The Good Samaritan

Jesus the Lord shows as a Samaritan as a model of our attitude towards others. A man who went over to the injured man and poured oil over his wounds tenderly and who focused himself fully on another, giving up his time, money and energy on another person, is given to us by Jesus as a pattern to be put into practice. The Lords does not give us a nice story to moved by its beauty, but He demands on us a certain way of life. All those who would follow Him, who would live according to the will of Christ, need to allow Christ to shape their lives into the same model. In this light we learn that our Christianity is measured not by how do we feel, but by our attitude towards God and towards those who are given to us, regardless of our feelings, if we are noticed, recognised or even respected.
The Samaritan is also a symbol of lower class, rejected people whose humility shows forth. Being rejected and ignored, he approaches the needy person without any bitterness and expectations to be given back anything. In this way he becomes the reference point of any Christian relationship, and involvement in family life and other forms of interactions between people. It includes all kind of duties and ministries in the parish. As long as we depend our involvement on our moods and feelings, the hunger of being recognised and appreciated, and as long as we focus on establishing a pecking order amongst ourselves, we will be spiritually disordered and disabled. As long as we do our ministry in a manner of judging and expecting any form of benefits, and as long as we focus too much on possibility of being hurt by another, we will not be able to notice “a half dead man” in our pews and closer to the sanctuary, outside the church and outside the parish. The story which took place on the street of Jerusalem to Jericho happens very often, indeed. It its because people are too busy judging and self-seeking their own comfort zone, key positions in dictating their will. This is why we are not able to see more and build the civilization of love.
 Our inner attitude must reach the humility of that person, who had to carry on his shoulders many judgments of people around, who patiently focused only on pouring oil over a wounded man. As we must become like the Samaritan to follow Christ, let us ask ourselves, as Pope Francis does, “is our faith fertile? Does it produce good works? Or is it rather sterile, and so more dead than alive? Do I make neighbours, or do I just pass by?” 
Fr Stan

Categories: Reflections