The Sunday of the Samaritan Woman: What the Church Remembers Today
Every year on the fourth Sunday after Easter, the Orthodox Church commemorates one of the most well-known encounters in the New Testament: the meeting between Jesus Christ and a Samaritan woman at Jacob's Well in the city of Samaria.
The story comes from the Gospel of John, where Jesus, traveling through Samaria, stops to rest at the well and asks the woman for water. The exchange that follows is one of the longest recorded conversations between Jesus and any individual in the Gospels, and it ends with the woman becoming one of the earliest figures to proclaim his identity to those around her.
The Orthodox tradition venerates her as Saint Photini, meaning "the enlightened one." According to church tradition, she later traveled widely to spread the Christian faith and was eventually martyred, making her one of the earliest female missionary figures recognized by the Church.
The Sunday of the Samaritan Woman falls within the Pentecostarion, the liturgical period between Easter and Pentecost. This year it is observed on May 10, 2026. Churches across Greece and the broader Orthodox world hold special services today in her memory.
The story carries particular weight in Orthodox theology because it crosses boundaries that were significant in the ancient world. Jews and Samaritans did not associate with one another, and speaking publicly with an unknown woman was socially uncommon. The encounter has been read for centuries as a symbol of universal outreach beyond ethnic and social divides.
For Greek Orthodox communities worldwide, the Sundays between Easter and Pentecost each carry a specific commemorative theme, and the Sunday of the Samaritan Woman is among the most widely recognized.
