Sleeha 3rd S,June6,10

Sleeha 3^rd S,June6,10

(Lk.10:25-37)

In today’s Gospel, in response to the lawyer’s question as to who will be saved, Jesus lays down his ideas on salvation and on the concept of a neighbor. The question of the lawyer is still relevant even after the lapse of so many centuries. That question is still in the hearts and minds of every one who thinks about the goal or destiny of one’s life.

The lawyer himself gives the answer, prodded by Jesus. Basing himself on the teachings from Dt.6:5, and Leviticus 19:18, he replies to Jesus that in order to attain salvation he has to love God totally and his neighbor as he loves himself. When Jesus accepts this thoughtful response, he wants to go further and probe the mind of Jesus on His understanding of the neighbor. So Jesus through the parable of the Good Samaritan explains the meaning of a neighbor. Jesus opens the door of love to all irrespective of one’s place of birth, nationality or status in life. Any one who is in need of our help is our neighbor.

The parable is very riveting on account of its details. The distance from Jerusalem to Jericho is 17 miles and it is a rugged road passing though very rocky and deserted areas. Robbers could hide there without being seen by the unwary travelers .It is a descending road.

As the traveler was attacked and left for dead, two persons, holding very important positions in the society passed him by. The priest and the levite are associated with Temple worship and they were afraid to care for the wounded man because if they touched a dead body, they won’t be able to offer worship in the Temple (Number 19:11-13).But only a Samaritan who was considered an outcast by the Jews came to help the bleeding man. Not only did he give him help but his help was very lavish. He carried him to the inn, took care of him and offered his own money for his care. His compassion and mercy were unbounded.

The priest and the levite represent us who have no time for others. We are wrapped in our own personal concerns that we don’t get time to be of help to those who are around us, the needy and the lonely. We concern ourselves with small issues and arguments and close our eyes to those around us. We don’t have the time to speak against evil and corruption; we get bogged down to our disputes about rights and privileges and about groups and clans.

Jesus broadens the concept of the neighbor and makes every one in need of our help as our neighbor. A true Christian would be always at the service of those who are need of help. We cannot just pass them by. Their wounds, their poverty, their joblessness, their lack of medical care etc are all our problems and would invite us to get involved in order to help them.

The parable teaches us “ that love knows no boundaries.” “Love reaches out to any in need, regardless of who the person is….the parable does not invite us to go out to risk our lives and become heroes. It invites us to reach out to risk our pride and become humans. It invites us to ask, “Can I help?”(Mark Links).

This parable opens a world of pure love and compassion , inviting us to get involved to help in order to create a world of peace and security for all.

The words of St. Vincent De Paul are very relevant: “Your cloister must be the streets of the city and your chapel the parish church”. We have to turn our attention to the needs of the people around us; we cannot shut ourselves in our closed world of spirituality. An authentic Christian will always be concerned with the needs of others.