the good one...

The parable of the good Samaritan in Lk 10: 25-37 is probably the most popular and famous from among the parables of Jesus. It is so famous that when we say 'Samaritan', we automatically attach to it the word 'good'. I am certain you have heard many reflections about imitating the good Samaritan and not imitating the student and the priest.

Let us not deal on the negligent priest, or the the hard-nosed stubborn student, nor the good Samaritan.

Let us focus our attention on the victim of the robbery.

What am I trying to say here? Well, it is no that in our journey along the road of life, we have often been stripped, robbed, and left half-dead? We can very much identify with the victim on the road who's left half-dead, stipped and robbed.

We may not have been robbed of material possessions. But many of us have been robbed of our self-seteem, our dignity and our good name.

Many of us have been robbed because we were betrayed. Our trust was never reciprocated with trust. Our love was never reciprocated with with selfless love. We have been stripped of our securities, and in manner of speaking, left half-dead along the road of life.

We thought that because we were left half-dead, people would take pity on us, particularly friends, family and loved ones, whom we thought would always be there. But sometimes to our great disappoinment, they let us down.

In the parable, we expect the priest to do better that leave the victim on the road half-dead. But he thinks only of himself. Haven't there been times when we were left half-dead on the road of life by friends and loved ones we thought we could depend on in the hour of need.

We have had friends who would tell us they would be our friends forever, but when trouble and problems came, when the storms in our life pass-by, when we were half-dead and gasping for dear life, they would tell us: "I am too busy."

On the other hand, there have been times when we have been let half-dead along the journey of life, and unexpectedly, someone comes along whom we thought would never give us a hand, but they do. Oftentimes, the person is a total stranger. But this same person, this same Samaritan in our lives, takes pity on us, says the right word at the right time, gives us what we need most, then unexpectedly, we are up and about again.

Let us see ourselves as the victim of the robbery. Now let us ask ourselves, who is the neighbor of the victim? the answer is, of course, the Samaritan, because he saved the life of the victim.

If the situation were reversed. and you saw the good Samaritan lying on the road half-dead, wouldn't you help him, out of a debt of gratitude?

It is understandable if we are neighbors to those who have been neighbors to us. It is understandable if we are good to those who have been good to us.

I think the appropriate title of the Gospel is not the Good Samaritan. I think the most proper one is: the Gospel of the Good Victim. We all have been victims. We all have been hurt. We have been all left-half dead in the woods. We all have had friends who did not help us when we most needed them.

But we also have met strangers who came to our rescue and did or said the right thing at the same time, and brought us back to life.

Let us reflect on this my dear brothers and sisters and may the good Lord inspire us to be like the good one who is complete stranger to others whom we meet in the crossroads of life yet willingly extend our helping hand to their rescue.

Bless us all...