Day 4 - March 11

 

2021 Virtual Lenten Retreat

WHO’S YOUR NEIGHBOR

Day 4 – March 11

 Today’s Reading

A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell into the hands of robbers, who stripped him, beat him, and went away, leaving him half dead….  But a Samaritan while traveling came near him; and when he saw him, he was moved with pity. He went to him and bandaged his wounds…,. Then he put him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him.  The next day he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said, ‘Take care of him; and when I come back, I will repay you whatever more you spend.’ (cf. Luke 10:25-37)

 The Pope’s Reflection

   The parable is clear and straightforward, yet it also evokes the interior struggle that each of us experiences as we gradually come to know ourselves through our relationships with our brothers and sisters. Sooner or later, we will all encounter a person who is suffering….  The decision to include or exclude those lying wounded along the roadside can serve as a criterion for judging every economic, political, social and religious project. Each day we have to decide whether to be Good Samaritans or indifferent bystanders….   All of us have in ourselves something of the wounded man, something of the robber, something of the passers-by, and something of the Good Samaritan.

   It is remarkable how the various characters in the story change, once confronted by the painful sight of the poor man on the roadside. The distinctions between Judean and Samaritan, priest and merchant, fade into insignificance. Now there are only two kinds of people: those who care for someone who is hurting and those who pass by; those who bend down to help and those who look the other way and hurry off. Here, all our distinctions, labels and masks fall away: it is the moment of truth. Will we bend down to touch and heal the wounds of others? Will we bend down and help another to get up? This is today’s challenge, and we should not be afraid to face it….

   The story of the Good Samaritan is constantly being repeated. We can see this clearly as social and political inertia is turning many parts of our world into a desolate byway, even as domestic and international disputes and the robbing of opportunities are leaving great numbers of the marginalized stranded on the roadside. In his parable, Jesus does not offer alternatives; he does not ask what might have happened had the injured man or the one who helped him yielded to anger or a thirst for revenge. Jesus trusts in the best of the human spirit; with this parable, he encourages us to persevere in love, to restore dignity to the suffering, and to build a society worthy of the name. (cf. #69, 70, 71)

 For Reflection or Discussion

The pope’s main point here is that in any given situation there are only two kinds of people—those who care for others and those who don’t.

-- When you become aware of a person or group in need, are you tempted to think “This isn’t my problem.  Why should I care?”

-- It’s easier to care about some individuals or groups than others; why is that?

-- What stops us from choosing to care every time in every case?

> What can you do about this?

 Closing Prayer

Let us stand before the cross of Jesus: the silent throne of God. Let us daily contemplate his wounds. In them, we recognize our emptiness, our shortcomings, the wounds of our sin and all the hurt we have experienced. Yet there too, we see clearly that God points his finger at no one, but rather opens his arms to embrace us.

In life’s most painful wounds, God awaits us with his infinite mercy. Because there, where we are most vulnerable, where we feel the most shame, he came to meet us. And having come to meet us, he now invites us to return to him, to rediscover the joy of being loved.