- Fr. Lawrence Jagdfeld, O.F.M., Administrator
The synoptic Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke record chance meetings between Jesus and Samaritans. However, none of them ever record that Jesus entered Samaria. In fact just the opposite is true. There are pointed references to the fact that Jesus could not and did not enter this territory.
Samaritans were descendants of the Jews who were left behind when Assyria led Israel into bondage, an event we call the Babylonian captivity. The Assyrians did not take everyone back to Babylon. They left behind the elderly, the sick, and the weak. They were interested in procuring slaves who could work and did not want to be burdened with those who were of no use to them. In order to survive, those left behind sought refuge among the other peoples of that land and intermarried with them. At the end of the Babylonian captivity, when the Jews returned to Israel, they rejected those who were left behind because they had broken the commandment against intermarriage. Thus began a period of enmity between these two peoples.
St. John’s Gospel includes the beautiful story of the woman who meets Jesus at the well. By including it in his Gospel, John is speaking directly to the community of Ephesus, the origin of this particular Gospel. Questions regarding missionary efforts among the Samaritans had arisen in the community. Should they extend the Christian faith to these outcasts. The answer to the question may seem obvious to us who look back over two thousand years of missionary activity within the Church. However, at the time that the Gospel was written, it was a serious concern in the community. It would mean going head to head with hundreds of years of enmity.
We can see this animosity reflected in the woman’s first response to Jesus’ request for a drink: “How can you, a Jew, ask me, a Samaritan woman, for a drink?” (John 4:5b) Not only did she question Jesus regarding her ethnic origin, she also reflects the cultural taboo of a man speaking to a woman in public with no one to witness their interchange.
John also demonstrates some disappointment in the fact that the community is still asking itself whether the Samaritans should be evangelized. He does this through the disciples who are with Jesus. When the disciples return from their “shopping trip,” they find that the woman has already become a missionary herself. She brings her townspeople out to meet Jesus. They do nothing. Jesus comments on their inactivity: “I tell you, look up and see the fields ripe for the harvest. The reaper is already receiving his payment and gathering crops for eternal life, so that the sower and reaper can rejoice together. For here the saying is verified that ‘One sows and another reaps.’ I sent you to reap what you have not worked for; others have done the work, and you are sharing the fruits of their work.” (John 4: 35b-38)
We live in a society and culture that is becoming more and more xenophobic. We look with suspicion upon the emigres among us. Some are active seeking ways to exclude them from our society. This is especially true of those who have yet to be evangelized. This Sunday’s Gospel reading gives us an opportunity to reflect on that behavior in light of the missionary efforts of the woman of Samaria. She seems to satisfy Jesus’ hunger simply by her faith and her desire to share with others.