Rector's Reflection: Loving the Neighbor , July 12, 2025

Beloved Members of St. Martin's,

This weekend we are going to hear probably one of the most famous parables in all of scripture: the Parable of the Good Samaritan, and it's easy to zone out when confronted with a story so familiar. Yet this parable is one of the strongest imaginative scenarios in Luke's gospel about how regular people, even the least likely, live faithfully-- not by words, but by specific actions of compassion, bravery, and mercy.

We also find it easy to try imagine ourselves into these stories Jesus told, often as the main "good" character. We all want to be the good shepherd, not the wolf or the hired hand. We all want to be the loving, forgiving father, and not the prodigal son or the jealous older brother. That's only natural.

But I am going to challenge you to spend some time this weekend asking yourself who would be the man lying in the ditch, helpless? Who would be the priest, or the Levite? Who would be the Samaritan, the unlikely hero?

Where in the story, and in our lives, have we felt the Commonwealth of God come near to us? Who are our neighbors?

I ask you to hold these questions in your hearts as you read the latest letter from the Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church, the Most Rev. Sean Rowe, regarding events in the life of our body politic in recent weeks. Presiding Bishop Rowe's letter immediately follows. After that letter there will be a list of resources for you to use to stay informed about the living witness of the Episcopal Church in public affairs.

In Christ,

Mother Leslie+