was about noon. She desires the peace and the happiness that the things of this world cannot provide. Publish modules to the "offcanvas" position. She struggled with shame, which is evident by the time of the day she journeyed to the well. In John’s Gospel the Samaritan woman at the well is the first person to whom Jesus openly reveals himself as Messiah. Mar 10, - A reflection by Bishop Donal McKeown, Bishop of Derry of the Gospel of the third Sunday of Lent 'The Samaritan Woman at the Well'. The chapter that relates the story of Jesus meeting the Samaritan woman at Jacob’s well in John 4 begins by setting the stage for what will take place later in Samaria and is rooted in what already by this time in the Gospel’s progress has taken place in Judea. But in choosing to go to Samaria and to engage with the people there, Jesus showed that he held a different view. ATLA. (We used the reading from Year A … The Samaritan woman develops trust in the man who dares to speak to her, who, as a Samaritan and a woman, was a marginalized person in Jewish society. 2 (2012): 299–318. a charity registered in England and Wales, number 291691, All We Can, 25 Marylebone Road, London, NW1 5JR, UK, Email: info@allwecan.org.uk | Tel: +44 (0)20 7467 5132, Charity website designed by Adept and built by FusionPM. Heard on the Readings for Sunday 27 March 2011 Exodus 17:3-7 ; Psalm 95:1-2, 6-9 ; Romans,! 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