The Woman's Water Jar at the Well

 "Then the woman left her water-jar and went back to the city" John 4:28

 

The unnamed woman from the city of Sychar in the region of Samaria, who came to draw water from the well of Jacob, having met Jesus went home leaving her water jar.

 

Leaving the water jar at the well is a sign that informs the disciples that, having encountered Jesus, this unnamed woman of Samaria went home quenching her thirst for life with the living waters of Jesus.

 

The woman’s water jar that was left at the well is a symbol testifying that Jesus, the saviour of the world has broken down the barriers and divisions created in the name of gender, ethnicity, religiosity, and tradition, for Jesus builds inclusive communion driving away all forms of exclusion & discrimination.

 

Leaving the water jar at the well is a sign to inform Jesus and the disciples that she will come back to collect it. And in a short while she came back to the well, inspiring many of her city folk to come, meet and listen to the prophet Jesus Christ.

 

The woman’s water jar left at the well, is to symbolise that her vocation from then on has changed, for she found a new purpose to her life, for she was now called to quench the thirst of her city, for she was ordained to share the good news of Jesus. Mind you, if anyone still oppresses women and doesn’t believe in the equality of woman in the church and society, then this woman’s encounter with Jesus and her proactive proclamation to her city informs us that this woman was the first ever messenger of Jesus’ prophetic ministry, proclaiming that Jesus is the Messiah. In the eastern Orthodox tradition she was believed to be later baptised and named as St. Photini, which means 'the enlightened one.'

 

The woman’s water jar left at the well challenges us to celebrate the ministry of women, to celebrate the ordination of women, to celebrate the gifts of women and to open our hearts and minds to listen to the voices and perspectives of women particularly about faith and Jesus. Come let us join together in defeating patriarchy and misogyny.

 

The woman’s water jar left at the well is a gift of this woman to help Jesus and his disciples to draw water from the well and quench their thirst. Having received the living waters in her life, the woman began her journey into her city by sharing her resources with others.

 

The woman’s water jar left at the well is a call to the world to leave behind all the prejudices that people have against women and is an invitation to embrace equality and equity of all people.

 

The woman’s water jar left at the well with Jesus is a reminder to Jesus that there are many more in the world who are thirsty searching for a drink. It is a call to the readers of this text, and to the followers of Jesus Christ to join with him in quenching their thirst for life.

 

The woman’s water jar left at the well is a symbol of women’s empowerment, a symbol about how Jesus liberated her from the kinds of exploitation that she was facing under the rubric of patriarchy and misogyny. Perhaps the water jar domesticated this woman to subjugation of male domination, and when she had left her water jar and went away to her city, it stood as a symbol of her liberation and freedom from all bondages she was enduring.

 

The woman’s water jar left at the well is an offering for us to go to Jesus and draw the waters of living waters from him, quench our thirst and offer ourselves to share those living waters to flow down like an ever-flowing stream watering the world with peace, love and justice.

 

“We have the ‘treasure in the (water) jars of clay’ so that it may be made clear that this extraordinary power belongs to God and does not come from us” (2 Corinthians 4:7)

 

(St. Photini)

 

@rajpatta

11th March 2023