My husband and I went back to our old Bible class this morning, and boy,am I glad! The discussion was so deep it made my head hurt, but that's good for all of us every now and then.
We discussed the Samaritan woman at the well, which is found in John 4. I have read this story many times, but I have never had so many questions. For instance, according to the map the teacher had, going to Samaria was out of Jesus's way. Why did he choose to go there?
The woman at the well came at about the sixth hour, and she was pretty sure nobody else would be there. Given the fact that she was living with a man and had five previous husbands, what had happened to her? The fact that she went to the well when she thought it would be deserted suggests that she was a social outcast. Maybe she didn't have loose morals, though. In a society where men could divorce women by saying "I divorce you" three times, many women had a hard life.
How did the woman know Jesus was a Jew? Why was she bold enough to speak to him, to answer him, in a time and place where men and women who were not related seldom even made eye contact? Maybe she didn't have anything to lose. Maybe Jesus was her last hope.
The woman had a basic knowledge of what her people believed. She knew that the Jews and Samaritans were on the outs with each other. She thought that the basic conflict was over where one should worship. It seems reasonable to think that she wanted some peace, probably for her people as well as herself. I think she wanted some answers, and she was thirsty enough to search for them whether what she did was socially acceptable or not.
I wonder what the woman thought when Jesus knew her lifestyle. It doesn't sound to me like he judged her for it; he just called it what it was. He didn't throw stones at her or call her names. Certainly, Jesus could not have behaved like any Jew the woman knew, and maybe not like any man, either. Maybe his knowledge of her combined with his willingness to discuss her questions, convinced her of who he was.
Why did the townspeople believe this woman, especially if she was of ill repute? We know they did because they went in search of Jesus and convinced him to spend two days with them. How long had they been waiting for answers? For acceptance?
I personally find it very hard to go against what is expected of me. That has caused me a lot of problems since I tend to have my own opinion about a lot of things. I think them through, but sometimes, mostly because I have to be reminded that I don't run the world, I get myself in trouble. So I can see myself being the woman at the well. I can see myself living a life but knowing there is something better somewhere, if I could just figure it out. And depending on how much I wanted that better life, I might be willing to risk social taboos, even to the point of speaking to a Jew. If my own people did not have the answers, and it appears that, at least for this woman,the Samaritans didn't, it would become necessary to look in another place. Or to another person.
I will be interested to see the turn the lesson takes next week with this oh-so-familiar story. Is the whole point that we humans are not the ones who are in control? Or is the point that the One who is in control is ready to accept us as we are?
We discussed the Samaritan woman at the well, which is found in John 4. I have read this story many times, but I have never had so many questions. For instance, according to the map the teacher had, going to Samaria was out of Jesus's way. Why did he choose to go there?
The woman at the well came at about the sixth hour, and she was pretty sure nobody else would be there. Given the fact that she was living with a man and had five previous husbands, what had happened to her? The fact that she went to the well when she thought it would be deserted suggests that she was a social outcast. Maybe she didn't have loose morals, though. In a society where men could divorce women by saying "I divorce you" three times, many women had a hard life.
How did the woman know Jesus was a Jew? Why was she bold enough to speak to him, to answer him, in a time and place where men and women who were not related seldom even made eye contact? Maybe she didn't have anything to lose. Maybe Jesus was her last hope.
The woman had a basic knowledge of what her people believed. She knew that the Jews and Samaritans were on the outs with each other. She thought that the basic conflict was over where one should worship. It seems reasonable to think that she wanted some peace, probably for her people as well as herself. I think she wanted some answers, and she was thirsty enough to search for them whether what she did was socially acceptable or not.
I wonder what the woman thought when Jesus knew her lifestyle. It doesn't sound to me like he judged her for it; he just called it what it was. He didn't throw stones at her or call her names. Certainly, Jesus could not have behaved like any Jew the woman knew, and maybe not like any man, either. Maybe his knowledge of her combined with his willingness to discuss her questions, convinced her of who he was.
Why did the townspeople believe this woman, especially if she was of ill repute? We know they did because they went in search of Jesus and convinced him to spend two days with them. How long had they been waiting for answers? For acceptance?
I personally find it very hard to go against what is expected of me. That has caused me a lot of problems since I tend to have my own opinion about a lot of things. I think them through, but sometimes, mostly because I have to be reminded that I don't run the world, I get myself in trouble. So I can see myself being the woman at the well. I can see myself living a life but knowing there is something better somewhere, if I could just figure it out. And depending on how much I wanted that better life, I might be willing to risk social taboos, even to the point of speaking to a Jew. If my own people did not have the answers, and it appears that, at least for this woman,the Samaritans didn't, it would become necessary to look in another place. Or to another person.
I will be interested to see the turn the lesson takes next week with this oh-so-familiar story. Is the whole point that we humans are not the ones who are in control? Or is the point that the One who is in control is ready to accept us as we are?
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