Word to the Wise
Sunday, July 15, 2007 - Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
[Deuteronomy 30:10-14; Colossians 1:15-20; Luke 10:25-37]Which of these three, in your opinion, was neighbor to the robbers' victim?" He answered, "The one who treated him with mercy." Jesus said to him, "Go and do likewise."
One of the most familiar terms from the New Testament used by everyone is "good Samaritan." The parable is one of the most well known of all. On one level, there is the simple question of a Samaritan who is not bound by ritual or legal obligations in such a way that he can ignore suffering in the form of the victim by the roadside. That meaning is probably the one most folks would speak to. But there is another level that is also important. The lawyer's question is one of exclusion and inclusion. Who is worthy of love/mercy as defined in the greatest commandments of the law? Jesus' response is that it is not the law that determines who is a member of God's holy people. It is the person who shows mercy that is a member of that people. It is the person who ACTS like a member of God's people, not the person who simply claims to be a member. Jesus tells the lawyer, "Go and DO likewise." You become a member of God's people by fulfilling the covenant of mercy and love. This was a hot issue in the early days of the Church when the question of admitting gentiles - even the hated Samaritans - into the community. The issue becomes rather modern in the light of a recent document underlining the question of "fullness of the means of salvation." The question of "Who is my neighbor?" has a way of placing the issue of exclusiveness in a troubling light for many folks who find the document puzzling. The viewpoint of the Levite, the priest, the Samaritan and the victim are each different. But Jesus clearly identifies the Samaritan as the one who fulfills the covenant. We should all "go and do likewise." AMEN
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