March 23, 2014 - WOMAN AT THE WELL

The Gospel today, March 23, 2014, is about the Samaritan woman at the well. It tells of Jesus and His apostles on the way to preach in various villages stopping in the town of Samaria. It was high noon so Jesus sat by the well while his apostles went to buy food. Along came a woman to fetch water and Jesus  asked her for a drink. The request was denied since there has been bad blood existing between Jews and Samaritans for a long time. Jesus told her that He was the "living water that would make her thirst no more" and revealed to her that He was the Messiah. The talk between the woman and Jesus eventually led to the whole town welcoming Him and the group for two days.

In 1999, I joined a pilgrimage to the Holy Land, for the fourth time, simply because it included a visit to Emmaus and Samaria. It is not possible to cover most places associated with Jesus on one visit. Usually, a trip is only for 11 or 13 days mostly to Bethlehem, Nazareth and Jerusalem.

The characteristic rocky terrain of the of Jerusalem abound in Samaria, too. To reach Jacob's Well, the name of the well in the Gospel, the pilgrims had to walk almost a two-block distance. Upon reaching the place, we had to climb five or six stone steps down to the well. The tour guide informed us that the centuries of wind and water action caused the present-day ground elevation.

Jesus sat on the edge of a round stone well which has, roughly, a radius of seven or eight feet. I specified that it was round since in the Bible, the well where Moses helped Zepphora get water in Midian was rectangle. A pail was hanging above it for those who would like a drink. The guide assured us that the water was still potable since Jesus' time so that many of our group members took a sip. I would not miss the chance to taste the water that had once quenched the thirst of my Savior! I drank a full cup! To me, it tasted like mineral water but with a slight tinge of sweetness. I don't know if my oral sense was real or was tainted by the thought that it had something to do with Jesus and so would be significantly good. Doesn't He always do all things for our good?

There was another thing that titillated my mind : to feel the place where Jesus sat! I looked around at my group members. Many were in line to get a tiny clay jar with "Jacob's Well" inscribed which was filled with the water. Others were busy chatting about the experience  and comparing notes about the water, possibly. There was no one by the well. Swiftly, I started the sit-down-stand-up routine to cover each and every inch of the edge of the well, which was in some areas bordered with a smooth rock but in most so crudely bound with multi-shaped ones. Afterwards, I felt a surge of fulfillment, of triumphant success, of bringing into reality a spur-of-the-moment idea - the idea that I would get an ion of our Lord's energy from the spot He made sacred on the well. I smiled at the thought that no one in my group dared to even consider such a venture. But I did! And I relish an experience that will never be effaced by Time!

Is it possible that my frail body has been energized to reach and enjoy my octogenarian years by Jesus' imprint on the well of Samaria?