Most of the world is suffering today.

Monday, October 3, 2016

The Gospel passage for today’s Mass is the Parable of the Good Samaritan. Jesus deliberately makes the hero of the story, the one who cares for the victim of robbers, to be a member of a religious sect hated by the Jews. The enmity between the two sects is displayed elsewhere in the Gospel. Last week, we heard about how Jesus and his followers were blocked from entering a Samaritan town because they were Jews. So the ill-will went both ways.

We can think of many situations in our own troubled world where the same intense racial and/or religious bigotry is rampant, and more often than not at the root of violence and destruction. It seems as if this is a time in history when the demons of hatred are exercising an awful lot of power, which is why we should be praying the prayer to Saint Michael with special urgency and fervor these days:

Saint Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle,
be our protection against the wickedness and snares of the devil;
may God rebuke him, we humbly pray;
and do you, O Prince of the heavenly host,
by the power of God,
thrust into hell Satan and all evil spirits
who prowl around  the world seeking the ruin of souls.
Amen!

Now, a couple of observations about the parable itself:

·         There have been stories in the news about Muslims protecting and caring for Christians, here and elsewhere, or about Christians caring for Muslims. This is a good example of the parable made contemporary.

·         Note especially that the parable contains examples of religious bigotry itself, as the Jewish officials leave the victim lying in the ditch.

·         How are you the victim? And who comes to care for you? God Himself is the good Samaritan, caring for and loving all the people on the earth, not merely those of a certain religion, race or sect.

·         Are we sometimes like those who passed by the suffering victim without doing anything to help.

·         Notice that the Samaritan cares for the victim and pays for his continued care out of his own pocket, and promises to return at a later date, perhaps to see how the wounded man is doing. Would we do that?

·         Notice the economics of the parable, and the trust between the Samaritan and the inn-keeper. Would such a financial arrangement even be possible in our day? Could we be that trusting?

Just a few observations for reflection today. Please continue to pray for peace in our world. Do you realize that here in 2016, most of the people in the world are in dire straits due to war, hatred, injustice and economic oppression? How lucky we are. And, as the Lord has told us, “to whom much is given, much will be expected.”

Let us pray for the grace to do our part.

God bless you!