tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3306627563203710280.post9099229155154411632..comments2022-11-20T08:08:40.149-08:00Comments on hOlybytes: Gospel Text for Sunday, March 27, 2011Debra Asishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11473546155592177064noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3306627563203710280.post-28608481224208575272011-03-25T09:16:08.316-07:002011-03-25T09:16:08.316-07:00So why in the world did I put the image of St. Pau...So why in the world did I put the image of St. Paul’s conversion next to the story of the Samaritan woman who met Jesus at the well? Because, when I read this story it got me thinking about what William James called the “Varieties of Religious Experience.” <br /><br />When I read this story I noticed an ordinary woman doing an ordinary chore until, seemingly out of nowhere, she met a stranger and her life was transformed. She went from being a marginalized person – a person of no power, no privilege, no voice – to becoming a spokesperson for God when she told the story of her encounter with Jesus and inspired the people of her city of Sychar to come and see and listen to Jesus. This is even more astonishing when we remember that Samaritans and Jews could not abide each other and were actually down right hostile toward each other. <br /><br />Which reminded me of the Roman Jew who persecuted the followers of Jesus, participated in the killing of Stephen. St. Paul, an ordinary Roman soldier, had much power and privilege and a voice people listened to “or else.” And then seemingly out of nowhere he encountered the Risen Christ – and initially he was speechless. When Paul’s speech returned it had been transformed and he became one of the most outspoken spokesperson for God in all of history. <br /><br />It occurs to me that when human reality and divine reality encounter – actually collide – in what we have come to call “religious experience” there is not telling what radical transformation may take place!<br /><br />Come to me Lord Jesus. Open my eyes and transform my heart. Make me like the Samaritan woman and St. Paul a convincing spokesperson for Your mission.Debra Asishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11473546155592177064noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3306627563203710280.post-87339247721632702212011-03-24T10:24:20.773-07:002011-03-24T10:24:20.773-07:00I comment with just one observation that suggests ...I comment with just one observation that suggests rich possibilities. Robert Alter points out that wells are key sites of encounter in the Old Testament narrative. Particularly poignant is the ritual of finding a bride at the well. Isaac's bride Rebecca was met at a well. Jacob met Rachel at a well. In the motif, the man arrives alone to find the woman alone at the well. Either the man asks for a drink or the woman offers one. The ritual culminates in a marriage, a marriage that is pivotal in the salvation story. So, is Jesus intentionally acting out this familiar ritual when he asks the Samaritan woman for a drink? What message does this communicate – to his followers, to early readers of the Gospel, to me? What delightful speculation.Davehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17057844350941216111noreply@blogger.com