The Good Samaritan is one of those parables that has gained almost universal recognition even outside of Christian circles. This is understandable. The notion of kindness to strangers and even generosity is one of those ideals that many religious traditions would propose to its followers.
In fact I was talking to one of the Army Golden Knights Parachute Jumpers last weekend and he said, “my problem with religion is they all teach essentially the same thing: be kind. How do you know Christianity is true?”
But that familiarity with the message to “be kind and generous” can dilute an even greater lesson Jesus is teaching here. Jesus is calling his followers not simply to be kind and generous, but to love. And whom are we to love? Jesus emphasizes those “other” than our friends, families, and communities; those who have, by that “otherness,” been deemed “enemies.”
To appreciate that, we have to remember that Jews and Samaritans didn’t get along, and hadn’t for almost a thousand years. Disputes over how they worshiped, to what was the proper relationship with pagans, had intensified over the centuries to the point that each side ended up doing appalling things to the other.
Jews had destroyed Samaritan cities; Samaritans would attack Jews as they made their pilgrimage to and from Jerusalem – the “road to Jericho.” The animosity was so deep that they avoided each other at all costs. As they traveled, Jews would go through the much more difficult, challenging task of crossing the Jordan River to avoid walking through a Samaritan town. Calling someone a Samaritan was on the same level as saying they were possessed.
That’s how deep the bitterness was. So when Jesus is asked by this Jewish scholar, What must I do to inherit eternal life? His response is almost unthinkable to this Jewish audience. When Jesus describes a Samaritan selflessly serving and, in fact, saving a Jewish man, He is calling us not simply to be kind and generous, but to radical love.
For Jesus, this means not simply extending a helping hand to, but giving preference to our enemies – loving in a way that transforms the other into brother and sister. Jesus sets the bar for loving those who hurt us, He shows us that especially from the cross. And although we have sinned, He still loves us and blesses us.
So we return that love to Him, and when we love Him, that allows our love to flow out to others, to see everyone as He sees them, created in the image of God, truly our brothers and sisters. We are all unworthy recipients of His love and grace, but as His beloved sons and daughters, we share God’s inheritance. As His children, we should be able to find the strength to love each other despite our differences.
Unfortunately, as we look at our world today, many would agree that the polarization and division seem to intensify with each passing day. But the disputes and disagreements aren’t limited to nameless, faceless groups of people who remain distant from our lives and experience.
Sadly, there are people in our own neighborhoods who fall into groups whose labels could just as easily be swapped for the Jew and the Samaritan in today’s story.
What is our response when we see someone who isn’t like us, from age to ethnicity to political party? What is our response?
Often, there isn’t a clear solution of how we should help them, it’s not like they are lying half dead in the ditch, no, they are walking around seemingly doing fine, how are we to help them?
Well, I’d like to suggest something very simple, which is just to pray for them, to offer them a blessing, even from a distance. Sure, you can go up to them and talk to them and offer them that same blessing, but God can work from a distance, and that is what is really important is letting God work.
I’ve been trying to do this, especially while I am driving. If I see someone walking on the side of the road, I try to pray for them. If someone does something stupid while driving, again, pray for them, bless them. Lots of bad drivers out there.
It seems almost too simple, doesn’t it? But I was reading something recently that led me to believe it was not only the right thing to do, but that it was highly effective.
In his book entitled Be Transformed: The Healing Power of the Sacraments, Dr. Bob Schuchts related this story:
“The Bible makes it very clear that words and thoughts are dynamic forces that can spread good or evil. Containing spiritual power, they have the ability to bless or to curse. St. James doesn't mince any words when speaking about these realities: "No human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless the Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings who are made in the likeness of God. From the same mouth come blessing and cursing." (Jas 3:8-10).
The power of human words to bless and curse took on a new depth of meaning for me several years ago while sitting at a friend's house waiting for him to come home. To pass the time, I started flipping through a large picture book on the table next to me. The more I looked and read the more interested I became, realizing that the author was giving scientific verification of the spiritual power of the
spoken word.
Immediately, I thought of the above scripture verses from James. The book, The Hidden Messages in Water, written by Japanese scientist Masaru Emoto, turned out to be a New York Times best seller. He conducted his research to find out if words and thoughts have power, so blessing and cursing into containers of water, he subsequently froze the water and photographed it.
Sounds strange, doesn't it? Yet Dr. Emoto had a purpose. He wanted to find out how spoken words could impact the molecular structure in water. This could give insight to the effect words and thoughts have on our health and well-being (since bodies are made up of 70 percent water and our brains 80 percent water).
Using a microscope, Emoto examined the molecular formations in the frozen water and then photographed each of them.
The results were breathtaking and exactly what the Word of God had predicted. Words, spoken with conviction, really do have a tremendous impact to bless and to curse.
Words like happy, good, and love produced beautiful and complex images full of light in the frozen water. Words like depressed, bad, and hate resulted in dark, dense, and ugly images when the molecular structures were closely examined.
After conducting a similar study with cooked rice, Emoto found the "blessed" rice remained white after thirty days of receiving the words "I love you" whereas the "cursed" rice became black and then decayed after thirty days of repeating the phrase "You fool." Emoto also tested the power of prayer, and the results were equally amazing.
Prayer, a primary means of calling upon God's blessing, has an even greater power to shape and define reality. Dr. Emoto's research confirmed what the Bible has said all along: words convey spiritual realities and are indeed quite powerful.
So that was all from the book Be Transformed by Dr. Bob Schuchts. When I heard that I was blown away. I shared it with Fr. Martin, and he said he had heard the same thing about plants, which makes sense too, it has scriptural precedence from Jesus when he cursed the fruitless fig tree and it died.
But the point is simple, we have an amazing amount of power in how we bless or curse those around us, including those who we have differences with. And Jesus makes it clear: The path to eternal life begins when we decide to imitate His selfless sacrificial love, radical love for even our enemies. Doing so will convert our hearts in the process.