“Dematerializing” Religion: Reading John 2–4 as a Chiasm 539 replace worship in the physical temple. The encounter with the Samaritan woman and with Jesus’ disciples lends itself for a concentric structure. After the introduction (4,1-4), the pericope develops as follows: A Meeting at the Well (4,5-8) B Dialogue with the woman about Water (4,10-15) C True worship explained by the Messiah (4,16-26) B’ Dialogue with disciples about Bread (4,27-38) A’ Meeting in the City (4,39-42) (62) The parallels between the dialogues with the woman and the disciples are particularly striking. Both contain a misunderstanding, one about water (4,10), one about food (4,33). Both contain astonishment about Jesus’ inclusivity, one with regard to non-Jews (4,9), the other regarding women (4,27). The center lies in 4,16-24 in which the dialogue develops from the personal adultery of the woman (4,16-19) to the national idolatry of the Samaritans (4,20-26). The key term proskunevw, ‘to worship,’ is used here nine out of eleven times in the Gospel (63). After the woman recognizes that Jesus is a prophet, she turns to the central religious conflict between Jews and Samaritans: “Our fathers worshiped in this mountain, and you people say that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship” (4,20). Jesus responds that “an hour is coming when neither in this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, shall you worship the Father” (4,21) and that “the true worshipers shall worship the Father in spirit and truth” (4,23). a) Parallels between John 2,13-22 and 4,1-42 At least three links connect core elements of both stories with each other. (62) The proposal is mine, but leans mainly on J. BLIGH, “Jesus in Samaria”, HeyJ 3 (1962) 329-346. A concentric structure for 4,1-42 is also proposed by J.P. CAHILL, “Narrative Art in John IV”, RSB 2 (1982) 42; C.H. TALBERT, Reading John. A Literary and Theological Commentary on the Fourth Gospel and the Johannine Epistles (Macon, GA 2005) 126 (his structure has seven elements). JULIAN, Jesus and Nicodemus, 272; M.L. COLOE, God Dwells with Us. Temple Symbolism in the Fourth Gospel (Collegeville, MN 2001) 86-90; J. MCWHIRTER, The Bridegroom Messiah and the People of God. Marriage in the Fourth Gospel (SNTSMS 138; Cambridge 2006) 69; T.D. NILSEN, “The True and the False: The Structure of John 4,16-26”, BN 128 (2006) 61-64 even structures the center 4,16- 26, concentrically. S.T. UM, The Theme of Temple Christology in John’s Gospel (LNTS 312; Edinburgh 2006) 188 finds an ABBA-pattern for John 4,23-24. (63) John 4,20 (2x).21.22 (2x).23 (2x).24 (2x); 9,38; 12,20.