As our nation wrestles with a terrible event which has once again polarized our country, I thought I would put aside the literature review, the theories and hypotheses, the variables, their relationship, the statistics and their significance. I’d go to the Bible, and unpack that acronym that is often displayed, but not often followed: WWJD?
In this story, a fellow “teacher of the law” asked what it would take to get into the Kingdom of Heaven. According to my Bible Gateway, Jesus asked him about the two great commandments. The teacher replied “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, “Love your neighbor as yourself,” he concluded.
“You have answered correctly,” Jesus replied. “Do this and you will live.” But he [the Teacher] wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”
In reply Jesus said:
“A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side.
“But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. The next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.'”
Then Jesus asked, “Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?” The expert in the law replied, “The one who had mercy on him.” Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.”
I reported the whole Bible verse because I’m increasingly worried that it’s a part of the good book that doesn’t seem to be in fashion nowadays. Today, some people would be saying “Why did that guy travel by himself? What did he look like? How did he dress? Didn’t he know the road from Jerusalem to Jericho was dangerous? He pretty much got what was coming to him.” I can see those arguments being thrown in Jesus’ face today.
I’ve had someone share another book with me that’s more in vogue today than these unsettling passages from the Bible that I just posted here about helping our neighbors. This type of reading tells us that people like the Good Samaritan can be just as bad as those robbers for trying to help out the man who was beaten. After all, it could be a ruse, and the beaten-up person could have set a trap to rob that Samaritan of those denarii that would be used to treat and lodge him. The Priest and Levite were right to let the beaten man lie by the side of the road. He was probably faking injuries. And maybe the victim should have armed himself or stood up for himself, right?
I don’t know what the future holds for this country, but I pray that it’s a world that when people see someone helpless or being hurt, that they’ll think of what Jesus wants us to do. Maybe fewer people will attack the lone traveler on the lonely road. Maybe people step up and help someone in need sooner and not judge the victim for being less than perfect. When asked who was more of a neighbor to the one attacked, didn’t the teacher of the law say “the one who showed mercy?”
John A. Tures is Professor of Political Science and Coordinator of the Political Science Program at LaGrange College, in LaGrange, Georgia. His first book, “Branded”, is available on Amazon. He can be reached at jtures@lagrange.edu.