Sts. Sergius and Bacchus Chapel Dedication

I want to thank each one of you for being an important part of the blessing and dedication of this chapel. It’s very important to me that this place be a true sanctuary – a holy place where anyone who desires to draw near to God can feel safe and at home. It should be a refuge from the negativity that infects our world. Here, no one should feel unwelcome, no one should feel like an outcast or like someone who is merely tolerated. Leave expectations at the threshold and come to pray and worship exactly as you are. God does not demand perfection of his people, and neither do we.

In today’s gospel, Jesus is in Samaria. Now, Samaria had an interesting history. After King Solomon’s death, his sons warred with one another, and the kingdom split in two. The tribe of Judah in the south established the kingdom of Juda with its capital at Jerusalem. Ten of the other twelve tribes established the kingdom of Israel in the north, and they eventually settled on the city of Samaria as their capital. The people of the two kingdoms of Juda and Israel didn’t see eye-to-eye. The religious leaders of Judea declared that all true worship had to be in the temple in Jerusalem, while the religious leaders of the kingdom of Israel worshiped as they always had, in sacred places and often on mountain tops.

Around 700 BC, the king of Assyria and his troops overran the kingdom of Israel and conquered it. Their practice was to haul off large segments of the population and take them back to Assyria, sending their own people as settlers in the conquered lands. So it happened with the former kingdom of Israel. It ceased to exist as a political entity. From the point of view of the population of Judea, the people of the north were not only heretics but also of mixed race. Jews had nothing to do with Samaritans even down to the time of Jesus and his disciples.

So, here we find Jesus at a well in the territory of Samaria, talking to a Samaritan woman. This was unusual for two reasons. Not only was she a heretical Samaritan, she was also a woman and it was considered improper for a rabbi to speak to a woman – even a Jewish woman – with whom he was not already acquainted. And yet, there he was, explaining to her about the waters of everlasting life. He started it – he asked her for a drink – so she became emboldened and asked him about their differences in religious practices. His answer to her was wonderful. Instead of becoming tied up in theological arguments, he transcended their differences. “The hour is coming, and is now here, when true worshipers will worship the Father in Spirit and truth.”

As often happens, this term “Spirit and truth” is a figure of speech called hendiadys, meaning “one concept out of two words.” We can interpret it as “enduring spirit.” Jesus tells her that the sacrifice that God wants is the offering of our spirits – regardless of the details. In fact, this Samaritan woman went off and became a kind of evangelist to her community. The gospel goes on to tell us that many Samaritans at that time came to believe in Jesus. Their differences with him did not dissuade their faith in him.

Today we bless and dedicate this space as a sanctuary for all who worship God with an enduring spirit. Let us pray that those who enjoy this space, both here and from afar, may find here the peace and spiritual solace they seek. And may the blessing we call down upon this place today go forth to fill the lives of all who worship there.