Then cometh he to a city of Samaria, which is called Sychar, near to the parcel of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph. Now Jacob's well was there. Jesus therefore, being wearied with his journey, sat thus on the well: and it was about the sixth hour. There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water: Jesus saith unto her, give me to drink. (For his disciples were gone away unto the city to buy meat.) Then saith the woman of Samaria unto him, How is it that thou, being a Jew, askest drink of me, which am a woman of Samaria? for the Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans. Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water. The woman saith unto him, Sir, thou hast nothing to draw with, and the well is deep: from whence then hast thou that living water? Art thou greater than our father Jacob, which gave us the well, and drank thereof himself, and his children, and his cattle? Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life. The woman saith unto him, Sir, give me this water, that I thirst not, neither come hither to draw. Jesus saith unto her, Go, call thy husband, and come hither. The woman answered and said, I have no husband. Jesus said unto her, Thou hast well said, I have no husband: For thou hast had five husbands; and he whom thou now hast is not thy husband: in that saidst thou truly. The woman saith unto him, Sir, I perceive that thou art a prophet. Our fathers worshipped in this mountain; and ye say, that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship. Jesus saith unto her, Woman, believe me, the hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father. Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews. But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth. The woman saith unto him, I know that Messiah cometh, which is called Christ: when he is come, he will tell us all things. Jesus saith unto her, I that speak unto thee am he. And upon this came his disciples, and marveled that he talked with the woman: yet no man said, What seekest thou? or, Why talkest thou with her? The woman then left her waterpot, and went her way into the city, and saith to the men, Come, see a man, which told me all things that ever I did: is not this the Christ? Then they went out of the city, and came unto him. In the mean while his disciples prayed him, saying, Master, eat. But he said unto them, I have meat to eat that ye know not of. Therefore said the disciples one to another, Hath any man brought him ought to eat? Jesus saith unto them, My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work. Say not ye, There are yet four months, and then cometh harvest? Behold, I say unto you, Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest. And he that reapeth receiveth wages, and gathereth fruit unto life eternal: that both he that soweth and he that reapeth may rejoice together. And herein is that saying true, One soweth, and another reapeth. I sent you to reap that whereon ye bestowed no labour: other men laboured, and ye are entered into their labours. And many of the Samaritans of that city believed on him for the saying of the woman, which testified, He told me all that ever I did. So when the Samaritans were come unto him, they besought him that he would tarry with them: and he abode there two days. And many more believed because of his own word; And said unto the woman, Now we believe, not because of thy saying: for we have heard him ourselves, and know that this is indeed the Christ, the Saviour of the world. (John 4: 5-42)
In this Gospel excerpt, brought to our attention by the Holy Church on the 4th Sunday after Pascha, relates Christ’s discussion with the Samaritan woman. The Lord tells her of some "living water" He possesses, and which He could give her to drink. It is a special kind of water, with the capacity to slake thirst forever, and to one who drinks of it appears a "well of water springing up into eternal life." What is that miraculous water, that life-giving water of life? That water is LOVE. For God, the wellspring and source and of all life, is Love. The Holy Apostle St. John the Theologian says "God is love, and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him." (I John 4: 16).
Love is the foundation and essence of the Holy Trinity: The Father loves the Son and the Son loves the Father. The Holy Spirit is the Personal, Hypostatic Love of the Father for the Son and of the Son for the Father. It was out of love that God called the world from out of non-existence. God’s Creation was founded on love, and it is by God’s love that it lives. "For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." (John 3: 16). For man’s salvation - God not only loves His creation and unceasingly provides for it, God not only offers Himself as a sacrifice for mankind’s salvation, but He also asks love of us. So to speak, He needs our love. Of the Samaritan woman, the Lord asks, "Give me to drink!" On the Cross, he is to say "I thirst!"
He gave man the Commandment of love. In fact, love is not even a Commandment; rather it is a condition of life, a requisite of our existence. The Holy Apostle James teaches us, "Faith without works is dead!" (James 3: 20) Christ’s suffering on the Cross was not so much physical pain as it was the pain of enduring the evil of the world, the scarcity of love in mankind. With our wars, our hatred, our squabbling, and our dislike of one another, we insult God’s love, cause Him sorrow, and bring Him new pain.
Love is jealous. Love needs to be requited. Therefore God, Who is Love, is a jealous God. In the Old Testament, we learn that His Name is "Jealous."(Exodus 34: 14).
Christ awaits and expects our love, and asks us for it. Through the mouths of those in prisons, in hospitals, in need and in suffering, He asks us for a cup of cool water. (Matthew 10: 42).
And right now, today, Christ’s words to Photini the Samaritan woman and the request repeated on the Cross, continue to sound out to us: "Give Me to drink!" "I thirst!"
Archpriest Victor Potapov