Jesus, tired out by his journey, was sitting by the well. It was about noon. A Samaritan woman came to draw water, and Jesus said to her, ‘Give me a drink’. (His disciples had gone to the city to buy food.) The Samaritan woman said to him, ‘How is it that you, a Jew, ask a drink of me, a woman of Samaria?’ (Jews do not share things in common with Samaritans.) Jesus answered her, ‘If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying to you, “Give me a drink”, you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water.’ The woman said to him, ‘Sir, you have no bucket, and the well is deep. Where do you get that living water?’ John 4:6-11

There are several reasons why Jesus shouldn’t have spoken to this woman. The most obvious is that she was a woman and one of dubious repute at that. Jesus did not need any special ability to discern this. She came at a time to draw water when there was hardly anyone around. Collecting water was a social activity for women during that period. This woman was obviously a persona non grata among her peers. Besides this, she was a Samaritan. Jesus wasn’t immune to the prejudices of his time. None of us are innately prejudiced. These ideas are subtly instilled in us. Jesus grew up exposed to all the things which society threw at him. He, like the rest of us, had to confront these ingrained prejudices. This woman, on the other hand, had accepted her marginalized role in society and did not expect anyone to confab with her. However, Jesus broke all the societal norms. He spoke to her but only for one simple reason. He was tired and thirsty and she had water. He did not make an excuse to talk to her. He genuinely needed something from her and wasn’t going to allow any conventional obstacles to stop him from receiving help from her.

The woman wanted to make sure if Jesus knew who she was before receiving anything from her. She was convinced that Jesus wouldn’t want anything to do with her. This is where the conversation takes us on a captivating journey. It happened just because Jesus was willing to ask for help from someone society had shunned. It is worth spending a short moment on this before moving on.

When someone is marginalized, society sending a clear message to this person saying that he or she is irrelevant and has nothing to offer. The disciples were in a Samaritan village. It was the practice in those times for people to approach the homes in the particular village to ask for food and shelter even Jesus recommended this to his disciples. Usually, it was customary for people to be hospitable to strangers. This is still practiced in many parts of Asia today. However, the disciples were Jewish and they preferred to go elsewhere for food and water instead of receiving hospitality from a Samaritan. To do such a thing entails making oneself available for a relationship with the host. If we think about it, it is true for us wherever we are in our world. Our homeless children and teens love to help people. It is their chance to show their humanity. However, it has to be genuine. There are well intentioned people who think that it is a good idea to teach children and teens to become better people by giving them an “opportunity” to help. This almost immediately becomes something patronizing.

We have people in our society whom we just perceive as mere helpless and ignorant souls incapable of helping themselves. Usually we shower them with our good works. Unknowingly, our well intentioned actions can contribute to widening the rift between us and them. Instead, we have to ask ourselves whether these people have something concrete to offer to us. I don’t mean in a pragmatic manner. I mean in a deep spiritual manner. Jesus saw this woman and saw that she had something to offer to him. Initially it was just water and He could have stopped the conversation at that. However, our Lord wanted to move on to deeper waters.

The woman wasn’t sure if Jesus knew who she was but our Lord revealed to her that He knew all she had done in her life. These were probably all the things which disqualified her from participating in the social life of her community. In the streets, we often hear preachers doing this very same thing. They list all the things which disqualify people from being part of their religion. In a way, they are trying to shame people into the faith. We also encounter modern humanists who avoid talking about these things altogether. This attitude doesn’t help much. The woman was fully aware why she was marginalized. She thought that perhaps Jesus would have avoided her if He knew who she was. He did and wanted her to know this. Most importantly, He accepted her unconditionally. It is interesting that of all the Samaritans, Jesus chose this woman to be His disciple. In a way, she was His “apostle” to her people. It appears that Jesus always chose the most unlikely people to become His instruments in this world. Sometimes we forget this and adopt the world standards as God’s ways.

The origins of the Samaritans is a disputed subject. The Jewish people in Jesus’ time believed that they were not the pure people of Israel. They believed that the Samaritans had incorporated religious practices which were not aligned with the Law. Consequently, they were considered to be a threat to the pure religious faith of Judaism. The Jewish leaders found it was necessary to isolate the Samaritans because they feared their influence would corrupt the pure doctrines of Judaism. Jesus looked beyond doctrines and perceived that the Samaritans desired to worship the true and living God despite their ignorance. They responded to something deep in their souls. In the same manner, Jesus recognized that this woman spent her life searching for something to satisfy her soul. Jesus saw beyond her misgivings to understand the anguish in her soul. He did not condemn her like the rest of society. He did not believe that she was a bad influence to the rest of the world. He just wanted to give her the Living Water which she desired so much for her life.

The major difference between us and our homeless children is knowledge too. Our children are thrust into this world and forced to survive in it without any guidance nor orientation. We know how this world works and are adjusted to its norms and requirements. Our children are a little lost and do everything it takes to survive. Many times this violates the rules and regulations of proper conduct. Therefore, society considers them as a nuisance and a menace. Sometimes so-called well-adjusted people, like ourselves, tend to think that what our homeless youth need is to learn how to function in this world and everything will be fine. In other words, they have to submit to the requirements of accepted behavior. However, our children may not be interested in these things. Like the Samaritan woman, they have accepted that they will always be marginalized in this society. This is a notion that perhaps is hard for us to imagine. We can waste our time trying to convince them to find ways to integrate when they know that society does not need nor want them. The woman did not find her place in her society after her conversation with Jesus. She remained marginalized. However, she discovered the Living Water. Now, our children are always thirsty for this. If we stop focusing on the wrong things, we might realize that we too need to take a drink from this fountain. In this way, we are the same as our children. We need the living water as much as they do. However, Jesus never really explains exactly what He meant by it. The conversation switched to the subject of the Spirit. Perhaps, it did not. Maybe He just brought the conversation to a deeper place.

God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth. John 4:24

In Jesus’ time, the concept of God was very territorial. In modern times, this territorial God is even more restricted. He is confined within certain dominations or religions. We forget that Jesus taught us that God is Spirit and He belongs to no one and He is the God of everyone. He chooses to appear to those whom He pleases. Just because we are born in a Christian family or a middle class home, it doesn’t mean that we have a monopoly of God. He is not confined nor determined by our limitations. He is present wherever there are people who desire to know the true and living God and many among those whom society has deemed as unworthy like the Samaritan woman. Jesus chose her to be channel of His living water to her friends. Apparently, her friends were open to her despite her past and reputation. They recognized that God is Spirit. He is not restricted like we are.