Slurs and hateful language fill the air. Bullies push people around on playgrounds and in workplaces. Drivers cut you off \u2026 and then make obscene gestures.<\/p>\n

What in the world can you do? Be kind.<\/p>\n

Steven Petrow is a writer who lives in North Carolina. He was recently waiting in a long line at his favorite bakery, a shop which makes amazing scones. Watching the people ahead of him pluck the delicious scones out of the glass case, he worried that the bakery would run out. But when he got to the counter, he saw that there was one left, so he pointed and said, \u201cI\u2019ll take that.\u201d<\/p>\n

No sooner had he spoken than the guy behind him shouted, \u201cHey, that\u2019s my scone! I\u2019ve been waiting in line for 20 minutes!\u201d Petrow knew that the man had been waiting, but a line is a line.<\/p>\n

What do you think Petrow said to the man? He could have declared, \u201cSorry, it\u2019s mine!\u201d He had every right to do so. Instead, he asked him, \u201cWould you like half?\u201d The man was shocked into silence, but after a moment he accepted the offer and made a suggestion of his own: \u201cWhy don\u2019t I buy another pastry and we can share both?\u201d<\/p>\n

Then they sat down on a nearby bench to share their pastries.<\/p>\n

The two men had almost nothing in common in terms of jobs, age, political views or marital status. They were strangers. But they shared a moment of connection and simple kindness. \u201cI felt happy,\u201d says Petrow, \u201cand, frankly, wanted more of that feeling.\u201d<\/p>\n

Another story of unexpected kindness is found in today\u2019s Gospel, the familiar story of the Good Samaritan.<\/p>\n

Jesus says that neither a priest nor a Levite would help the robbery victim. But a Samaritan went to the wounded Jewish man \u201cand bandaged his wounds, having poured oil and wine on them. Then he put him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. The next day he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said, \u2018Take care of him; and when I come back, I will repay you whatever more you spend\u2019\u201d (vv. 34-35). Wow, thinks the lawyer whom Jesus is addressing with this story, that is some really impressive kindness.<\/p>\n

Then Jesus looks the lawyer square in the eye and asks him, \u201cWhich of these three, do you think, was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?\u201d (v. 36). The lawyer is shocked into silence. He thought that Jesus was talking about\u00a0the Jewish man<\/em>\u00a0as the neighbor, but now he is clearly describing\u00a0the Samaritan<\/em>\u00a0as the neighbor. The lawyer can only say, \u201cThe one who showed him mercy.\u201d<\/p>\n

And then Jesus says to him, \u201cGo and do likewise\u201d (v. 37).<\/p>\n

Go and show kindness to the Samaritan half-Jew who is the victim of slurs and hateful language. Go and split your scone with a person of a different age, political view or marital status. Go and do likewise.<\/p>\n

Usually, when discussing this story, we ask the wrong question. We ask, \u201cWho is my neighbor?\u201d A better question might be: \u201cWho is a \u2018Good Samaritan\u2019?\u201d<\/p>\n

We typically have used the term \u201cGood Samaritan\u201d to describe anyone who puts time and effort into helping a person in need. This isn\u2019t a bad thing: Such efforts certainly deserve commendation.<\/p>\n

But a\u00a0true\u00a0<\/em>Good Samaritan\u00a0is someone of a different cultural caste who helps a person outside of that circle.\u00a0The term applies to an outsider who helps an insider, not the other way around. If the parable were to be written today, it might feature a Christian being helped by a Muslim. The outsider status of the Samaritan is what makes the story so powerful, taking it to a new level.<\/p>\n

When acts of kindness cross ethnic and cultural lines, Samaritanship comes into play.<\/p>\n

A couple of weeks ago, I stopped by the kwikee-mart on Davis Islands to put some air in my bicycle tires.\u00a0 Just as I was riding away, a guy was coming out of the store.\u00a0 He started waving at me, saying, \u201cHey, excuse me there sir, could I have a word with you.\u201d<\/p>\n

He wasn\u2019t the best-dressed sort of fellow, so I was immediately leery.\u00a0 But I decided to stop and engage him.\u00a0 I warily said hello.\u00a0 He then said, \u201cYa know, I\u2019ve been watching you ride your bicycle around the island for years.\u00a0 And, well, when you started you were a bit wider than you are now.\u00a0 I just want to commend you for sticking with it for all these years.\u00a0 You\u2019ve lost weight and are really dedicated.\u00a0 I think that\u2019s great.\u00a0 Just wanted to let you know.\u201d<\/p>\n

Now I realize that I\u2019m still more wide than I am narrow, but this guy\u2019s little stop and greet really made my day.\u00a0 What a nice act of kindness.<\/p>\n

Getting back to the Good Samaritan in today\u2019s Gospel, notice the joy that the Samaritan found in his helpfulness.<\/p>\n

When we hear that the Samaritan paid the innkeeper to provide lodging and nursing, we think, \u201cWhat a generous guy.\u201d But the reality is that the Samaritan wanted to help the wounded man. It gave him joy. As Steven Petrow said after splitting his scone, \u201cI felt happy and, frankly, wanted more of that feeling.\u201d<\/p>\n

Melanie Rudd, an assistant professor of marketing at the University of Houston, has a name for the boost that we get from being kind: \u201chelper\u2019s high.\u201d She\u2019s speaking about the warm glow we feel when we help other people and see them happy. What\u2019s interesting is that Rudd calls this kind of giving \u201cimpure altruism.\u201d She sees it as impure not because it\u2019s bad, but because it benefits the giver as well as the receiver. \u201cIt\u2019s hard to do something truly altruistic,\u201d she says, \u201cbecause we always feel good about it ourselves after we\u2019ve performed the act of kindness.\u201d<\/p>\n

Call it altruism or impure altruism. Pure kindness or kindness that includes a \u201chelper\u2019s high.\u201d In the end, it\u2019s all good. And best of all, it\u2019s contagious.<\/p>\n

Yes, that\u2019s right. The kindness of other people rubs off on us and makes us more kind. The helpfulness of the Good Samaritan advanced a movement of helpfulness that continues to the present day. A kindness contagion.<\/p>\n

Stanford assistant professor of psychology Jamil Zaki has spent a number of years studying how kindness can be transmitted. \u201cKindness itself is contagious,\u201d he writes in\u00a0Scientific American<\/em>. \u201cIt can cascade across people, taking on new forms along the way.\u201d He has found that people make larger charitable gifts when they believe that others are being generous. And in situations where people cannot afford to donate, one individual\u2019s kindness can inspire others to spread positivity in other ways.<\/p>\n

One week before his scone-sharing experience, Steven Petrow was waiting in line to buy a coffee when a customer in front of him whom he didn\u2019t know and to whom he hadn\u2019t talked, told the barista that he\u2019d pay for Petrow\u2019s drink. The man said that he did that from time to time because it made him feel good.<\/p>\n

Petrow thanked him profusely, feeling as though he\u2019d been given an unexpected and precious gift. And later he wondered: \u201cWas my willingness to share a scone some days later somehow related to this gift of coffee?\u201d<\/p>\n

Probably. \u201cWhen we see other people around us acting in generous or kind or empathic ways,\u201d says Zaki, \u201cwe will be more inclined to act that way ourselves.\u201d<\/p>\n

It\u2019s the kindness contagion. Started by God, advanced by the Good Samaritan, and continuing to enhance our lives today. Go and do likewise.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Slurs and hateful language fill the air. Bullies push people around on playgrounds and in workplaces. Drivers cut you off \u2026 and then make obscene gestures. What in the world can you do? Be kind. Steven Petrow is a writer who lives in North Carolina. He was recently waiting in a long line at his […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"pgc_sgb_lightbox_settings":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4949","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-sermons"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n