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.’
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.”
***
But wanting to justify himself,
he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”
I have heard it said, that Baker City
doesn’t have a race problem because of its lack of diversity. Maybe that is our
race problem. My sister, who is biologically half hispanic, walks into our
church, and comments to me, “I am the only minority in the room.” Some will
attest to the theory that Sunday morning is the most segregated hour in America; this
is a race problem. “Red, and Yellow, Black and White, we are precious is his
sight, Jesus loves the little children of the world.” “They’re,” probably at
the Catholic Church,” we might surmise but what good is that song when we don’t
see the example in our own pews, besides children like my sister who were
adopted by white parents.
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.
I realize that this is not the
South. We neither live in St. Lewis, nor New York,
nor Dallas and
I do believe we can say here in Baker, police have not shot a black person, nor
has a black person shot and killed police. We can look to nearby cities such a Seattle and child of this
church, and officer, Elliot Averett, and see a thoughtful public servant
policing integrated neighborhoods and eschewing violence as a person in power.
He tells stories of reporting on himself, after a women in frustration accused
him of racial profiling. And even after she denied saying it, and refused to
file a complaint, Elliot’s report was still filed, taking seriously the history
of police discrimination against blacks. We can say everything is fine where we
are, here in the Northwest and Pacific Northwest,
with race relations, but isn't the privilege to say this, racism in and of
itself. The ability to ignore that is happening somewhere, and people on all
sides of the issue are dying. Elliot now rides two officers to a car, and was
recently issued a bullet proof vest. This may be preventative, but prevention
points to an awareness of an issue.
Now by chance a priest was
going down that road; and when he saw him, he passed by on the other
side.
We can say it doesn’t happen
here, and turn our eye, but we are Americans and live in country with a history
of slavery, of segregation, of discrimination, and of police brutality toward
blacks and other minorities. We can say we are Christian, but the church itself
is just as much a nefarious institution, with a history of reinforcing slavery,
using images of dark and light, black and white, to reinforce an inferior
perception of blacks. We can turn a blind eye as Americans going down the road,
but is there a correlation between these protests and the now commonplace
handheld video recording on phones and police dashboard cameras? We can turn a
blind eye as Christians going down the road, but this was the lectionary
passage the Sunday after Travon Martin was shot, as it is likewise today.
So likewise a Levite, when he
came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side.
While some say Black Lives
Matter, and others say, Police Lives Matter, and still other’s say, All Lives
Matter, what are we really saying when we post on Facebook about police
brutality and then tell Elliot thank you and to be safe? Are we being
hippocrates, or acknowledging a complicated world, without wanting to ask
questions? Are we noticing the man left on the side of the road, but also
saying, ‘Not me, I will not care of him. It is not my job.’
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.’
“When people say black lives
matter, that doesn’t mean blue lives don’t matter, it just means all lives
matter. But right now the concern is the fact that data shows that black folks
are more vulnerable to these kinds of incidents. This isn't a matter of us
comparing the values of lives. This is recognizing that a particular burden is
being placed on a group of our fellow citizens and we should care about that
and we can’t dismiss it. We can’t dismiss it,” President Barack Obama.
Which of these three, do you
think, was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?”
Who is our neighbor, as
Christians, as Americans, as those in the Northwest, and in our small town of Baker City?
He said, “The one who showed
him mercy.” Jesus said to him, “Go and do likewise.”
