ON THE SAMARITAN WOMAN [Saint Photini) (Part III)

My beloved brothers and sisters in Our Risen Lord, God and Savior JESUS CHRIST,

CHRIST IS RISEN! TRULY HE IS RISEN! ΧΡΙΣΤΟΣ ΑΝΕΣΤΗ! ΑΛΗΘΩΣ ΑΝΕΣΤΗ!

ON THE SAMARITAN WOMAN [Saint Photini) (Part III)
By Saint Gregory Palamas

When the Samaritan woman heard the extraordinary and Divine words from Christ, that God can NOT be truly worshipped anywhere, axcept in His Spirit and His Truth, she, like the soul betrothed to God in the Song of Songs, was stirred up by the voice of the Immortal Bridegroom and made mention of HIkm for whom she waited and longed, and whose presence was still concealed (Song of Songs 2:8). "I know," she said, "that Messias cometh, which is called Christ: when He is come, He will tell us all things" (John 4:25). Do you see how ready she was to believe that the awaited One was already at hand, and how hopeful she was? Surely David’s words apply also to her, ""My heat is ready, O God, my heart is ready: I will sing and give praise in my glory" (Psalm 57:7)…

"…When I look with admiration at this Samaritan woman’s great spiritual longing for Christ, it occurs to me to apply to her once more words from that song, "Who is she that looketh forth as the morning, fair as the moon, chosen as the sun" (Song of Songs 6:10). For when she proclaimed that soon Christ, the spiritual Sun of Righteousness (Malachi 4:2) would appear, and brought to light the fact that the Church of the Gentiles would begin through her, I see her as though she were emerging from the baptismal font of the well where she was standing, having been instructed by Christ, looking forth as the much-loved morning. She was fair as the noon, because she gave light even though the night of ungodliness still reigned. She was chosen as the sun since SHE WAS GIVEN THE NAME PHOTINI by the Savior and was enrolled in the lsit of those who were to shine forth as the sun, according to the Gospel (Matthew 13:43), since she was to set the seal of a blessed Martyr’s death on her subsequent radiant life. Even now she recognized Christ as True God and proclaimed Him with perfect theology. That which He later told His Disciples about the Spirit Who shared His Own Divine Nature, and Honor, that, when He comes, He would teach all the Truth (cf. John 16:13), she anticipated by saying of Christ, "WHEN HE IS COME, HE WILL TELL US ALL THINGS" (John 4:25).

When Christ the spiritual Bridegroom saw what she was like, He said to her, "I THAT SPEAK UNTO THEE AM HE." She immediately became a chosen bearer of the Good Tidings, left her waterpot, ran to the city, drew everyone’s attention with her words, and led them towards faith in Him, Whom had seen, saying, "COME, SEE A MAN, WHICH TOLD ME ALL THINGS EVER I DID: IS NOT THIS THE CHRIST?" (John 4:29). She did not speak in this way because she harboured any doubts, but because she believed that other too would find fuller assurance by seeing the Lord and would be more easily convinced by speaking to Him, as in fact happened.

"…As soon as she heard the words of the Gospel, which we too proclaim to your agape, she immediately despised her body’s necessities. Straightway she left her water pot and her house, ran to the city and, having persuaded the Samaritans, "FOLLOW ME AND I SHALL LEAD YOU AND SHOW YOU NOW THE SAVIOR WHO HAS COME INTO THE WORLD."

"…What does it mean that "the time is short?" Life is brief, death is near, this world is passing away, and there is another one that last forever. The tidings that convey us with certainty into that world are: despising this present world, preparing for the one to come, as far as possible living here according to the order of that world, and fleeing as far as we can from what is harmful in this present life…"For the fashion of this world," He says, "passeth away." The things of the present have no actual existence but are, as it were, just outward forms, which come to pass but have no real being, as they are short lived, fleeting phenomena. Anyone who wants to possess them will never be able to, for they are like the shadow of a waterless summer cloud scudding by, driven along by the wind. So the aim of the Apostle’s counsel is to reveal the intention of each one of us and to give a token whereby we can recognize teaching that comes from God.

"…Not only is this world passing away, but SO IS EACH ONE OF US WHO USES THIS WORLD, AND SOMETIMES WE DEPART BEFORE OUR WORLDLY POSSESSIONS PASS AWAY. Everyone passes through life along a road which is affected by many different factors and which will leave him…The end of those who are devoted to this world is always misfortune, since tehy are eventually carried away naked, leaving everything they loved here. By contrast, for those who despise this world’s goods and seek to learn about the world to come and hasten to do what serves to atain it, death does not inflict loss when it comes, but rather it conveys them away from what is vain and unstable to the day without evening, undying life, inexhaustible riches, unfading joy, eternal glory, and things that truly exist and remain forever unchanged!

May we all attain to this, by the grace and love for mankind of Him Who bowed the heavens and came down for our sake, not just down as far as us but as far as the souls shut up in the depths. He quickly came up from that place by His RESURRECTION AND THE RESTORATION OF ALL THING TO LIFE, AND BESTOWED ON US THROUGH HIMSELF ENLIGHTENMENT, KNOWLEDGE, AND THE HOPE OF HEAVENLY, ETERNAL BLESSINGS, IN WHICH HE IS GLORIFIED UNTO THE AGES OF AGES. AMEN. [Resources: The Homilies)

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"Glory Be To GOD
For
All Things!"
+ Saint John Chrysostomos

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With sincere agape in Christ’s Glorious and Life-Giving RESURRECTION,
The sinner and unworthy servant of God
+ Father George