Woman at the well
The Gospel from this past Sunday (Woman at the Well, John 4) is one of my favorites. Like many people, I can identify with the Samaritan woman at the well. For me, the primary connection is a first encounter with Christ. As I’ve explained here before, I didn’t really encounter Him until I was in college. At that point, life had brought me to my knees. I was in a position – actually, the position – to meet Christ. Crushed, broken, and lost, I was finally open to who He is and what He offers. The same was true for her at the well.
In the long form of the Gospel, Jesus talks about her having five husbands. Many people in the Old Testament had “free spouses” which were their real spouses and they had “slave spouses”. One Catholic commentary that I once read interpreted her five marriages in the latter category. This makes sense because the Lord says that her current husband “is not your (real) husband”. It also explains why she came to draw water at noon when she thought no one else would be there; she was living in shame. Jesus knew her and her situation well and sought her out. He thirsted for her heart, her soul, and her love. When He revealed to her that He knew her well, her heart was changed. That was probably the moment she realized He was the Christ. She was completely different after that especially in the way she left the well and told everyone around about Him.
It’s so powerful and personal because of the immediate and intimate effect He had on her. He spoke directly to her heart and affirmed her of her goodness and dignity. This was probably the first man in her adult life to do this, maybe the first person ever in her life. And, we can easily imagine the love and tenderness with which He spoke to her. Another commentary made the leap with the above line to say that Jesus is to be her real (spiritual) husband. This is essentially what happened to her and all of us who fell in love with Christ the first time. We realized quickly that He is God and God is Love, and we find true love in Him. It is love that will always be there for us and never leave us, always affirm and never reject us, and always be true while calling us to be true.
