On the Samaritan Woman at the Well

On the Samaritan Woman at the Well: Not too many people today, at least in the First World, obtain their water from a well or a cistern. Two-thousand years ago, however, it was quite common. For the most part, people would go to the well at either sunrise or sunset. Yet in this Gospel of John story, Jesus encounters the Samaritan woman at the well around noon. This peculiar fact indicates that she may not have been a highly respected individual in Samaria. What's more is that she's said to have had five husbands. Perhaps it's this reason alone why the Samaritan woman has been shunned by the local community. Whatever the case may be, the idea that Jesus (a Jewish man) sought out this Samaritan woman for a spiritual conversation (involving water as a metaphor for eternal life) shows how diplomatic He could be. And diplomacy was always important between Judea and Samaria, especially since the Jews and Samaritans tended to view each other with disdain.