"Which was neighbor to the robbers victim?"
Luke 10 25-37
One never knows where God will and will not speak to us. About ten days ago I was in Church quietly
preparing for morning Mass by some prayer and reflection on the readings of
that day. This is something that makes
such a difference when the liturgy begins so I would recommend some pre-Mass
preparation to everyone.
About thirty minutes before morning Mass I noticed a gentleman
walked in to the main Church from the Chapel.
He was clearly someone I had never seen before, agitated, with a slight
frown on his face and walking to the back of the Church rather quickly. So, I stood up and walked towards him asking:
“Can I help you?” He responded, now with a slight angry voice: “Is there a
problem?” He was a large, muscular,
African American man carrying a backpack so not being very sure what was in
that backpack, and alone in the Church, I was naturally on guard but walked
towards him nonetheless.
He stopped and asked my name which surprised me not knowing how
he knew me and then said: “I have something to tell you.” This naturally put me more on guard but I took a deep breath and invited him to be seated in the back pew
as I too sat down. He was angry about the treatment of minorities in
society, especially the black community but quickly let me know that even more
he had been imprisoned for a good time in Texas. He was out on parole but wanted very badly to
get back to Texas and just felt lost in society overall. That he was a non person and had no place to be. He began to cry, put his head down and shared
his frustration that he felt his life had gone nowhere.
He clearly needed someone to talk with, some place to feel safe
and cared for. I asked what he would
like to do and he said, “Just get back to Texas," he told me. There he had a former cell mate who he had befriended. I asked if he needed money and learned he
had checked on the price of a bus ticket, told me what that was which sounded
reasonable but had little money to do anything.
I sensed this was genuine so decided to offer him some money and a
bottle of water, inviting him to the McDonald’s down the street for some
breakfast.
He stood up and his demeanor changed completely. He was relaxed, smiled, shared his gratitude then after a “Thank you, Jesus!”
he asked to pray with me and so we did so. Then he commented on something he was told: “I was told the Catholic Church would be always be a place of refuge. You’re the first Catholic priest I’ve met and this is the first Catholic Church I’ve ever been in.” Those words struck me deeply at that moment.
Once he was together, he offered me an embrace and quickly left
with a very changed demeanor. His, “place
of refuge” were words that spoke to me like a word or phrase that jumps off a
text when reading scripture or a statement someone makes that unexpectedly
catches your attention. I truly believe God spoke through this encounter. I thought, yes
the Church should be a place of safety security, acceptance, dignity and love. We
should all be good Samaritans without question towards those in need.
In our present day we often become easily blind to the needs of
our neighbor. American culture is built upon making your own life, being
independent, not taking a hand out, and working hard. “Out of sight, out of mind” is an easy maxim
to live by these days. We probably don’t need to work too hard to live by that
truth. In doing so, I may unconsciously set boundaries between myself and
“them.”
Yet, our Gospel this Sunday certainly reveals a stunning answer
to the question, “Who is my neighbor?” – the answer is simply “everyone in need
is my neighbor,”particularly those in need of compassion and mercy. Even those
who I might even think are my enemies or strangers are my neighbor. If that person, for example, the one you find
most uncomfortable or who has caused you some pain or frustration in your life
was truly in need, would you help them?
Could I put aside my personal negative feelings and dislike for them to
come to their aid, regardless of whether they show any appreciation or not? Can
I be a place of refuge to those in need and not care about the personal cost?
Jesus’ own insight into human nature as he told these parables
was life changing. For he came to offer humanity a way out; a place of refuge;
a good Samaritan who will care for them and that would be himself. We are the
ones wounded and broken lying at the road because of our sin. We are the ones who need someone to save and
rescue and care for us and only Christ Jesus can do so. Jesus own pouring out of his blood upon the
cross and the sharing of his life in the Holy Eucharist, which is our present
day “oil and wine” of healing, makes this Samaritan and image of Christ
himself.
The man I encountered in the Church that day found a refuge
that brought him hope. Bishop Barron has
a wonderful way of describing the Inn of the parable as an image of the
Church. When the injured man was taken
to the Inn by the Samaritan he found protection and hope. So too the parable provides an image of the
Church as the inn which should be a place of refuge for us in the forgiveness
of sin, the food of the Eucharist, the love we experience and the inspiration
of our brothers and sisters in the faith.
Pope Francis rightly reminded us that the Church should be a
“field hospital.” A place of healing on the battle field of life. So we need to never lose the real meaning of
what we are called to be and that is Jesus himself to welcome the stranger,
feed the hungry, give drink to the thirsty and good example to all around us. To behave as Christ is the ultimate answer to the initial question posed to Jesus at the beginning of the Gospel passage; the answer to how we love God and attain heaven: "What must I do to inherit eternal life?"
In many ways the Church supports profound works of charity and
compassion in order to be good Samaritans.
So it’s not so much that we try to change THE world but that we can
change our world and allow all who come to find in us Christ himself – a place
of refuge. The Eucharist is that living presence which continues to take us out
of isolation and into community – His Body.
Let us “go and do likewise.”
No comments:
Post a Comment