United University Church July 14, 2013

Luke 10: 25 -37

MISTER ROGERS DOESNT LIVE HERE ANYMORE

Jesus deserves credit for his patience with a lawyer with a puffed-up sense of his superiority. Matching wits and sparring with an opponent about the law would annoy me. But its what lawyers do, isnt it? Eternal life, you say? And what must I do to receive this so-called eternal life, the lawyer challenged Jesus. The answer Jesus returned was brief and to the point. Citing scripture, Jesus pointed to the well-known commandment to love God and to love ones neighbor as oneself. It was a concise summary in line with the heart of Hebrew scripture that someone steeped in the Jewish tradition could hardly dispute. Then the lawyer pounced, thinking he had surely outwitted the humble Galilean preacher. And just who is my neighbor, anyway? he demanded. There was a brief silence as Jesus recognized an opening for a parable that would be remembered and retold down through the ages. The lawyer was looking for boundaries, for limits on the scope of his compassion. What was the bare minimum he needed to accomplish in life in order to achieve his eternal reward, he wanted to know. Through a parable, Jesus cleverly reframed the issue in a way that powerfully illustrated a far bigger question what it meant to be a neighbor. In doing so, the Gospel of Lukes Jesus holds a mirror up for us all to critically re-examine how and when we live out the meaning of being a neighbor. Almost anyone who has set foot in a church knows the basic story a man traveling on the perilous road from Jerusalem to Jericho is ambushed by robbers who stripped and beat him, leaving him for dead by the side of the road. The good guys that is, a priest and a Levite do their best to avoid getting involved by passing by on the other side. They had their reasons, I suppose. Only after that did a despised Samaritan come along and have the compassion to treat his wounds and transport him to an inn where he could recover. He even went the second mile by paying for his lodging and making himself available to cover any further costs the innkeeper might incur.

I dont know about you, but I find the end of this parable of Jesus a bit abrupt and unsatisfying. Something in me cries out to know what happened next. Yes, Jesus. And then what happened? Did those who beat and robbed the traveler ever pay for their crime? I guess I also want to be reassured that the innkeeper didnt come after the Good Samaritan fo r outrageous additional expenses for staying beyond the checkout time. Id love to hear that the beaten man won a certificate of recognition from the Jerusalem Sanhedrin for his subsequent peacemaking efforts to build bridges between the Jews and the despised Samaritan community. And sadly, Id also be a lot happier with some assurance that the victim didnt parade his victimhood around in search of a bit more love. I guess thats a sad commentary on my neighborhood. But Jesus ended the story where he did because he had made his point. It wasnt so much about the Samaritans act of compassion and its consequences, even though our contemporary mindset might zero in on that. Today we have lost the shock value that it was a despised Samaritan who performed the compassionate acts, going the extra mile in being a model neighbor for the unfortunate crime victim. Think of your own personal least favorite group of people, and you may just begin to understand. Who is my neighbor? is not a question about geography. Challenged by those we hate or fear, we struggle with what being a neighbor really means. It is still inadequate if we see the story as merely a summons to what one preacher called drive-by compassion or the fabled random acts of kindness. Charity is important and has its place, of course. But the parable is about more. This parable is about a way of being. Jesus concluded his story by asking the lawyer which one of the three travelers had proved to be a neighbor to the crime victim. Grudgingly, the lawyer was able to correctly identify the one who showed mercy. We note that he could not bring himself to identify him as the Samaritan. He would likely choke before acknowledging one from that traitorous, heretical and unfaithful people as a hero. Go and do likewise, Jesus instructed the suddenly speechless lawyer. The chastened lawyer realized he had a lot still to learn. Fred Rogers had his own answer to the theological question Who is my neighbor? It was just over ten years ago that the award-winning childrens TV host lost a battle with stomach cancer. Many from the generation that grew up with the celebrity Mister Rogers have no idea that he was an ordained Presbyterian minister who never led a congregation. A conference last month at his alma mater, Pittsburgh Theological Seminary, focused on the lasting impact that over three decades hosting Mister Rogers Neighborhood has left on a generation.

According to his biographer, Amy Hollingsworth, Roger told her simply that your neighbor is whoever you happen to be with at the moment. No loopholes. You have to love everybody. Just think of it! I like you just the way you are, he told youngsters in his audience with a sincerity that convinced even their cynical and hardened parents. The conference a t Pittsburgh Theological Seminary last month emphasized how the television show taught children how to respond to challenges, fears and life transitions. It consciously cultivated virtues of neighborliness, hospitality and respect for others among young viewers. Its a beautiful day in the neighborhood, Mr. Rogers sang on each show as he pulled off his sports jacket and donned a cardigan sweater. Its a neighborly day in this beauty wood, a neighborly day for a beauty would you be mine? Could you be mine? Suddenly, words that sounded innocent and affirming on Saturday afternoon ring hopelessly nave and shallow in the light of Sunday morning. But are they? And what do we need to teach our children? In other quarters, the gentle Mister Rogers found derision and contempt. He was bullied as an eight year-old by thugs who taunted him as Fat Freddie. A talented musician, Freddy learned to work out his frustrations on the piano rather than by retaliating. At his peak of popularity, Saturday Night Live made him the target of ridicule and pointed satire. Newspaper columns occasionally dismissed the values he promoted as mere psycho -babble or silly and pointless exercises in self-esteem. He must have done a fair amount of piano playing at those times. By the time the show had completed its run of three decades, Rogers had composed more than200 songs for the show, in addition to writing the scripts. It has been ten years since Fred Rogers left us. Mister Rogers doesnt live here anymore not in any bodily sense, at least. And the mean streets of Los Angeles hardly seem to be the kind of place where his vision of neighbors and a neighborhood where all are loved can flourish. Recently one internet social critic gave this timely observation This world need more Mayberry and less Honey Boo Boo. God help us! In many ways, the era of Mister Rogers may appear in retrospect to be a more innocent time. Entertainment since then has become coarser and ever more violent. Communication spreads faster. At the same time, were more willing to grapple honestly with things that divide us things like racism, sexism and homophobia. We may not be a quick to sweep things under

the rug. We know that then, as now, crimes still went unpunished and prejudice and intolerance were excused. But I see hope. Many who grew up on a diet of Mister Rogers are older and more confident now. When the strong bully the weak or those who are different, there are more who are ready to stand up for them, to speak up for the, to be real and courageous neighbors. In the place of Mister Rogers, there are new and inspiring role models. I am confident that kids here in Peace Camp will soon if they havent already hear the story of a young Pakistani schoolgirl who refused to be bullied into silence by the Taliban. This was the week that a strong and confident young Malala Yousafzai, recovered now from a vicious attack, stirred the United Nations Youth Assembly and the world on her 16 th birthday with a ringing affirmation. One child, one teacher, one book and one pen can change the world! Mister Rogers may be gone, and human justice may fail, but it can still be a beautiful day in the neighborhood if we look for the beauty. There are new Good Samaritans in the making. There is hope. And like the chastened lawyer, young and old still have much to learn.