Home

Fr George's Letter

Details

Written by: Fr George

THE WOMAN OF SAMARIA.

 

 

 

  “The virtues build a new person radiating love to the world.”

(Metropolitan Paul (Yazigi) of Aleppo who consecrated our temple.) 

 

“For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”  

                                                                       (Hebrews 4:15-16)

 

SUNDAY 10^th MAY. The Samaritan Woman (Martyr Photini). Holy Patriarchs of Constantinople. Apostle Simon Zelotes (1^st). St. Isidora the Fool, of Tabennesi in Egypt (4^th). St. Thais of Egypt (5^th). St. Comgall, Abbot of Bangor (Ireland c 601).

 

“He has been crucified, and there is no fire in me that loves anything; but there is living water springing up in me.”

                                                                         (St. Ignatius of Antioch)

 

“A fish that is alive swims against the flow of water. 

One that is dead floats down with the water. 

A true Christian goes against the current of sinful age. 

A false one is swept away by its swiftness.”

                                                                          (St. Philaret of Moscow)

 

“Try to fill your soul with Christ so as not to have it empty. Your soul is like a cistern full of water. If you channel the water to the flowers, that is, to the virtues, you will experience true joy and all the thorns of evil will wither away. But if you channel the water to the weeds, these will grow and choke you and all the flowers will wither.”      (St. Porphyrios).  

 

TODAY’S GOSPEL. John 4:5-42. “So He came to a city of Samaria which is called Sychar, near the plot of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph. Now Jacob’s well was there. Jesus therefore, being wearied from His journey, sat thus by the well. It was about the sixth hour. A woman of Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to her, “Give Me a drink.” For His disciples had gone away into the city to buy food. Then the woman of Samaria said to Him, “How is it that You, being a Jew, ask a drink from me, a Samaritan woman?” For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans. Jesus answered and said to her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says 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 nothing to draw with, and the well is deep. Where then do You get that living water? Are You greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well, and drank from it himself, as well as his sons and livestock?” Jesus answered and said to her, “Whoever drinks this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him it will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life.” The woman said to Him, “Sir give me this water, that I may not thirst, nor come here to draw.” Jesus said to her, “Go call your husband, and come here.”  The woman answered and said, “I have no husband.” Jesus said to her, “You have well said ‘I have no husband,’ for you have had five husbands, and the one whom you now have is not your husband; in that you spoke truly.” The woman said to Him, “Sir I perceive that You are a prophet. Our fathers worshipped on this mountain, and you Jews say that in Jerusalem is the place where one ought to worship.” Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe Me, the hour is coming when you will neither on this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, worship the Father. You worship what you do not know; we know what we worship, for salvation is from the Jews. But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.” The woman said to Him, “I know that Messiah is coming” (who is called Christ). “When He comes, He will tell us all things.”  Jesus said to her, “I who speak to you am He.” And at this point His disciples came, and they marvelled that He talked with a woman; yet no one said “What do you seek?” or, “Why are You talking with her?” The woman then left her water pot, went her way into the city, and said to the men, “Come, see a Man who told me all things that I ever did. Could this be the Christ?” Then they went out of the city and came to Him. In the meantime His disciples urged Him, saying “Rabbi, eat.” But He said to them, “I have food to eat of which you do not know.” Therefore the disciples said to one another, “Has anyone brought Him anything to eat?” Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me, and to finish His work. Do you not say, “There are still four months and then comes the harvest? Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look at the fields, for they are already white for harvest. And he who reaps receives wages, and gathers fruit for eternal life, that both he who sows and he who reaps may rejoice together. For instance this the saying is true: ‘One sows and another reaps.’  I sent you to reap that for which you have not laboured; others have laboured, and you have entered into their labours.”  And many of the Samaritans of that city believed in Him because of the word of the woman who testified, “He told me all that I ever did.” So when the Samaritans had come to Him, they urged Him to stay with them; and He stayed there two days. And many more believed because of His own word. Then they said to the woman, “Now we believe, not because of what you said, for we ourselves have heard Him and we know that this is indeed the Christ, the Saviour of the world.” 

 

In church tradition the Samaritan Woman's name is Photini and she was martyred for her faith, bringing many to Christ. The reluctance of the disciples to question Jesus as to why He was talking with a woman, and a Samaritan at that, a foreigner and supposed heretic, is not surprising. They may have marvelled that He spoke with such a person, but His response to people, especially outcasts from society was well known to them. Christ tells the woman who He is, and in doing so He also tells us, the Gentiles. The love of God reaches out to all people, at all times and in all places and our response, however weak, must be to return that love and share it with others.

The living water of God, unlike a well or a spring or the water that comes out of our taps, never dries up or fails. There are no leaks, no pollution, it flows like a mighty waterfall, but is soft and gentle that we may partake of it. The price we pay for this water is the faith that we hold and sometimes this can lead us into conflict with the prevailing world in which we live. Christ calls us to heal and not divide, to welcome the stranger in our midst and to love one another. The Samaritan lady certainly had a colourful life that would be regarded as very sinful but Jesus came not for the righteous but to heal and annul our sins and weaknesses.

In baptism, water is used, and we sing “As many as have been baptised into Christ have put on Christ, Hallelujah!”. We have blessed holy water in church that we may drink of it or take it to our homes and use it to anoint our bodies in remembrance of our own baptism. We can live without food for quite a long time but if we have no water we have only a few days before we die. So it is with our faith, it has to be replenished. He gives us Holy Food in Holy Communion, He gives us drink in Holy Communion, He gives us life in Holy Communion. Our prayers are important in that they help others as well as ourselves. They are the water that replenishes our reservoirs that our faith may not dry up. May God shower you all with His love that we, like Photini, may proclaim Christ so that others may believe.

 

                                                                                           Much Love,

 

                                                                                           Fr. George. 

Please forgive the absence of an article last week, I was overtaken by events and a pulled muscle in my back.

Advanced notice. Ascension Day this year is on Thursday 21^st May and a Vesperal Divine Liturgy will be celebrated on Wednesday 20^th May at 7.00 pm for the feast so that as many as possible may attend.