By Msgr. Joseph Prior • Posted July 11, 2025

(See the readings for the Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time)

“And who is my neighbor?”

Jesus tells us the classic story, his story, of the Good Samaritan. St. Luke preserves this story for us in the written Gospel. Like so many of Jesus’s stories, it speaks to all peoples of all ages and cultures for it speaks to the heart of the human condition.

The setting in which Jesus tells this story is an interpretation on covenantal law. “What must I do to inherit eternal life?” asks the scholar. Jesus’ responds with a question: “What is written in the law?” In asking this question Jesus is framing the first question within the revelation of God’s law.

The scholar gives a wonderful answer. He quotes what might be considered the “heart” of covenantal law. He quotes from the shema of Deuteronomy (cf. Deuteronomy 6:5) and a verse in Leviticus (19:18): “You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your being, with all your strength, and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.”

The question now shifts to interpretation. St. Luke tells us that the scholar is asking this question because he “wishes to justify himself.” The law is clear and direct; it is simple to understand although it might be difficult to live at times. So the scholar is seeking to find an interpretation that satisfies himself, one that will not challenge him nor require him to change his ways.

Jesus’ interpretation will shatter this approach, refocusing the scholar on God’s ways which are far above man’s. So Jesus responds to the scholar’s question, “And who is my neighbor?,” with the story of the Good Samaritan.

We are all aware of the story; as mentioned above, it is a classic. It may be helpful to remember that Jews and Samaritans were not friends. Although they worshipped the same God, they were at enmity with one another.

We might think of groups of people today that have such enmity. We might see it in neighborhoods shared by different populations. We might see people of a common faith living in the same community but having different languages. We might see nations with a shared heritage divided by political positions.

Jesus is telling the story to an audience of Jews. The fact that the hero of the story is a Samaritan should shake them up a bit. In one sense, they are being asked to step out of their preconceived biases to see that God’s law rises above the differences they have with the Samaritan people. As the Samaritan trader demonstrates, the law of love knows no national, ethnic or religious boundaries.

Perhaps we might next consider the victim of the crime. He was making the journey from Jerusalem to Jericho. The two cities are about 18 miles apart. Jerusalem being at a high elevation, it is a 4,000 foot drop between the two locations. The road was steep, hilly, winding and prone to robbery. Even 400 years later, St. Jerome, who lived in the area, referred to it as “the Bloody Way.”

The robbers come upon the traveler and not only take his possessions and strip him, they beat him, so much so that he was left half dead. He clearly needs help. He is lying there naked on the road, probably unable to speak, bloodied by the beating and possibly unconscious.

The next two characters are the priest and the Levite. They both approach, see the victim, a fellow human being and most likely a fellow Jew, in desperate need of help. Each one walks by on the opposite side of the road and does nothing. The two are not of the wealthy class but they are leaders of the people. For them, the purity laws restricting them from contact had more importance than the law of love. They choose not to get involved and they leave the scene.

The final character is the Samaritan. He who is not part of the Jewish people sees the person in need, most likely a Jew, and he is moved with compassion. He sees the person in front of him. He sees the person in need. He sees the naked, beaten and injured person. His response is one of love.

Rather than standing aloof or passing by, he approaches the victim, washes his wounds with oil and wine then finds him a place to stay. He stays with him that night in the inn. Then when he is leaving, he pays the inn keeper to help the victim and promises to pay any extra charges on his return trip. Amazing charity.

The Samaritan understood the law of love much better than did the priest and Levite. Through his charity, he becomes the hero of the story, the one who loved his neighbor.

The story of the Good Samaritan, in a certain sense, illustrates the simplicity of God’s law. His law speaks to the heart of humanity. The story is almost like color commentary to the verse from Deuteronomy in the first reading which reads: “For this command that I enjoin on you today is not too mysterious and remote for you. It is not up in the sky… nor is it across the sea … no, it is something very near to you, already in your hearts; you have only to carry it out.”

The story of the Good Samaritan is a classic that speaks to the heart. Perhaps in this hearing, we can listen to the Lord speaking to our hearts and inviting us to open our minds to our neighbors, and treat them with mercy.

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Msgr. Joseph Prior is pastor of Our Lady of Grace Parish, Penndel, and a former professor of Sacred Scripture and rector of St. Charles Borromeo Seminary.