February 24, 2008
Third Sunday of Lent
Pastor Harry Mueller

Third Sunday of Lent

There was a teacher I met once from Augustana College in Sioux Falls who said something I have always remembered.  His name was Dr Murry Haar. He had grown up in a Jewish Family before he became a Christian.  He talked about a difference he had experienced.    When he came home from Saturday school his father would never ask him, “Did you learn something today?”  or “What did you learn today?”  Rather, his father would say,  “Did you ask a good question today?”   This is a very different approach than many of us grew up with.

I was thinking about that a few Sundays ago on my way home from church.    Have you ever been driving along and come to a stop light and the driver of the car next to you is singing away at the top of their lungs? The car might be rocking with the bass notes blasting out of the speakers and they are singing at the top of their lungs. I love those moments.   But with me as you might guess it is laughter. I love to listen to Click and Clack the Tappet Brothers on my way home from church.   People in cars next to me might find me laughing up a storm.  The Car talk show’s laughter is infectious to me.   I love it. Two weeks ago someone had written in a question. I’m not sure it was a good question.  They related a story about a woman driving down the freeway in heavy stop and go traffic.   She was vigorously brushing her teeth.  As her car edged forward they saw her spit a mouthful of toothpaste on to the BMW in front of the writer’s car.  Then the woman brushed again. And repeated  the spitting of the tooth paste.  After she was finished with this auto hygiene  she took out her sandwich and began to eat.   The writer’s question was:  “Why do you suppose she brushed her teeth before she ate lunch?”     As I laughed I though there are good questions and there are better questions.

The question for us today, with this great story of Jesus and the Samaritan woman at the well is:  “What was Jesus doing, by talking to her?”   What was Jesus up to?    Some will say this is strictly a feminist issue.   Others will say it’s about multi-culturalism. Still others will say it’s about proper worship.   All of these are issues that face us in this transition time at St Paul Reformation.   All the answers are probably right.  None are probably complete in themselves either. It’s nice when multiple issues come together in one person.   But they don’t always do that.

First, women had no place in this culture.   Like children and slaves, they were simply a piece of property.  They had no rights. Men could divorce them at will.  The marriage issue comes up because this is surely what had happened to the woman. She had been dropped many times. Quite likely, this was not of her doing.  She comes to the well in the heat of the day at noon time. Other women would come early or at dusk.  She was alone. Maybe shunned by other women too.  Jesus talks to her.  This was not something Jewish men would do.  It was counter-cultural when a man talked to a woman in public. But, Jesus was recognizing her as a person. 

Secondly if you say there is something multi-cultural going on here you are right. The Samaritan territory was an area that good Jewish people walked around, not through.  The closest thing in our day might be the ideas some people have about reservations or certain neighborhoods.   Like the way some people feel about North Minneapolis or the way they used to feel about Selby –Dale.   This was an area to be avoided.   The Samaritans had different attitudes about marriage, worship, cleanliness  and they even called God by a different name.  For hundreds of years since the Jewish people had come back from their time in exile they were separate.  The priest, Ezra, who had told them what they should do in the reconstruction of Jerusalem and temple worship. They were separated.  Erza had even said, Jewish men must divorce their foreign wives. Samaritans hadn’t done this.  They were considered, unclean, impure, and disobedient. These Samaritans had had the same ancient roots  but they were now different.  They were to be avoided.  When Jesus talked to a Samaritan there was something radical going on.  The little things that divide cultures were not to get in His way. 

Lastly if you say there is something here about proper worship you may also be right.  The Samaritans had their own temple mountain, and their own temple.   They had their own name for God.  They believed they did it right and Jews felt their way was the only proper way.  This didn’t stop Jesus.  We might ask, is our way better than the Catholic or Baptists?  Is fundamentalism better than  progressive theology?   If we go back to the early roots we might ask, Are some children of Abraham better than others.   What about Jews or Muslims?  These are all questions that are good questions in our time and during this important transition. 

Are we asking good questions today?   Are we asking good questions about gender, multiculturalism  and worship?   Are we asking in such a way  that people will be able to draw water from a deep well if they come.   Will they feel affirmed as children of God?  I know St Paul Reformation has asked questions about some of the boundaries people raise that tend to exclude some from the chance to draw on the strength of the Gospel and find community in the church.  Will we keep pushing to follow, in the best sense of the way, the example of Jesus who talked to a Samaritan woman?

Why did the woman eat her lunch After she brushed her teeth?  Is there a better question in traffic?

Are we asking good questions today about how to share the good news of the gospel.  Are we asking the questions that will make us a radical as Jesus?  Dare we? 

Amen