Could this be the Christ?

And at this point His disciples came, and they marveled that He talked with a woman; yet no one said, "What do You seek?" or "Why are You talking with her?" The woman then left her water pot, went her way into the city, and said to the men, "Come, see a Man who told me all things that I ever did. Could this be the Christ?" Then they went out of the city and came to Him.

In the meantime His disciples urged Him, saying, "Rabbi, eat." But He said to them, "I have food to eat of which you do not know." Therefore the disciples said to one another, "Has anyone brought Him anything to eat?" Jesus said to them, "My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me, and to finish His work. Do you not say, 'There are still four months and then comes the harvest'? Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look at the fields, for they are already white for harvest! And he who reaps receives wages, and gathers fruit for eternal life, that both he who sows and he who reaps may rejoice together. For in this the saying is true: 'One sows and another reaps.' I sent you to reap that for which you have not labored, others have labored, and you have entered into their labors."

And many of the Samaritans of that city believed in Him because of the word of the woman who testified, "He told me all that I ever did." So when the Samaritans had come to Him, they urged Him to stay with them; and He stayed there two days. And many more believed because of His own word. Then they said to the woman, "Now we believe, not because of what you said, for we ourselves have heard Him and we know that this is indeed the Christ, the Savior of the world."

- John 4:27-42

In yesterday's reading, we read of Jesus' encounter with a woman at Jacob's well, in Samaria. (See Sir, give me this water that I may not thirst.) Today's reading continues with these events in Samaria.

And at this point His disciples came, and they marveled that He talked with a woman; yet no one said, "What do You seek?" or "Why are You talking with her?" My study bible says that "They marveled because Jews were not allowed to converse publicly with a woman, and a Samaritan at that. Jesus' words and actions transcend ethnic and gender-related customs of the time. (For further instances of the Lord's dealings with women, see 7:53-8:11; 11:20-33; Luke 7:36-50; 8:2-3; 10:38-42)." Jesus' behavior is shocking, not just because of the taboos He breaks in terms of the customs of His time and place, but also because the only people to whom He had revealed Himself thus far were his Apostles. This Samaritan woman He chooses; He initiated Himself the conversation at the well. (See yesterday's reading and commentary.)

The woman then left her water pot, went her way into the city, and said to the men, "Come, see a Man who told me all things that I ever did. Could this be the Christ?" Then they went out of the city and came to Him. A note reads: "The Samaritan woman becomes the first evangelist, testifying to the advent of Christ and bringing others to Him (v. 39). According to an early tradition, after the Resurrection of Christ she was baptized and given the Christian name Photini, 'the enlightened one.' [Phos means light in Greek.] Along with her two sons and five daughters she went to Carthage to spread the gospel. There they were arrested, taken to Rome under Nero, imprisoned and later martyred. According to tradition, St. Photini, who first met Christ beside a well, was martyred for Christ by being thrown into a well." The Eastern Church remembers her on March 20, and she is especially dear to the Christian people of this area who survive today in this part of the Holy Land, including in and around Bethlehem, Jerusalem and Nazareth.

In the meantime His disciples urged Him, saying, "Rabbi, eat." But He said to them, "I have food to eat of which you do not know." Therefore the disciples said to one another, "Has anyone brought Him anything to eat?" Jesus said to them, "My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me, and to finish His work." My study bible notes here: "The disciples, too, misunderstand Jesus' words. Once again we see revealed in John's Gospel Jesus' typical means of moving from the surface meaning of a statement on to a deeper truth. His food is to bring people to believe in Him and be saved." One word we can use in translation of parable is "riddle," and it strikes me that all of this allusion to Mystery - to a deepening understanding of the mystery of spiritual reality in John's Gospel - is indeed like the posing of a riddle. It is another example of a form of parable, through which we learn and we receive the wisdom and the understanding of watching Jesus' disciples, along with the people He speaks to, learn, as He reveals to them new information, which they continually misinterpret upon first hearing. A riddle - as in "parable" - is a way of drawing people in, so that they want to learn more, to answer questions, to solve the puzzle.

Do you not say, 'There are still four months and then comes the harvest'? Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look at the fields, for they are already white for harvest!" A note reads: "The townspeople (traditionally thought to have been dressed in white) approach the well with the Samaritan woman. Our Lord urges the disciples to look up and see the ripe fields (that is, these Samaritans) ready for harvest." Here we have another form of a parable, in which Jesus likens those who will follow to the fields white for harvest.

"And he who reaps receives wages, and gathers fruit for eternal life, that both he who sows and he who reaps may rejoice together." My study bible says that "the Father is the sower; Jesus is the reaper. Jesus will send the disciples to reap (17:18; 20:21); their apostolic mission has been implicit from their initial calling." This is the answer to the riddle, the parable. See also the parable of the Sower - Why do you speak to them in parables?

"For in this the saying is true: 'One sows and another reaps.' I sent you to reap that for which you have not labored, others have labored, and you have entered into their labors." My study bible notes: "The others are all those who have prepared the way for the coming of the Messiah; the Old Testament patriarchs, prophets, St. John the Baptist and more." See also in Matthew's Gospel the parable of The Vineyard.

And many of the Samaritans of that city believed in Him because of the word of the woman who testified, "He told me all that I ever did." So when the Samaritans had come to Him, they urged Him to stay with them; and He stayed there two days. And many more believed because of His own word. Then they said to the woman, "Now we believe, not because of what you said, for we ourselves have heard Him and we know that this is indeed the Christ, the Savior of the world." My study bible says, "The Samaritans are the first to recognize Jesus as Savior of the world. The gospel is for all people." How marvelous it is to realize the nature of the way this Word works: it's not inhibited by custom, or nation or calling, by gender or ethnicity or any other barrier we can think of. It belongs to everyone - to all those who will receive it. But in that understanding is a deeper sense of Mystery, of parable or riddle, if you will: who will receive this? A parable or a riddle draws us further and deeper into its answer. Jesus' presence, 2,000 years later, is still an unsolved Mystery. It still draws us in. He still draws us deeper into the mystery of the reality of His Presence and His Person. How does our relationship with Him work? We see that it is not something that only exists on an individual level - between Him and each one of us - but also exists through others. That is, as Jesus has explained to His disciples, they are entering into others' labors. And, as we see from this Samaritan woman whom Jesus has chosen to spread his word - and she becomes the first evangelist - that word works through others. We are all in this together; indeed we are like vines that spread tendrils, grow branches, and lead into other branches and tendrils that will also produce a harvest. What's your role in this Mystery? How do you watch and help it grow? Let it grow in yourself, so that it will produce fruits which are helpful for others.

I am the vine; you are the branches. John 15:5