But
the LORD sent a large fish, that swallowed Jonah; and Jonah remained in the
belly of the fish three days and three nights. From the belly of the fish Jonah
prayed to the LORD, his God. Then the LORD commanded the fish to spew
Jonah upon the shore.
Jonah 2:1, 11
“But a Samaritan traveler who came upon him was moved with
compassion at the sight.”
Luke 10:33
Piety
Jesus, help get us out of the belly of the whale
of selfishness. Help us get out of the ditch of sin. Help us to trust others –
no matter who they are – to render aid to us when we are in need. Help us to trust you so that we will not
hesitate help others as well. Amen.
Study
Sorting out which roles are parallel in the two
readings today is head-spinning.
The men on the boat who tossed Jonah into the
sea could be likened to the robbers who beat up the traveler. They were all looking out for
themselves. The men on the boat wanted
to save themselves so they tossed Jonah overboard to calm the seas. The robbers needed money so they took it from
the man travelling to Jericho. They epitomize the attitude of “what is yours is
mine and I am going to take it.”
Jonah is like the man who travelling from
Jerusalem to Jericho. Jonah was just out
on a voyage trying to mind he own business (and avoid the mission that the Lord
commanded) and he ended up in the belly of the whale.
As similar as those parts of the story might
be, that is not the lesson for us. The
stranger – the Samaritan – probably seen by some as an illegal immigrant is the
person who stopped and rendered aid to the victim just like the Lord sent aid
to Jonah. People listening might want to
equate themselves with the priest or the Levite. But they did not stop to render aid. They epitomize the attitude of “what’s mine
is mine and I’m going to keep it.”
However, if the Lord does indeed desire
mercy, not sacrifice, the merciful Samaritan is the model. The Samaritan
represents the attitude “what’s mine is yours and I’m going to share it.”
For Jesus to use a Samaritan as a prime
example in this parable would be like using a divorced woman as an example
(which Jesus did with the woman at the well).
For Jesus to use a Samaritan as a prime example in this parable would be
like using a tax collector as a role model (which Jesus did with Matthew). For Jesus to use a Samaritan as a prime
example in this parable would be like using a leper and outcast in his
preaching. For Jesus to use a Samaritan
as a prime example in this parable would be like using a positive image of a belligerent
Roman centurion occupying the Holy Land as a model of faith and piety.
But I guess the Lord did all that.
Action
We are asked to go to the most unlikely
places in order to fulfill the mission that the Lord has for us. We are asked to do the most unlikely tasks in
order to fulfill our mission.
Jonah did not choose to preach repentance to
the people of Nineveh any more than John the Baptist did. However, Jonah actually tried to flee. John accepted his mission. The Samaritan did not expect to come across a
Jew needing aid. However, when he did,
he rendered assistance.
The priest and the Levite represent people
caught up in life-less, soul-less religion. They play at church, but it does
not affect the way that they live.
Religious, ethnic and social standing are no guarantee of right standing
before God or before people.
Hatred between Jews and Samaritans was fierce
and long-standing.[i] There are countless modern parallels to the
Jewish-Samaritan enmity—indeed, wherever peoples are divided by racial and
ethnic barriers. The former “Iron
Curtain” that divided Europe. The
apartheid of South Africa. How the
European settlers in the “new world” treated the native peoples. The divides that still exist between Palestine
and Israel.
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.[ii]
However, even our enemies are our
neighbors. Perhaps that’s why the Jesus provides
so many instances of Samaritans coming into contact with his message. It is not
the person from the radically different culture on the other side of the world
that is hardest to love, but the nearby neighbor whose skin color, language,
rituals, values, ancestry, history, and customs are different from one’s own.[iii]
Jesus came to instill in us a new attitude
about who is our neighbor and what are our responsibilities. How are you being
called to examine your attitudes? We cannot
love God if we do not love all His people.
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