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The Samaritan Woman

Samaritan is merely a gure of history or a clue to the antecedents of the Gospel (see epilogue). In modern appropriations of the episode, she may serve as a type of all who would appear to have been excluded from the kingdom by the accidents of gender, race or caste. Above all, she may stand for all women. Scott, who believes that there is a role in this Gospel for Heracleons Sophia, writes: Contrary, then, to the conclusions of later rabbinic writers . . . this woman is seen to know something, and to be prepared to discuss it openly, with a male Jew (1992: 188). Kraemer indeed contests the widespread claim that every Jewish male of Jesus time regarded women as evil company (1999: 367), yet some correction, at least of the readers prejudice, is intended at 4:27. Heracleon himself is not a feminist, for his Wisdom is as passive in enlightenment as she is passible in error; nevertheless, this scene may have inspired other Gnostic texts where a female character usually a sinner, like the Magdalen is the recipient of Christs esoteric teaching. Haskins reports that the woman of Samaria has frequently been confounded with the Magdalen and the adulteress of chapter 8 because of her own confession of promiscuity (1994: 268). Eva Gore-Booth imagines that the Gospel was rst carried by the Samaritan to Mary and John, to be followed by Mary of Bethany, Martha, Mary Magdalene and the one so nearly stoned (1925: 645). Schssler Fiorenza concludes too readily that this female apostle vindicates a womans right to leadership (1983: 138), but her assertion that invidious distinctions between the sexes are abolished by worship in spirit and in truth is indisputable. At the same time, Schneiders (1991) is right to point out that the woman represents the whole people, indeed all possible brides of Jesus, and hence it seems impertinent to dwell on her coy femininity in the manner of Raymond Brown (1966: 175).

The Woman at the Well

4:35. Barrett (1955: 193) cites Josephus, Antiquities 20.118 to prove the necessity of the journey. Cf. Luke 17:11, though at Matt 10:5 the missionaries are commanded to shun the cities of the Samaritans. Sychar, now thought to be the modern Askra, is identied by Chrysostom with Shechem, which the sons of Jacob had deled by bloodshed and the Samaritans by idolatry (Homily 31.56). 4:68. Christs thirst here (which does not full a prophecy, as at 19:14) is a symptom of his humanity for Tertullian (Flesh of Christ 9). Origen (Commentary 13.29) juxtaposes the subsequent dialogue with Gen 24:4354, where Isaacs servant solicits a drink of water from Rebecca. The parallel is amplied