The Good Samaritan

The Parable of the Good Samaritan (New Revised Standard Version)

²⁵ Just then a lawyer stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he said, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” ²⁶ He said to him, “What is written in the law? What do you read there?” ²⁷ He answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself.” ²⁸ And he said to him, “You have given the right answer; do this, and you will live.”

²⁹ But wanting to justify himself, he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” ³⁰ Jesus replied, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell into the hands of robbers, who stripped him, beat him, and went away, leaving him half dead. ³¹ Now by chance a priest was going down that road; and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. ³² So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. ³³ But a Samaritan while traveling came near him; and when he saw him, he was moved with pity. ³⁴ He went to him and bandaged his wounds, having poured oil and wine on them. Then he put him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. ³⁵ The next day he took out two denarii,^[b] gave them to the innkeeper, and said, ‘Take care of him; and when I come back, I will repay you whatever more you spend.’ ³⁶ Which of these three, do you think, was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?” ³⁷ He said, “The one who showed him mercy.” Jesus said to him, “Go and do likewise.”

The curriculum we use for our adult Sunday School classes is a web-based program entitled “The Wired Word.” Each week, it sends out a lesson drawn from events in the news that week. The lesson for this Sunday makes reference to today’s gospel reading, which is the Parable of the Good Samaritan, so I thought we might let the editors’ thoughts guide our reflections on this passage today.

We learned over the last several days about heroes, ordinary people who did costly but helpful deeds for others: homeless men who rushed to assist victims of the Manchester bombings and now are haunted by what they saw; passengers on a Portland train who intervened when a man threatened two young women and were killed or wounded for their efforts; other passengers who then became good Samaritans to the dying heroes.

It was no small thing that Jesus told the story we call “the parable of the good Samaritan” to illustrate what it means to be a neighbor. The actions of these people at these tragic events bring that parable alive for us. So for this installment of The Wired Word, we will look afresh at this great parable Jesus told.

 Good Samaritans don’t set out to be heroes. Usually, they’re simply involved in the business of everyday living when they encounter someone in need and in response, they do their best to help using whatever resources are on hand. And sometimes, they pay a heavy price for being a true neighbor.

The situations where good Samaritans emerge are often created by a person or persons doing bad things to other people, and sadly, that was the case during the week of May 21-27. On May 22, a suicide terrorist exploded a bomb at an arena in Manchester, England, moments after U.S. singer Ariana Grande finished performing. The bomb killed 22 people, including children, and wounded 59 others, some of whom have life-threatening injuries. On May 26, a man spewing hate speech at two teenage girls on board a Portland train stabbed three men who put themselves between him and the girls and tried to calm him.

The evildoers in both cases have been identified and their names are now part of the public record, but for this lesson we’re more interested in those who acted to help.

At Manchester, the good Samaritans included at a least two homeless men.

Chris Parker, 33, had been begging in the arena foyer where the suicide bomber detonated his device. Amid the carnage and chaos, Parker rushed to help victims. He comforted a girl who had lost her legs, wrapping her in a T-shirt, and cradled a dying woman in his arms.

Stephen Jones, 35, who had been sleeping outdoors near the arena, also ran to help. He pulled nails out of children’s arms and faces.

Both men were left shaken by the event, and Parker, interviewed by a reporter afterward, said he hadn’t stopped crying.

On the Portland train, Taliesin Myrddin Namkai-Meche, 23, Rick Best, 53, and Micah Fletcher, 21, were all stabbed by a raging man as they attempted to defuse the situation and protect the two teenage girls he was threatening. Namkai-Meche and Best died from their wounds and Fletcher is hospitalized with serious injuries.

There were other people who became good Samaritans in the aftermath of both situations, some of whom have not been identified.

In the Portland train slayings, other passengers rushed to help the stabbed men. Passenger Michael Kennedy and two other men started CPR chest compressions on Best until emergency medics arrived. Rachel Macy, 45, along with another passenger she described as a veteran, knelt beside Namkai-Meche as he lay bleeding on the train car floor. Macy pulled off her tank top and pressed it against the deep slash on his neck. She spoke words of comfort to the dying man, and prayed with him. Other passengers chased after the assailant, who fled as the train doors opened. They called 911 and directed officers to his location.

When medics arrived, they put Namkai-Meche on a stretcher. Macy, now clad only in a slip on top, as she had used her shirt in an attempt to staunch Namkai-Meche’s wound, stayed by his side.

Macy reported that before Namkai-Meche was carried away, he had a last message:

“Tell everyone on this train I love them. ”

Indeed.

Let’s pray: Lord, we thank you for this great teaching from our Lord, and for the challenge of living out a genuine love for our neighbors. Inspire in our hearts that kind of commitment to all those we encounter in our walk through this world. Amen.

The Rev. Henry Pearce