Howdy Neighbor

For July 15th

Luke 10:25-37
Just then a lawyer stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he said, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” He said to him, “What is written in the law? What do you read there?” He answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself.” And he said to him, “You have given the right answer; do this, and you will live.” But wanting to justify himself, he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” Jesus replied, “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. Now by chance a priest was going down that road; and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. 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, having poured oil and wine on them. 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.’ 36* Which of these three, do you think, was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?” He said, “The one who showed him mercy.” Jesus said to him, “Go and do likewise.”

I wasn’t going to post anything, but I figure that Magy needs some help for his sermon on Sunday. You’re preaching at Pella the 15th, aren’t ya?
Have a wonderful wedding and honeymoon JM!!!!!

THE PARABLE OF THE GOOD SAMARITAN
What can one say about this parable that will be heard?
The parable itself rings so loudly. And, one might suggest, we listen in such a way that we do not hear a call to change our ways, but we hear an affirmation of what sniggling generosity we exercise toward others. . . (heck, when someone does the littlest favor for a stranger they’re called a “good Samaritan”)
I have taken the tack of suggesting that originally, Jesus told a story about a Priest, a Levite and a Samaritan, and that Jesus’ hearers would have expected a different 3rd person. It’s like telling a joke about a Priest, a Minister and a Rabbi, but having a Priest, a Minister and a Frenchman. The hearers would not have identified with any of the three. They would have been left with identifying with the wounded traveler, and the savior is the least expected. . . (From Hear Then the Parable by Bernard Brandon Scott)
hmmmmmmmmmmmmm
I just re-read a powerful article by Brueggemann. The Liturgy of Abundance, The Myth of Scarcity from the Christian Century 1999.
http://www.religion-online.org/showarticle.asp?title=533
He opens with this paragraph

The majority of the world's resources pour into the United States. And as we Americans grow more and more wealthy, money is becoming a kind of narcotic for us. We hardly notice our own prosperity or the poverty of so many others. The great contradiction is that we have more and more money and less and less generosity - less and less public money for the needy, less charity for the neighbor.

later, Brueggemann says this:

Telling parables was one of Jesus' revolutionary activities, for parables are subversive re-imagining of reality. The ideology devoted to encouraging consumption wants to shrivel our imaginations so that we cannot conceive of living in any way that would be less profitable for the dominant corporate structures. But Jesus tells us that we can change the world. The Christian community performs a vital service by keeping the parables alive. These stories haunt us and push us in directions we never thought we would go.

Maybe it is instructive to think about how the lawyer asked a question of Jesus, and he answered with a slightly different question. He redirects our eyes to see all in need as those whom God cares for, and he invites you to see yourself as neighbor. Perhaps we need to be redirected. No longer seeing ourselves as the savior, but as the neighbor in need.

This is, perhaps, enough to get us thinking a bit about this powerful story, and how we might invite one another to “Go and do likewise.”