The
Good Samaritan is, probably the most famous parable Jesus has ever told. Basically,
in the setting Jesus is confronted by a young lawyer.
“The
"lawyer" is sometimes termed "scribe." There is little
difference between these appellations. They were professional teachers and
expounders of the Mosaic Law and of the vast complement of traditional sayings
which had gathered round it. As the whole life of the people at this period was
ruled and guided by the Law, written and traditional, this profession of scribe
and lawyer was an important and influential one. Stood up. The Master was
evidently teaching in a house or a courtyard of a house. Many were sitting
round him. To attract his attention, this lawyer stood up before putting his
question to Jesus. This scene, as we have said, took place most likely in or
near Jerusalem, not improbably, as the Bethany episode follows, in that suburb
of the city, and perhaps in the house of Lazarus. And tempted him; that is
to say, tested him and his skill in answering questions out of that Law which
then was the rule and guide of daily life in Israel. It is not unlikely that
the lawyer hoped to convict the broad and generous Rabbi of some unorthodox
statement which would injure his reputation as a Teacher. It was a hard and
comprehensive question, this query how eternal life was to be won, and possibly
one carefully prepared by the enemies of Jesus.”[1]
Now
Jesus uses the parable of the Good Samaritan to answer a legal question with a
legal question. But why the example of a
Samaritan?
“Imagine
the hatred between Serbs and Muslims in modern Bosnia, the enmity between
Catholics and Protestants in Northern Ireland or the feuding between street
gangs in Los Angeles or New York, and you have some idea of the feeling and its
causes between Jews and Samaritans in the time of Jesus. Both politics and
religion were involved…
The
fact that there was such dislike and hostility between Jews and Samaritans is
what gives the use of the Samaritan in the Parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke
10:29-37) such force! The Samaritan is the one who is able to rise above the
bigotry and prejudices of centuries and show mercy and compassion for the
injured Jew after the Jew’s own countrymen pass him by!”[2]
Mercy
and Compassion, I believe, that is the challenge. The parable addresses physical injury but we
know that the physical is only the surface from such an event, underneath it
all lies trauma. Imagine, if you will, to be randomly mugged and beaten on the
street with no one around, fear sets in, anxiety builds as you wonder whether
this is the place and this is how you are going to die.
Then
you notice hope coming down the road …someone is coming, a priest! A leader of the people a person who lineage
passes from father to son. “In order to
become a priest, one had to be the son of a priest and be pure in mind and
body. (And according to the Pentateuch, priests were also said to be from the tribe
of Levi.) It is likely, based on both biblical and Mesopotamian texts on
priesthood, that every time a priest came to the temple to carry out his
service there, his purity would have been tested by a group of priests and
Levites who would probably have physically examined him (for skin diseases or
broken bones) and made sure that there were no allegations of misconduct.”[3]
You
may hear something in this definition, purity! A priest had to remain pure…so
why does he pass up the man lying injured on the road?... One commentator
hypothesizes that “ The priest did so because Num 19 states that
he must avoid corpse impurity. Touching a dead
or dying body, even holding a hand over it, would render the priest ritually
impure and put his temple service at risk.”[4]
So,
the priest passes by and any and all hope the poor man had on the side of the
road goes with him. His hopes have been
dashed his fear heightens we may be able to add depression to his symptoms at
this point.
Then
the Levite is seen heading towards the victim and yet again he passes by on the
other side. The other side? The priest crossed the road to avoid him so I
have to imaging the Levite is side stepping the body by inching his way along
the path with his back pressed against the wall…
Now
the Levites had less of a rank than that of the priest; “therefore, because of
the lower expectations for Levites, the reasoning that it might impair temple
function is less of a concern as a generic Levite tasked with menial,
janitorial and other trivial temple duties would not impair the functioning of
temple life.
Additionally,
by Selecting a Levite as the secondary character, Jesus moves from the most
prestigious character (the priest, a pillar of the community) to a common
"man-on-the-street" type of character and then finally to a villain
archetype. The Levite therefore provides a transition from one end of the
continuum to the other.”[5]
There
is also a possibility that this “lawyer” was himself was a Levite, for they
were well versed in the law, making the point a bit stronger.
As
for our poor victim here, his hopes are lifted again as a matter of fact, his
potential savior is passing by so close he could almost reach out and touch
him. Yet he moves on his way again
dashing all hope.
This
cycle of; anxiety, then hope, then loss, then fear, then anxiety and seclusion
all affect the victim here. Our hero
doesn’t necessarily Aleve any of these at first…
We
know that the Samaritan, upon seeing the victim, heart goes out to him and he
is moved with pity. Pity moves him past
his own prejudices, yet our poor victim, upon seeing a Samaritan once again may
feel fear rise up, his anxiety level increases for fear of more pain or injury
about to be inflicted upon him because of systemic prejudice.
Because
of systemic prejudice, Jesus listeners are shocked that it is a Samaritan
providing care. But that is what he does
and does well…
You
see the Samaritan assessed the situation and recognized the need, the website, the
fruit of brokenness puts it this way
“But
a Samaritan, who was on a journey, came upon him; and when he saw him…
The
Samaritan RECOGNIZED.
…he
felt compassion, and came to him and bandaged up his wounds, pouring oil and
wine on them; and he put him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn
and took care of him…
He RESPONDED.
On
the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper and
said, ‘Take care of him…
He REFERRED.
and
whatever more you spend, when I return I will repay you.’
We
have an example of Biblical Crisis intervention! Yet there is more needed here there is long
term support, support to allow the person to express their fear and anxieties
as a result of this crime.
The
United church of Christ has what is called a Mental health Network and they
speak of becoming a W.I.S.E. congregation.
What does that mean? W.I.S.E. is an acronym for Welcoming, Inclusive,
Supportive and Engaged. This is a
process much like becoming an ONA congregation.
The
Mental health network states:
“The
United Church of Christ Mental Health Network works to reduce stigma and
promote the inclusion of people with mental illnesses/brain disorders and their
families in the life, leadership and work of congregations.
Our
intent is to be a resource for you in the local congregation as you take these
steps. While what you have right now from us is still a work in progress,
be assured that we will continue to engage with you as the new insights and
practical suggestions come to our attention. We want to hear from you so
that we can pass information along to other congregations who may be dealing
with similar situations.
The
chief goal with this toolkit is that your congregation will become a WISE
Congregation for Mental Health. There are no dues. There are no
other requirements other than you will send the UCC Mental Health Network a
letter confirming the process by which you have voted to become a WISE
Congregation for Mental Health. You would then be among the other UCC
congregations who have taken this step and therefore you will be apprised of
new resources, new suggestions, and new ideas which would be shared from you to
others.”[7]
I
spent 15 years working with people with different abilities and I know for the
most part people are at a minimum un comfortable around anyone who is different. Many times people avoid those who are differently
abled as they fear saying the wrong thing or doing harm unintentionally.
“Since
one in four individuals lives with a diagnosable mental health condition, it’s
safe to say that individuals in your congregation are dealing with any variety
of mental health and substance use challenges every day. Due to stigma, many
of these people may be reluctant to either seek help professionally or speak
about it with their pastor or other members of their church. However, an
atmosphere of openness and acceptance in a congregation makes members, friends,
and visitors more likely to feel safe and free from judgment. This acceptance
and sense of safety can help create a place of belonging, where truly everyone,
no matter where they are on life’s journey, is welcome.”[8]
This
process actually furthers the challenge of our ONA statement. It answers the question asked in today’s
Gospel …who is my neighbor?
There
are ten steps to becoming a W.I.S.E. congregation
Step
1: Secure the pastor’s and leaderships support…well
Step
2: gather a WISE Team two or three who are interested in making us WISE congregation and it is recommended if
there is someone who is openly living with a mental health challenge that they
should be invited to be on the team the mental health network has a motto
“Nothing about us without us” in other words we should not look upon this as an
us them type project but a we project where we are all in this together.
Step
3 is to connect with the UCC Mental Health Network so we do not make this
journey alone
Step
4 would be to establish educational programing around Mental health this is
important because… “Media misinformation and societal stigma against those
living with mental illness encourage us to equate mental illness with danger.
Thus, the first questions some faith leaders and congregation members often
raise about becoming WISE relate to keeping the congregation “safe.” Research
and the lived experience of existing WISE Congregations for Mental Health
demonstrate that safety is not an issue: offering radical inclusion to
everyone, including those with significant mental health and brain disorder
challenges, is a sacred activity, but not a dangerous one.”[9]
Step
5 is to draft a wise Covenant which there are samples of online
Step
6 the team then presents their Covenant to the board
Step
7 is a congregational vote
Step
8 is to have a celebration upon our
certification
Step
9 is to inform our community that we are a WISE Congregation and what that
means
Step
10 is to keep ourselves on new opportunities and ways to be present to the
community so that we may continue to expand our welcome
This
is one way we can answer who is our neighbor and continue to expand our welcome.
Just as the Good Samaritan recognized a need, responded, referred to
professionals as needed, and returned and repeated the process so we are called
as a congregation to evaluate, recognize the needs in our community and respond
or refer out as needed and then return and reevaluate all over again
All
this so we can be true to our proclamation no matter who you are or where you
are on life’s journey you are welcome here. Amen.
[1] https://biblehub.com/luke/10-25.htm
[2] https://www.franciscanmedia.org/the-rift-between-jews-and-samaritans/
[3] https://www.bibleodyssey.org/en/passages/related-articles/priests-and-levites-in-the-first-century-ce
[4]
Ditto
[5] https://hermeneutics.stackexchange.com/questions/14214/what-is-the-significance-of-both-the-priest-and-the-levite-in-the-good-samaritan
[6] https://www.fruitofbrokenness.com/good-samaritan-crisis-intervention/
[7] http://mhn-ucc.blogspot.com/p/becoming-wise-congregation-toolkit.html
[8] http://moredomainsforless.com/mhnucc/becomingaWISEcongregationformentalhealth2019ed.pdf
[9]
Ditto
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