Today Jesus arrives into the Samaritan town of Sychar. It’s late in the day and tired by his journey he takes a rest at Jacob’s well while the disciples head into a nearby town to buy food to eat. When the Samaritan woman comes to the well to draw some water Jesus is very forthright and asks her for a drink. Because Jews and Samaritans don’t associate with each other the woman is very surprised by Jesus’ request and she questions why he, a Jew, would ask for and accept a drink from a Samaritan.

Initially they get into a general conversation about water and eventually Jesus tries to indicate to the woman that God is offering her something that will take away her ‘thirst’ forever. He was of course speaking of that inner thirst we all have for God in our lives. For example, although the woman had five husbands she had a spiritual void in her life that only a closer relationship with God could take it away from her. The woman responds by asking Jesus to give her some of that water so that she will never have to come here again to drink.

The Samaritan woman became an evangelist. She shared her experience with others and they in turn began to believe in him through their own personal encounters with Jesus and responded in faith.

Jesus knew everything about the woman’s life. He knows everything about our lives too and continually invites us to come to the water and drink, so that our inner thirst may be satisfied through a deepening of our relationship with him during this Lenten season.

Fr Gerry