Monday, March 10, 2014

Helping Only Those Whose Plight I Can't Help but See

I have been struck by how we (the generic "we") ignore others who are different than we are - and how we justify that rejection by citing all the other things that crowd our lives and take away our time.

If someone had asked all those who passed by the injured Samaritan why they had done so, I'm positive they would have had "reasons" for why they didn't stop and help. At heart, though, I wonder if they felt superior to the man lying on the side of the road - if they felt like the man had brought it on himself - if they felt disgust or revulsion or fear or arrogance at a higher level than they felt compassion and concern and love and humility.

In the past I've dealt with some people who made it really hard for me to live what I preach and believe - and I wonder how I would react if I was in a hurry and saw one of them in such a situation. I'm sure I would stop - but I wonder what I would do if it was someone I didn't know who appeared to be a dirty, smelly, jobless, drunken bum. Would I be the good Samaritan - or would I be one of the others who found an excuse to walk by on the other side?

More broadly, should I be seeking more diligently to find and serve those who are the modern equivalent of the poor, the lepers, the publicans, the sinners, etc.? Am I missing the point of the parable even if I do stop and help one person whose plight I can't help but see - and is the reason I might only see "the one", perhaps, that I don't value "the ones" that are harder to see as much as I value myself and those I know and love?

1 comment:

Patty said...

Your post reminds me of a book I read recently: "Under the Overpass: A Journey of Faith on the Streets of America" and how it chronicled the experiences of two young men who chose to be homeless for six months or so and the rejection they usually encountered, sadly often by churches. It's made me a lot more aware of those I see who I might have thought had brought their woes on themselves, and to feel a lot more compassion towards them. It opened my eyes a bit to the world outside my secure little cocoon- to realize that there are people around us who need help, who we don't see unless we look for them.