THIRD SUNDAY OF LENT A

[cappie]

Jo Cox was a member of the House of Commons in the Parliament of the United Kingdom in the early 2000s. She didn’t just stand for the marginalized in the United Kingdom; she also spoke out on those she considered marginalized people in the Middle East. She was assassinated for her beliefs at the age of forty-two. Her vocation was driven by one simple belief: “we are far more united and have more in common than that which divides us.”  

In this third week of Lent, the gospel provides a beautiful illustration of what it means to discover our common humanity. Jesus is by a well in a Samaritan city called Sychar. The disciples have gone into town to find food for the rabbi and his followers. A Samaritan woman approaches the well and  Jesus asks for a drink of water. 

It is fair to assume that the Samaritan woman might have been surprised  by the request, because Jews and Samaritans did not speak to one another. The Samaritan woman has no idea who this Jesus is. Imagine her confusion when he offers her “living water “; she challenges Jesus’s ability to get water from the well, as he does not have a bucket! She appears to be teasing him further when she says,  ‘ ‘Sir, give me some of that water, so that I may never get thirsty and never have to come here again to draw water.’ ?” 

As we encounter people along our journey, our initial reaction may often be that we have nothing in common, however, if we are able to embrace the notion that we have more in common than what separates us, then as we converse with our neighbors, we are called to find common ground, discover some common bonds. we are able to appreciate not only our common attributes, but our differences as well.

In Jesus’s interaction with the Samaritan woman, God models for humans what it looks like to be able to sit and share a moment with someone who appears vastly different from us. Jesus asks for a sip of water from someone he should not have addressed at all. And in that, Jesus shows the world what it looks like  to connect on a personal level. 

The Samaritan woman did not know Jesus and was understandably hesitant about sharing too much of herself. He tells her to get her husband, and she quietly says, “I have no husband.” Jesus knows the rest of her story, so in this case he tells her her own story, pointing out that she has had five husbands. Suddenly the Samaritan woman has a revelation: “Sir, I see that you are a prophet.” This story is a sign of what can happen when we truly see each other.

During the season of Lent—this time of renewal—we have an opportunity to seek the image of God in one another.

One of the greatest gifts that Jesus offered the Samaritan woman was presence. He saw her—not her community or her reputation. She was not used to Jewish people connecting with Samaritans. From her response, we can see clearly that it was unusual for her to interact with those outside of her community. Yet Jesus reminds us that we have so much more in common than that which separates us.

  Your own light shines brightest when you are able to see your neighbour clearly. As one of God’s chosen people, you are called to share the light of love with all on your path.

The woman Jesus met and spoke with at the well overflowed—not with water, but with newness of life. She ran back to her neighbors and friends, to tell them what she had seen, and to beg them to come and see this man who knew so much about her.

It’s remarkable that with one simple conversation, this woman discovered the truth of who Jesus was. She could see him, while the disciples he was traveling with were still uncertain about Jesus and the fullness of his identity.

To do the will of God is our challenge. We are called to love our neighbours as ourselves, to show God’s mercy to one another.

 What we need to learn from this gospel story is that we are not called to be missionary disciples of Jesus on account of our own gifts or talents. The Samaritan woman was no paragon of virtue, yet Jesus, who knew everything about her, loved her and commissioned her to bring good news to others.

As you remember the Samaritan woman and meet Jesus at the well, remember the beautiful words of Jo Cox: “We are far more united and have more in common than that which divides us.” Amen.