ENCOUNTER WITH A SAMARITAN WOMAN

John began his Gospel with an affirmation that "The Word was God" (1:1) but went on to affirm that "the Word became flesh." (v 14) Now he illustrates from an encounter with a Samaritan woman how vulnerable that humanity was. It was about twelve noon when Jesus and his disciples reached Jacob's well and the sun was at its hottest. Jesus was tired after his morning's walk, so he sat by the well to rest. He was hungry so he sent his disciples to the neighbouring village to buy food. He was also hot and thirsty, so he asked the Samaritan woman for a drink.Thus Jesus was no superman immune to the frailty of ordinary mortals. He was an authentic human being.

The other characteristic of Jesus that this story highlights is his attitude to tradition. He was conservative in relation to Scripture, believing it to be the Word of God, but radical in relation to tradition, knowing it to consist of only human words. A radical is someone who is critical of all traditions and conventions, refusing to accept them merely because they have been handed down from the past.

Now the Samaritan woman had a threefold conventional disability. Firstly she was a woman, and it was not done for a man to talk to a woman in public. But Jesus did what wasn't done.
Secondly she was a Samaritan, and Jews did not associate with Samaritans. Thirdly she was a sinner,having had five husbandsand now cohabiting with a man to whom she was not married.
But respectable people like rabbis did not mix wit sinners like her. Thus three times over Jesus did what was not done. He deliberately breached the social conventions of the day. He was entirely free of gender discrimination, ethnic prejudice, and moral priggishness. He loved and respected everybody and shrank from nobody.

Thus Jesus was both conservative ( in relation to Scripture) and radical (in relation to culture)
at the same time. It seems to me we need a new generation of 'RCs,' now not for Roman Catholics but for Radical Conservatives.

Yours Aye

Roy