Am I A Neighbour?

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The Good Samaritan (Go, and do the same yourself)

The great commandment

10:25 There was a lawyer who, to disconcert him, stood up and said to him, 'Master, what must I do to inherit eternal life?'

10:26 He said to him, 'What is written in the Law? What do you read there?'

10:27 He replied, 'You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind, and your neighbour as yourself'.

10:28 'You have answered right,' said Jesus 'do this and life is yours.'

Parable of the good Samaritan

10:29 But the man was anxious to justify himself and said to Jesus, 'And who is my neighbour?'

10:30 Jesus replied, 'A man was once on his way down from Jerusalem to Jericho and fell into the hands of brigands; they took all he had, beat him and then made off, leaving him half dead.

10:31 Now a priest happened to be travelling down the same road, but when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side.

10:32 In the same way a Levite who came to the place saw him, and passed by on the other side.

10:33 But a Samaritan traveller who came upon him was moved with compassion when he saw him.

10:34 He went up and bandaged his wounds, pouring oil and wine on them. He then lifted him on to his own mount, carried him to the inn and looked after him.

10:35 Next day, he took out two denarii and handed them to the innkeeper. "Look after him," he said "and on my way back I will make good any extra expense you have."

10:36 Which of these three, do you think, proved himself a neighbour to the man who fell into the brigands` hands?'

10:37 'The one who took pity on him' he replied. Jesus said to him, 'Go, and do the same yourself'.

The Good Samaritan - A Parable of Mercy
(LK 10:29-37).

      To a lawyer who asked Him, "And who is my neighbor?" Jesus responded with the parable of the Good Samaritan, ending the parable with the exhortation, "Go and do likewise." The usual interpretation is that we ought to be good Samaritans when we see our brother in need. And this is right; we must be merciful to those in misery.
     There is, however, another way to interpret the message of the parable, and that is to identify ourselves with the poor man who has been robbed, stripped, and beaten up. We are the poor miserable ones left on the side of the road, half dead. Jesus is the Good Samaritan who comes along as our Savior to bind up our wounds, pouring oil and wine on them, and bearing us to the place of rest where He takes care of us and pays the price for all our needs.
      This is Mercy! Jesus has reached out to us while we were still sinners and laid down His life for us (cf Rm 5:6-8). Jesus has washed us clean through the water of Baptism, anointing us with His Holy Spirit, feeding us with His own Body and Blood, bringing us home into His body, the Church. All of this love through no merit of our own. That is Divine Mercy - and He wants no one to escape from that Mercy!