Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Luke 10, 25-37
There was a scholar of the law who stood up to test Jesus and said,
“Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
Jesus said to him, “What is written in the law?
How do you read it?”
He said in reply,
“You shall love the Lord, your God,
with all your heart,
with all your being,
with all your strength,
and with all your mind,
and your neighbor as yourself.”
He replied to him, “You have answered correctly;
do this and you will live.”
But because he wished to justify himself, he said to Jesus,
“And who is my neighbor?”
Jesus replied,
“A man fell victim to robbers
as he went down from Jerusalem to Jericho.
They stripped and beat him and went off leaving him half-dead.
A priest happened to be going down that road,
but when he saw him, he passed by on the opposite side.
Likewise a Levite came to the place,
and when he saw him, he passed by on the opposite side.
But a Samaritan traveler who came upon him
was moved with compassion at the sight.
He approached the victim,
poured oil and wine over his wounds and bandaged them.
Then he lifted him up on his own animal,
took him to an inn, and cared for him.
The next day he took out two silver coins
and gave them to the innkeeper with the instruction,
‘Take care of him.
If you spend more than what I have given you,
I shall repay you on my way back.’
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.”
Being good
1) What do I have to do? Jesus highlights that Christianity is not a set of rules and actions but a lifestyle. It is not about doing certain things to win a prize, but rather, it is about how you live your life. Christian life is not a tradeoff; where I do something and therefore, I earn something. In this reading, a way of living is brought to our attention. The way we can live life is not by doing many things, but by giving meaning to the things that we do.
2) Those who walked past. Jesus is really harsh. He refers to those who are compliant (the priest and Levite), those who are blameless or the super religious, as indifferent and inhumane. Could it be that we too have caused a separation between the religious and the human? Do we comply with liturgical norms, but still not act humanely? For example, are we more attentive to the songs sung at mass than to the situation of a family member who is ill? Today, let us ask God to help us be more humane.
3) Samaritan. The Samaritan has a whole background to be considered, because in those days, a Samaritan was like a traitor for a Jew. Help can come from the person you least expect. But the point here is that the Samaritan does not even ask himself the question others seemed to have asked themselves. It appears what they said to themselves, “What will happen to me if I help him?” And of course, that led to indifference and distance. The Samaritan, on the other hand, asked himself, “What will happen to him if I don’t help him?” That is where the difference lies. Learning to look at others and the needs of others allows us to be more human. Paul VI said that the Church should be an “expert in humanity”. Let us ask God to be a more humane and committed Church, which allows us to see others without being indifferent to them.
God bless you in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Remember, Heaven is our goal.
