15^th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Today’s Gospel passage is one which we are all extremely familiar with, the parable of the Good Samaritan. So much so that I think all of you here can give a better homily than any priest. So I will not dwell specifically on it but rather something related to it.

Few days ago, one of the brothers in or community asked whether we would be interested in watching Lord of the Rings. So in the end I decided for all and said yes. So we watched all 3 movies over the space of 5 evenings. While watching the 2^nd one, The Two Towers, something struck me. 

One of the characters said this, “How could the world go back to the way it was when so much bad has happened? But in the end, it’s only a passing thing, this shadow. Even darkness must pass, a new day will come, and when the sun shines, it will shine out the clearer.”

So much bad things have happened over the past few years, especially the past 2. So much reckless hate and senseless violence that I feel that evil have overtaken the world. Everywhere economy collapsing, wars erupt and people still fight for their own selfish reasons. Around us we see people in need of help but sometimes we just turn away, not wanting to get involved. Is this being human?

The good Samaritan represents the good that is still in this world today, the others did not want to get involved, either out of social conditioning or religious upbringing. This is why Christ said whoever is in need is our neighbor. We despair because there is so much evil in the world but are we doing our part to lessen the effect? Or are we contributing to it further?

In the end, as Christ said, the world and everything in it will pass but his words will remain, and we are proclaimers of his word to the world today. Some become cynical, some become bitter and disillusioned, but we must always hold on to Christs’ promise.

Another line from the movie which struck me was this, “What are we holding to? That there’s some good in this world, and it’s worth fighting for.” The task is for us to decide what are we going to do to lessen the effect of evil around us. Either we let evil engulf us or we decide that no matter how little good is there left in this world, it is still worth fighting for. Because all of us will pass on and our children will inherit what we leave behind. 

Do we leave behind a world that is broken and valueless or do we leave behind a legacy of love and compassion?

Let us then continually pray for strength and grace to be faithful disciples of Christ and as Legionaries, to spread the loving message of the Gospel through our prayers and good works. And we can be assured that one day, a new day will dawn, where peace and love will prevail. Amen.