Homily for the 15th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C
Fr. René J. Butler, M.S.
La Salette Missionaries of North America
Hartford, Connecticut
In
reflecting on today’s gospel, I spent way too much time reading about Torti v.
Van Horn. This was a California court case, in which a “Good Samaritan” was
sued for injuries she allegedly caused when pulling a friend from a car after
an accident. The friend later wanted to sue her, a lower court said no, but the
California Supreme Court said the suit could be allowed. The decision began
with these words: “Under well-established common law principles, a person has
no duty to come to the aid of another.”
In the light of that principle, the
priest and the Levite in today’s parable did nothing wrong.
In the light
of Torti v. Van Horn, they actually did the sensible thing.
In any case, now I know why the
scholar of the law asked the questions he did. It’s what lawyers did in those
days. It’s what lawyers still do today. They test each other. It’s a contest.
They justify themselves. That’s just lawyers being lawyers, I guess.
(This might apply especially to law students.)
So, the question, “Who is my
neighbor?” was in that sense was an honest one. The scholar was
testing Jesus, looking for a debate, specifically on Leviticus 19:18.
Context is everything. If
someone asks me what “right” means, the answer is, “it depends.” Depending
on the situation it can be the opposite of left, wrong,
inappropriate, absurd, or, as a noun, privilege.
“Who
is my neighbor” means, “define neighbor.” Here, too, from a legalistic
perspective, it depends. It can be the opposite of stranger (or
alien), i.e. an acquaintance or relative; it can be the opposite of enemy, i.e.
friend.
Another way to put the question
would be: If I have to love my neighbor as myself, then I don’t have to love
one who is not my neighbor. Who would that be?
Moses would have said: the
answer is obvious. (See the first reading.)
Jesus was up to the challenge, but
didn’t use the typical legal method. Instead he told a story.
Paul writes in today’s second
reading that Jesus is the one who reconciles all things for the Father, making
peace by the blood of his cross. This is deeper than any legal language, and
more effective teaching than any parable.
Actually, the law itself answered
the scholar’s question, in Leviticus 19:34, which tells us: You shall love the
stranger as yourself!
Jesus actually turns the question on
its head. For him the question isn’t, “Who is my neighbor?” The parable asks,
“Who should I be a neighbor to?” The answer is obvious.
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