When Christ spoke with the Samaritan woman, His disciples were amazed: how could He talk to a stranger? But God is the God of all: the Lord created everyone, His love embraces everyone, Christ came for all, He lived for all, He died for all, for each one He experienced God-forsakenness, and He entered into the mysterious, terrible hell of every person. The disciples still divided people into “us” and “them”; Christ embraces all with one love. And we, being Christ’s, are called to relate to everyone in the same way, for whom the Savior came to earth, for whom the Father gave His Only Begotten Son to death.
Do we relate to people in this way? Do we not divide them into “our own” and “strangers,” into friends and enemies? We are called not to God’s friends, but to God’s “enemies” to go with the good news of salvation, with the good news of the new life that is in God and that is given to them.
At the end of today’s Gospel, the Savior says: The fields are already white, the harvest is ready, but the laborers are few… And when we look around at Christian society, at our Church and at all the Churches that call themselves by the name of Christ—and rightly so!—do we not shudder at the thought that there are so many of us, yet the word of God dies in our midst? It sounds—and dies, it thunders—and then nothing more is heard… We are called by Christ to be His presence on earth, His witnesses; we are called to be on earth as a continuation of His incarnate presence; moreover, if one can say so: the presence of both Christ and the Holy Spirit living in us. And what? — millions around us thirst; they thirst for the word of truth, they thirst for the word of hope, the word of love, the word of faith, they thirst for a messenger from Christ to come to them, in whom they could recognize the One who sent him: the Savior, not the Judge, but the Friend, capable of saying to Judas himself “My friend”… The fields are white, millions thirst, millions are starving; and we live a closed, timid life.
When the Samaritan woman heard words about Christ that reached her soul, poured into that soul like living water penetrating the parched land of the desert, she left everything; she forgot why she had come to the well; she hurried to the city to share with the people the miracle: she had met the One in whom she sensed the Messiah, the Savior of the world, Christ. And what she said and what happened to her was such that people believed her word and went to Christ… Who, hearing our word, is ready to leave everything, all vain searches, to come to Christ, Who is the Truth, the Way, and the Life? Our testimony is dim, pale; her testimony was like a flame; it was transparent as light: people heard the testimony and did not see the woman. When we speak, how often do people see only us and do not hear the word that sounds, that should thunder through us, through our transparency, reaching them as life.
Then, having come to Christ, the people said to this woman words that we often react to painfully: we no longer believe because of your word—we have seen for ourselves!.. How often do we want a person to remember with gratitude that we brought them to Christ, we opened the door of the Church to them, we gave them joy, hope, the beginning of faith… With what readiness the Samaritan woman became unnoticed; with her happened the same as with John the Baptist: Christ grew to full stature before the people—and they forgot about John…
Let us also think about our place in the work of salvation. How often I hear people saying: why are there so few of us? Why does this wonderful proclamation of Orthodoxy not ignite, not enlighten everyone around? — because we are dim! Because our word is weak, because we are afraid to proclaim with full voice—and not just with voice, but with our whole life—our, or rather, God’s good news.
Let us then reflect on the Samaritan woman. Christ came to all; He announced to us that the time would come when true worshipers of God and the Father would not be sought here or there, that those who worship Him must worship in Spirit and Truth. But this Spirit, this Truth must shine through us; we are sent into the world, we are Christ’s apostles, we are His witnesses, and by us Christ will be judged… Let us think about our responsibility and joyfully share the wealth, the happiness, the faith and hope, the rejoicing that Christ gives us. Amen.
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