BIBLICAL SYMBOLS - WELL

A well that supplies water is one of the gifts of nature that is given by God; but there is also the effort of man to make a well in the right spot. From ancient time people recognized the power of  God too working at the bottom of the well, that is through the supplies of springs, That was not easily explainable except that God's hand was there. That's why they attributed a spiritual meaning to it. Often God used the well as a sign of his grace and symbol of his caring presence. This was very evident in the history of the Israelites, who had a nomadic life and finally got a land of their own that lacked this precious commodity called water.

Well as a human survival symbol

Water was from the beginning a bone of contention for Abraham and his posterity. The first instance of such a quarrel recorded in the Bible is concerning Abraham and Abimelech of the Philistines, " Abraham, however,reproached Abimelech about a well that Abimelech's men had seized by force" (Gen.21:25). In fact, Abraham had to make a pact with him as the Bible says, "Then Abraham took sheep and cattle and gave them to Abimelech and the two made a pact" (Gen. 21:27). It was so important that Abraham also named the place, "This is why the place is called Beer-sheba; the two took an oath there "(Gen. 21:31).The name Beer-sheba has a rich meaning according to the commentary given in the New American Bible, "Beer-sheba: the Hebrew name really means, 'the well of the seven' , i.e., the place where there are seven wells,alluded to in the episode of the seven ewe lambs, Genesis 21:28-30; but it can also be enterpreted to mean 'the well of the earth' ".

From Abraham the fight for water continued into the next generations; that was when Isaac was in a part of Gear called Wadi Gerar. The Philistines, out of jealousy came and polluted the water of his wells that he had inherited from Abraham, "The Philistines had stopped up and filled with dirt all the wells that his father's servants had dug back in the days of his father Abraham" (Gen.26:15). He had to clean up those wells with much difficulty; later he dug other wells which the Philistines claimed to be their own, the only exception being one he dug and named Rehoboth (Gen. 26:22). Finally Isaac returns to Beersheba to have peace. So the water issue or the well issue has been a burning issue from ancient times.

Well as a Symbol of God's Presence

The Bible speaks of God's use of the well as a sign and location where God makes his presence and favour felt.A striking example of this is the story of Hagar in the desert holding on to her baby Ishmael, crying for water: "Then God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water. She went and filled the skin with water, and then let the boy drink" (Gen.21:19) On an earlier occasion, she had to run away on her own from Sarah because she could not endure her persecution and there in the desert God spoke to her; that vision took place near a well called "Beer-lahai-roi" , situated between Kadesh and Bered. God made her a promise at the well and sent her back to give birth to child in Abraham's house. Hagar so had an experience of God near a well, a symbolism that cannot be forgotten.

In the Bible God refers to himself as the real well that gives water, true and living water. Through the mouth of Jeremiah God utters that powerful prophesy that identifies God as the source of living water and laments about the evil they have done by rejecting him, the source of living water, "two evils have my people done: They have forsaken me, the source of living waters: They have dug themselves cisterns, broken cisterns, that hold no water" (Jer. 2:13). Then Isaiah, we find God appealing to people come and drink freely from him, "all you who are thirsty, come to the water!" (Is. 55:1). That water is the salvation that God gives to his people as Isaiah points out, "With joy you will draw water at the fountain of salvation" (Is. 12:3).

Water too was a symbol of love between man and woman; so if a woman offered water, she was worthy of a man's love as we see Rebecca offering water to the servants and camels of Isaac, "With that, she quickly emptied her jug into the drinking trough and run back to the well to draw more water, until she had drawn enough for all the camels" (Gen, 24:20). Similarly, if a man came to the rescue of women harassed by others and enabled them to have water for themselves and their sheep their father would certainly want to take that man to be husband of one of the daughters.Moses in Median was such a lucky son -in-law, "But Moses fled from him and stayed in the land of Midian. As he was seated there by a well, seven daughters of a priest of Midian came to draw water and fill the troughs to water their father's flock" Ex. 2: 16-17). Next there followed for Moses a wedding proposal and a happy encounter with his bride and her family (Ex.2: 21-20).

Giving with water symbolizes also the practice of love expected of the chosen people, as Isaiah teaches, "Meet the thirsty, bring them water, you who dwell  the land of Tema, greet the fugitives with bread" (Is.21:14). Jesus are  re-emphasizes this point and even speaks of reward for a small gesture like giving a drink to a disciple sent by him, "And whoever gives only a cup of cold water to one of these little ones to drink because he is a disciple- amen, I say to you, he will surely not lose his reward" (Mt. 10"42).

Here the context is clear to anyone who knows the sense of hospitality in ancient times when water would be offered to  any stranger in need. Jesus adds greater value to that gesture when it is done to a messenger of his. But he takes service of the poor in need of water as even more important, :(For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and gave me drink, a stranger and you welcomed me"(Mt. 25:35) and the King will say to them in reply,'Amen, I say to you, whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me'" (Mt.25:40).

JESUS AS THE WELL OF LIVING WATER

          John the Evangelist presents Jesus at Jacob's well, situated in Sychar or Schechem and sees a great deal of meaning in that presence. Jesus is there taking the place of God, as the author of the living water. The paradox here is that the giver himself is thirsty and does not mind any social barrier ( the Jew does not ask a Samaritan  for water) but humbly asks for water. This is a love scene as well because at the site of wells such conversations used to take place. The Samaritan  woman must have been intrigued but took a cautious stand by revealing her unworthiness to offer that water to someone of a higher status. Jesus makes an offer to her by saying  " but whoever drinks the water I shall give will never thirst; the water I shall give will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life" .He was offering her also love , a new type of love, and hinting at the same time that he was from a higher status than she could have imagined.So she fell for that offer whatever it might have been and said, " Sir, give me this water, so that I may not be thirsty or have to keep coming here to draw water". But like a real lover, he puts a condition that she should declare her private life, " Go call your husband and comeback " (Jn. 4:16). To her evasive answer he pointed out how she was with more than five men until then, "For you have had five husbands, and the one you have now is not your husband" (Jn. 4: 18). There was further evasiveness and diversionary tactic on her part, by introducing a discussion about the place of worship of the Samaritans and Jews. When Jesus answered that question too her  final argument was that until the Messiah would come she had no way of knowing the truth. Immediately, on the spot he revealed himself to her; that revelation is the real living water he wanted to give her.
            In this story John sums up the Old Testament teaching about Yahweh as the giver of the living water and points to Jesus as God present visibly with the living water of his revelation. The story of Jacob's well too gets fulfilled here  when Jesus surpasses the ancestor Jacob in greatness by providing a new well from which the water could never be exhausted.
           The theme of the life-giving water is repeated in this Gospel again, but identifying the living water as the Spirit that was to come,
           " On the last and greatest day of the feast, Jesus stood up and exclaimed, 'Let anyone who thirsts come to me and drink.Whoever believes in me, as scripture says: Rivers of living water will flow from within him' . He said this in reference to the Spirit that those who came to believe in him were to receive. There was, of course, no Spirit yet, because Jesus had not yet been glorified " (Jn. 7:36-39). The flow of blood and water from his side when his side was pierced after his death, is an important detail that John took note of, " One soldier thrust his lance into his side , and immediately blood and water flowed out" ( Jn. 19:34). It has a special symbolism for the Church that was born from his side; it also means the living water of sacramental grace that he gives us freely.
          Our discussion of the well  cannot easily end here because Jesus' Spirit forms that eternal source of water in each of us and urges us on to seek for more of his revelation and grace.                 
 

JESUS AS OUR CONFESSOR

As a rule, a confessor must listen to the sins of a penitent and absolve the sins. Some essential criteria required for a good confession are:
1) sincere repentance,
2) a good resolved to avoid sins and the circumstances of falling into sins especially the grave ones,
3) the confession of sins to a priest and
4) reparation for sins through penance that includes restitution for the loss cause to others.The confessor before absolving the penitent also gives the necessary advice and recommends a penance to be done by the  penitent.In this process some grave sins (e.g. desecration of the Bl. Sacrament, solicitation   during the confession etc...) may not be forgiven just as Jesus said,  " Whose sins you forgive, they are forgiven and whose sins you retain they are retained" (Jn . 20:23). The words of assurance, "go in peace" quite fittingly conclude the confession and will prove effective by the grace of God and the faith of the penitent and the minister.
  
Basically, it is a good and repentant disposition that invites the forgiveness of sins from God.  That is a grace from the Father because the Father without the Father granting it, there is no possibility of making  good confession, " No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draw him,and I will raise him on the last day " (Jn. 6: 44; 6: 65). So one needs to beg from the Father this grace of coming to Jesus; that happens through a good and repentant disposition. Before Jesus said, " Your sins are forgiven", there was, therefore a grace that the Heavenly Father sent down to draw the sinner to Jesus. Jesus knew it well and he also took control of all the essential requirements for a good confession.By analysing some examples when Jesus forgave the sins of people, we will notice how Jesus was very  flexible about the way he dealt wiyh sinners and at the same time sent them away in peace after forgiving them.

 1. The paralytic is forgiven from sins before he is healed as soon he is laid before the eyes of Jesus, (Mt. 9:   2-8; Mk.Jn. 20: 23) 2: 1-12; Lk. 5: 17-26).It was their faith that moved Jesus to say those words, "Son, your sins are forgiven". But at the same time the disposition of the paralyzed man must have been ready for such a grace of forgiveness because  he did not get offended being considered a sinner, rather he was moved to repentance when loved by Jesus and called 'son' (Mt.9:2; Mk.2:5) or 'friend' (Lk. 5:20). He wanted mercy and he received it in abundance when he also was healed. On the other hand the Pharisees and leaders of the people reacted to the words of forgiveness and only went back home more hostile to God. The way the grace of forgiveness operated in the case of the paralytic is a mystery; but one thing we must believe is that 'Jesus presence there had its own power when someone had faith and had wanted to be relieved of every problem. It is possible that the paralytic was looking for the day of forgiveness and had received the grace of repentance, just as Jesus welcomed him with love.

2. A woman with an alabastar jar with precious ointment is forgiven by Jesus, " He said to her, 'Your sins are forgiven' (Lk. 7:48). All we know is that, "she stood behind him at his feet weeping and began to bathe his feet with her tears. Then she wiped them with her hair, kissed them, and anointed them with the ointment" (Lk. 7: 38). It was her love that brought her forgiveness for all her sins, although she was unable to confess them. So love matters very much, or rather it is the main requisite,to receive pardon from God.

3.The woman caught in adultery is released by Jesus, "Then Jesus said, 'Neither do I condemn you. Go, from now on, do not sin any more" (Jn. 8:11). It is not said that Jesus forgave her the sin of adultery as he only said, 'neither do I condemn you, go in peace and do not sin any more'. But this part does not imply that she was considered innocent but definitely forgiven and told not to sin any more. Her sorrow for being caught turned into repentance for her sins as she found herself in front of her Saviour. There was a confession that was unexpressed that Jesus could read and so his forgiveness was instant.

 4. The Samaritan woman also was forgiven, "Many of the Samaritans of that town began to believe in him because of the word of the woman who testified, 'He told me everything I have done'" (Jn. (4:39). In this case Jesus announced the Gospel of living water to her and made her do an examination of conscience, by telling her, 'Go and call your husband'. That was something important for a good confession and he gave her peace as a free gift just as she came to realize that he was  the Messiah. So she became a missionary to preach the good news.

5. Zaccheus is forgiven though it is not explicitly mentioned. But Zacchaeus does promise to set things right, "But Zacchaeus stood there and said to the Lord, ' Behold, half of my possessions, Lord, I shall give to the poor; and if I have extorted anything from anyone I shall repay it four times over'. And Jesus said to him. "Today salvation has come to this house because this man too is a descendant of Abraham. For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save what  was lost" (Lk.19:8-10). In the case of Zaccheus there is real conversion and will to do restitution for defrauding, as well as, to do charity, something important after     a good confession. His confession is a real example of doing reparation for sins by making amends for the mistakes of the past.

 6. The sick man lying at the pool of  Bethesda was forgiven as he was healed because Jesus told him later, ' ' Look, you are well; do not sin anymore, so that nothing worse may happen to you' ( Jn. 5: 14). Jesus had forgiven him just by speaking to him at the pool and the physical healing was preceded also by the spiritual healing , that of forgiveness of sins.

7. Matthew (Levi) when he was called received pardon. The Fact that he made amends by hosting a banquet with the money he had and then left everything to follow Jesus, indicates conversion. This is understood because Jesus told the Pharisees, "Go and learn the meaning of the words, ' I desire mercy, not sacrifice'. I did not come to call the righteous but sinners' "  (Mt. 9: 13). Matthew's call involved a conversion on his part, as he decided to give up the past and offer a thanksgiving dinner. Jesus by his very presence loved him and made him feel loved, that at the same time included the forgiveness of sins.

8. The good thief on the Cross is forgiven just for the one sentence he said, "Lord, remember me when you come into your kingdom". Was there any confession of sins done on his part? No, he only acknowledge that he was being punished justly and proclaimed that Jesus is innocent, in other words, Jesus was the sinless one and savior. It was by the grace of God that he was able to make that prayer just as Jesus said, " No one can come to me unless, my Father draws him to me"  ( Jn. 6: 44) That mighty absolution given by Jesus from the Cross was the last act of pardon Jesus gave before his death.  The Cross itself was the confessional from which went forth salvation.

9. After his Resurrection Jesus meets Peter and some of the Apostles on the Shore of the Sea of Galilee. There Peter is forgiven for his denial three times when Jesus ask a this question, 'Simon, son of John do you love me?' and Peter responds, 'Yes, Lord, I love you'. This happened three times and Peter is overwhelmed by Jesus' forgiving love. Jesus then commissions Peter as the head of the Church. That was forgiveness through love.Peters triple act of love was hat Jesus wanted from him.

10. Thomas is forgiven and reconfirmed of his faith. He committed a grave sin of doubting the resurrection of Jesus although the others had told him all the facts that were convincing enough if he wanted to believe. His problem was the facts that he had missed what they had got. But doubt was a serious sin, next only to denial.So it was necessary for him to repent and profess his faith which he did after seven days of agonizing wait when the Lord came down again to reconfirm Thomas as an apostle in front of others. So Thomas confessed," My Lord and My God" . With that single sentence the courageous apostle proclaimed his faith not only in the resurrection of Jesus but also formulated for us the doctrine of Jesus' Lordship and divinity: Jesus is Lord and God. Jesus forgave him but not without letting him know that his faith would have been more acceptable to God if he had believed, without seeing. Thomas took to heart that mild reprimand and amends for going to the farthest corner of the then known world when he came to South India and preached the faith and died a martyr.

 The criteria followed by Jesus for the forgiveness of sins may appear strange or vague to us; but one thing that strikes out is his love that meets the sinner and melts the heart and then follows total forgiveness, It is God embracing the sinner as Paul says, " In Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting the message of reconciliation to us " ( 2Cor. 5: 19).

The instances of forgiveness given by Jesus to individuals were not many according to the Gospels, but the program announced by Jesus for the forgiveness of sins was a vast campaign of inner calling people to repentance, as we know from the Gospels. He made it the purpose of his mission on earth to net in sinners and on various occasions he said it, " I have not come to call the righteous to repentance but sinners " (Lk. 5:32 ). He was gentle when he spoke thus to the simple and ignorant but to the self - proclaimed righteous he was quite stern , " But I tell you, if you do not repent, you will all perish as likewise!" (Lk. 13:5) ; and again in John we read, " He said to them again, ' I am going away and you will look for me, but you will die in your sin. Where I am going you cannot come ' " (Jn. 8:21 ). Severals of his parables are stories of God's mercy towards the sinner who repents whatever the sin is.

The power given to the apostles included also the power to forgive or retains sins ( Mt. 16:19 and Jn. 20:23). That at the Last Supper even his words had power to cleanse those who believed in him we make out from his words at the Last Supper, " You have already been cleanesed by the words I have spoken to you" (Jn. 15: 3 NRSV). but he was going to do more than that. At solemn moment he let the apostles know for sure that his blood would be shed for the forgiveness of sins , " Then he took a cup, gave thanks, and gave it to  them, saying,  ' Drink from it, all of you, for this is my blood of the covenant, which will be shed on behalf of many for the forgiiveness of sins" (Mt. 26: 27- 28) .The author of the letter to the Hebrews tells us that Christ accomplished that sacrifice once and for all for our redemption, " He entered once for all into the sanctuary, not with the blood of goats and calves but with his own blood, thus obtaining eternal redemption" ( Heb. 9:12 ). The same letter tells us more specifically, " But now once for all he has appeared at the end of  the ages  to take away sin by his sacrifice " (Heb. 9: 26b). This has been therefore the confessional   programme of Jesus for us. That was the final  mandate given to the apostles to preach repentance and forgiveness of sins (  Lk. 24: 47 ). In the present times Jesus returns to us as a confessor through the devotion to the Divine Mercy so that all may enter the channel of grace by having recourse to the forgiveness of sins, for which many are the ministers deputed by Jesus. May Jesus the good confessor help us to realize  this!