A SHOCKING EXPERIENCE

Fifteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Dt 30: 10 – 14 / Ps 69 / Col 1: 15 – 20 / Lk 10: 25 – 37

What shocks you? An untimely death of a family member; a diagnosis of a terminal illness; a sudden break-up of a relationship; o diba kaha nakadungog nalang ka ug balita nga bisag bati siya’g nawong, naminyo pa gyud siya ug gwapo/gwapa kaayo sa tanan (or maybe you will just hear a news that someone so ugly got married to somebody who is so handsome or pretty).

So, what can shock you?

My dear friends, if we try to understand deeply the story of the Good Samaritan in our Gospel today, we will find many shocking realities.

First, the violence experienced by the traveling Jew; he was robbed, stripped, beaten, and left half dead on the road. This must be something shocking to us. But a more shocking reality is perhaps the case of the priest and the Levite. You see, Jews, were very much concerned with holiness before God, and in our story today, these laws of purity was given priority over helping a dying man. It had to take a Samaritan to help this miserable Jew left dying on the road. Now, take note that during those times Samaritans were hated by the Jews because of their seemingly imperfect adherence to Judaism and pagan ancestry.

So what we have here is a Samaritan - despised by Jews - is helping a dying Jew. Certainly nothing is more shocking than this – an enemy being merciful, being compassionate to his mortal enemy.

This reality as presented to us in our Gospel today teaches us a valuable lesson. And it is not about knowing, “Who is my neighbor?” because we already know the answer. Our First Reading reminds us, “it is not up in the sky nor is it across the sea…no, it is something very near to you, already in your mouths and in your hearts.”

The parable of the Good Samaritan, therefore, gives us an invitation, or another task of discipleship, and that is: to become persons who treat everyone encountered with mercy and compassion.

Yes, to be compassionate and merciful today is very difficult! How can you show mercy to the person who hurts you? Unsaon man nimo pagpasaylo sa tawo nga nagpa-asa nimo (How can you excuse a person who gave you false hopes)? How difficult is it to love your husband/wife who has loved another? And like the priest and the Levite in our story today, we can always find many excuses why we do not want to be compassionate or merciful to others. Sabi pa sa isang kanta, “kung ayaw, may dahilan, kung gusto, may paraan (if you don’t, there must be a reason; if you want, then there is always a way)”

But St. Paul in our second reading reminds us that Christ himself reconciled all things to himself. How? By “making peace through the blood of his cross.” Yes, it may be difficult but it is possible. Christ who is 100% human was able to do it. He was merciful and compassionate to all he encountered, friends and foes alike!

This is therefore our challenge today. Little by little, on a day to day basis, we respond to the invitation in our Gospel to be merciful and compassionate to people we encounter. If it is difficult to love your husband/wife or to be considerate with your officemate whom you see every day, you can begin by praying for his/her good health rather than cursing him/her to die ASAP. If it is very difficult to make peace with your friend who betrayed you, then, start by unblocking him/her on Facebook. Little acts of mercy, simple acts of compassion done every day is already meritorious before God. As the Chinese proverb would say, “the journey to a thousand miles begins with a single step.”

My dear friends, the parable of the Good Samaritan is not a lesson about knowing who our neighbor is. Rather, it is about a demand in Christian discipleship which is to become Christians of mercy and compassion to all people we meet every day in our lives.

I began this homily with a question, “what shocks you?” For sure, by now you can enumerate to me a list of shocking answers. However, if we ask God what shocks him, what do you think will his answer be? Will he be shocked because we have remained merciful and compassionate despite the temptation to hatred and indifference? Or will he be shocked because we have loved him and our neighbor less and little? Amen.