Not Bound by Tradition

“And he continued, “You have a fine way of setting aside the commands of God in order to observe your own traditions!” – Mark 7:9 Today, I’m starting a series about the Samaritan woman at the well. You’ve likely heard this amazing story, but I’d like to examine it from a different perspective. The context is crucial—there are details modern readers might miss. In John 4, Jesus is in Judea, drawing attention from religious leaders who dislike His message. He chooses to leave Jerusalem in the south and return to Galilee in the north. You may know from biblical history that between northern and southern Israel is Samaria, home to the Samaritans. They are often referred to as half-bloods by the Jews, because five hundred years before, when the Jews had been conquered in the north by Assyrians they had meshed together, creating a new ethnic group. There’s long-standing hostility