The Gray Monk

Tewkesbury Abbey
Trinity 13 2004
Sung Eucharist

+ In the name of God,
Father, Son and Holy Spirit,
Amen

"Thou shalt love thy neighbour, as thyself!"

Jesus' hearers of the story of the good Samaritan would, at first, have been amused - certainly by that opening line - "a certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho." In Christ's time no one in his right mind undertook that journey without a well armed escort! To do so was almost a suicide attempt. Someone living in that part of the world today would probably have a similar reaction to anyone announcing they planned to walk that route. Then it was infested by bandits who even made it necessary for the Roman patrols to go fully prepared; today, with an Intifada in progress, not even Palestinians undertake that road lightly. Such is the progress we have made with the Gospel message of peace and brotherhood in 2,000 years.

"But he, willing to justify himself, asked, 'And who is my neighbour?' " It seems we still have not learned the answer to that question, especially when you are confronted with the abomination of murdered children in Russia, as fanatics first seize and then murder hostages. It rises as a question each time some suicide bomber blows themselves up in a crowded shopping mall or on a bus. It manifests itself when aircraft are seized by fanatics and deliberately rammed into buildings, and still we do not understand the answer.

The Samaritan was not just an untouchable - they were completely and utterly beyond contact or even dialogue to the orthodox Jew. By the time the story got to this point, there would have been no one still smiling or laughing. What was being said there was almost the same as saying to a Russian that the person who has just saved his or her life by donating blood for the lifesaving transfusion was a Chechen. Or to a member of the Hasidic Jewish Sect that the man who pulled him from the rubble of his bombed house and then rendered lifesaving first aid was a member of Hamas. Or perhaps telling the Reverend Ian Paisley that Jerry Adams had saved him following a heart attack.

This is the problem we must face: our neighbour is not just the person in need, they are also the person we dislike, the person with whom we are at war, and even the person trying to rob you! Nice little problem, isn't it? Even for our suicidal traveler on the road to Jericho, the very robbers were his neighbours.

Thus the problem for us is how do we deal with them?

The Archbishop of Canterbury said on radio, even while I was preparing this sermon, that the events of this week have severely tested his faith. I can well believe it; my own faith has taken a hammering as well, and it certainly isn't over yet. I suppose we should all be grateful that I am not President Putin or President Bush - there would be nuclear deserts in certain parts of the world if I were, but that does not solve the question, and it certainly isn't Christian!

In its fullness of meaning the story of the Samaritan encapsulates the Christian dichotomy - I must love not only my friends - but my mortal enemies as well. I am required to turn the other cheek, to return harsh words with love, and to return hurt with kindness. Impossible! It flies in the face of my humanity which demands revenge. It demands an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. Life for life, blood cries out for blood! Yet, if I am truly a follower of Christ this cannot be; I must recognize the neighbour and render aid to the injured, friend and foe alike!

As we watch these events unfold on our television screens in the comfort of our own homes we are insulated from it all. It is almost a game show - something we can distance ourselves from and turn off when we tire of it. Yet we are as much a part of it as the people who have lost husbands, children, mothers, and innocence in the tragedy in Russia. We are as much a part of the tragedy in Iraq as we are in Israel and Palestine. John Donne, for all his faults, summed it up rather well in his famous sermon which said, "No man is an island, entire of itself." We are all part of the whole, as much as if Beachy Head were to collapse into the sea and be swept away it would reduce this island, so, whenever any of our neighbours are killed, maimed, or butchered, so are we. "There is one body in Christ" said St Paul, and the Samaritan story shows us just how inclusive that is.

So, what do we do about the fanatics, the psychopaths who behead their victims in the name of their faith and cause? How do we deal with these people? How do we deal with the mob who would rather release a Barabas than a Jesus?

Perhaps the answer lies in seeing the way a body deals with cancer. Untreated, it will invade every cell and kill off the host; treated, the body's defences work to isolate and contain the cancerous growth, strangle it, and destroy it. Now, I am not advocating a call to arms, far from it; what I do advocate is that we must work with those moderate minds and voices in the trouble spots around the world. We need to give heed to their fears and concerns and find ways to address them without destroying what is good in our societies. We need to become better neighbours!

The Jews hated the Samaritans because the Samaritans had broken away from mainstream Judaism and followed their own version, sacrificing on hilltops - the "High Places" of the psalms - and following a simplified version of the Law of Moses. They mixed, perforce, but the misunderstanding and distrust was mutual. Seems almost as if we are describing the Middle East of today, yet it is still the same problem. These are the barriers that need to be breeched, to be broken down and replaced by bridges. Trust is what is needed, trust, knowledge, and understanding.

Our Victorian forebears thought they could create a "system" which could guarantee prosperity and employment for all. It is not working and it is a fundamentally flawed concept, even though we keep trying to make it function. I suspect that something approaching a working model will only be created when we recognize that "neighbour" principle. To be a neighbour does not require you to abandon your beliefs or your dignity, your worship system, or your prosperity; it does require you to recognize the needs of others and to seek to help them in constructive ways. It requires us to seek understanding - even if at first glance it appears incomprehensible - you cannot help if you do not understand! Some wounds are easily attended, a bandage, a sticking plaster, and some disinfectant may be all that is required. In other instances the wounds are not so visible and extend deep into the psyche - perhaps into the collective psyche of an entire group or race. They are still our neighbours, and we are still obliged to seek to help.

No one said it was easy then, no one says it is easy now. But it is what is required of us as followers of Christ. Heaven help us all as our faith is put to the test in addressing this one. If the Archbishop has suffered a test of his faith, how much more so have we?

"Go and do thou likewise!"