| Sutphin Parables: Mustard Seed/Good Samaritan Extreme Poverty in Africa |
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| Luke 10:25-37 Who is the main character? Who is the story about? Provide evidence. To read well one must provide evidence and examples to justiify that reading. I use the example of the nex terroism data which says terrorist attacks are up threefold and suicide attacks are up fourfold since 9/11. This data can be used to support the idea that our war on terror is failing or it can be used to support the idea that we need to work harder and, in fact, the war is working. Both can't be right, and if we want the truth we will need to provide evidence or justification for our position. This lead to a larger discussion about inclusivtiy and exclusivity, inlight of recent events in Ricmond. In terms of this story, we need to find the focul point or main character, just like we would in any story or theatrical performance. Once we find the main character, we then read the story through their experience. In my reading, the lawyer is the main character and I offer three reasons: 1) he starts the conflict and is present throughout the story; 2) his character is round or full and there is an arc to his devleopment (he changes, though not a lot); 3) the story teller provides us with lots of info about him. Taken together, then, I say the story is about the lawyer, so we need to listen very closely to what he says and does. What question or problem is Jesus trying to solve? Provide evidence. On the surface, the question seems to be a relgiious debate between Jesus and the lawyer about what it means to be a good Jew and what is required to inherit eternal life. But Jesus seems to flip the problem and make it about what it means to be alive as a real human being. By discussing the issue of neighbor Jesus reveals one of the characteristcs of a person who is really alive. But as we dig deeper we see the story is about what type of lifestyles inhibit one's ablity to see with compassion, which is ultimately what it means to be human. Those on top, and those with power and wealth and status, tend to have a harder time seeing the suffering of others, whereas those who have experienced life from the underside have the opportunity to relate their experience to that of others. Where does the conflict occur? The conflit occurs on many levels: between oral toral and written torah; between Jesus and the Lawyer; between the robbers and the victim, etc. But ulitmately the major conflict, which is embedded in the story, is between how the two groups respond to the victim on the side of the road: the elite and powerful (Levite and Priest) and the outsider and powerless (Samaitan) Character Sketches Lawyer: Scholar of the Torah, which implies that he is a righteous man of God, interprets the Law of Moses. He is a teacher , a Rabbi. Most likely a jerk, becuase he sought to trick Jesus, not to ask a question to find truth. He also sought to justify himself after Jesus responded to the quetstion, which implies that he is selfish, too. Samaraitan: People from the northern part of Israel are the Samaritans; They were not exiled with the southern Jews by the Babylonians, and they stayed behind in Israel, intermarried with indegenous peoples. When the sounthern Jews (Judeans) returned from exile, they claimed to be the rightfull heirs to the Jewish relgions, and they felt the Samaritans had diluted and altered the religion. There was conflict and the Judeans won and even destroyed the Samiritan Temple. These people were socially second class citizens, outsiders, hated by the Jews. This Samartian may have been wealthy, because he has money to help vicitm and he is carrying oil and wine (implies he might be a merchant). Also, he sees victim, but with eyes of compassion. Levite: One of original tribes of Israel, priestly class that runs the temple system. They collected taxes, called tithes, wihich is different that our concept of tithing where you put in what you want. These people actually extract tithe money much like a tax collector. They are part of the Temple system, exerted controll and power in their society, and they are a part of the Elite. They would be read as the righteous representative of God and the Jewish religion. Priest: Administered the Temple system, which means they actually performed the rituatls and made the offerings to God. They are mediators between the people and between God, which iimplies the exert a tremendous amount of power and influence over the sociiety and culture. They too are a part of the elite and powerful in the society. They would be read as righteous representative of God and the Jewish religion. Questions to ask the Text? To unlock the meaning of the parable, we have a resonsiblity to find the places in the story that beg us to ask a quesiton. When we get inside these gaps or openings, we ask the quesiton and then try to imagine and answer. If we do this well, we will unlock othe point or meaning of the parable. Possible questions: Why did the Samaitan stop? Possible answer: the Samaritan is a part of the underclass and outsider class, which implies he has experienced oppression, hatred, and maltreatment by the general population. One who has suffered is open to expereiencing and relating to the suffering of the other, no matter who they are. This is why it says he sees the vicitm, but with the eyes of compassion. Why did the Leivte and Priest not stop? They both saw the vicitim but went around him, implying that they did not see with compassion. How could it be that the group you'd expect to act with compassion cannot do so? The reason has something to do with power and priviliage. When you have these two things, they tend to be conservative, which means that do whatever they must to protect and hold on to these things. This desire to conserve drives the need to create walls and barriers and fences to maintain what you have. The problem is that these walls prevent us from acting according to our humanity. Why was the vicitm stripped naked (what does the concelament of his identity tell us)? The point is that the Samaratan helped the vicitm whose idemtity was unknown. If the vicitm's identity was known, then the priest and levite mighthave helped if they were in their class of friends or associates. But since they didn't know, they kept going. Why a priest and levite and samartian? This is most interesting, for Jesus could have said three dudes were cruising down the road, one stopped and two didn't. He chose these types of people for a reason, mainly to show that those from the underclass have a greater liklikhood to be able to see with their humanity and act with compassion. Those in the overclass are, in a sense, training to protect themselves, and not to see with their humanity, which is with the eyes of compasson. Main Point/Summary: 1) The Lawyer asks the question, "who is my neighbor?" Another way to ask this quesiton is to say, "Who is human?" Both questions assume that there is a class of people that are my neighbor and therefore deservie my love, cossideration and attention, and a class of people that are not my neighbor and therefore do not deservie my love, consideration, and attention. This is a question of a sick, diseased mind that is less than human. How do we know this? Because if someone were sick by the side of the road and you were asked to let your humanity respond, you would be forced, like the lawyer, to acknowledge that anyone--especially the helpless--need our compassion. Jesus flips this question and asks the question what does it mean to be a good neighbor? This can also be asked differently, namely, What does it mean to be human. The answer, of course, is to see the world and all its components with the eyes of compassion. 2) the issue Jesus raises is not simply about acting and seeing with compassion, becasue that is fairly obvious and most people would agree that living with compassion makes us more alive and more humane. His use of the Elite not seeing with compassion and the underclass seing with compassion underscores the idea our humaneness and ability to live with compassion is soically constructed and reiinforced through economic, political, and relgious systems. Imlicit in this parable is the idea social systems dehumanize the priviliged and elite class, and oppress the underclass. 3) The Parable also addresses the issue of tribal ethic, where your rules and ethical prinicpals only apply to your group, and univeralism, where you will your principals on every person. This is the most basic ethical move one could make, but to make the shift from the tribe to the universe requires one to transcend one's own needs or one the groups' needs. MUSTARD SEED The metaphor reveals something about the nature of the Kindgom of God: Students came up with the four major points: 1) It is small and insignificant, and appears to not have power to change things. But the belief that it can change reality is essential. In other words, faith is required. 2) The Kingdom of God alters and reshapes entire landscapes. It has the capacity to radically change reality. 3) Reverses the standard value system; the least becomes the greates, what you think is important isn't. In other words, it desroys that which is valuable in favor of a new value system. 4) The Kingdom of God has the power and potential to grow. The metaphor reveals potency. As a student poem says: Me, I can be the Mustard Seed, Me, I can grow much better than the guy or girl next to me. Who? Me? Me? It's all up to me. THis poem reveals that the Kingdom of God is not something that magically drops out of the sky but grows within each of us. The Kinddom of God is US. THe other question this metaphor reveals is "Where does true power reside? Where is true power located?" In the explicitely strong, or the small, overlooked thing. |
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| Singer: Moral Obligation/ Extreme Poverty Sachs: Ending Extreme Poverty in Vanity Fair Real Aid/Phantom Aid to Africa The End of Poverty: What We Can Do to Help You + Village: Ending Poverty in Small Villages Four Easy Pieces: Sachs Water for Life: Jay-Z MDG Youth Action Guide Jolie/Sachs Documentary Rapid Victories Against Extreme Poverty MLK: I Have a Dream Primer on Mustard Seed |