Where is the Good Samaritan in Gaza? Seeing geopolitics in the light of the Gospel

Julian Paparella

Friday, August 8, 2025

Graphic of two doves facing each other with palm branches in their beaks, one in the black, white, green, and red of the Palestinian flag and the other in the blue and white of the Israeli flag.

Jesus told the parable of the Good Samaritan in response to a question posed by a legal scholar: “Who is my neighbour?” The moving story concludes with Jesus asking a question of his own: “Which of these three – the priest, the Levite, or the Samaritan – do you think was a neighbour to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?” Revealing the moral of the story, the legal scholar replies: “The one who showed him mercy.” Jesus says, “Go and do likewise” (Luke 10:25-37).

This parable is a touchstone for how we are to treat our fellow human beings, especially those who are suffering. When they see the man who has been beaten and left for dead in the ditch, the priest and the Levite – upstanding members of society who are held in high regard – pass by on the other side of the road, turning their gaze as if they hadn’t noticed. On the contrary, the Samaritan – despised at the time as an idolatrous heretic – stops, seized with compassion for the man, and takes him to the inn to get help.

Jesus intends this parable as a very powerful lesson, not only for the legal scholar but for all of his listeners. So too, he intends it as a powerful lesson for us.

In his encyclical on human fraternity, entitled Fratelli Tutti (“Brothers All”), Pope Francis recognized the crucial importance of this Gospel passage in today’s world:

The parable eloquently presents the basic decision we need to make in order to rebuild our wounded world. In the face of so much pain and suffering, our only course is to imitate the Good Samaritan. Any other decision would make us either one of the robbers or one of those who walked by without showing compassion for the sufferings of the man on the roadside. The parable shows us how a community can be rebuilt by men and women who identify with the vulnerability of others, who reject the creation of a society of exclusion, and act instead as neighbours, lifting up and rehabilitating the fallen for the sake of the common good. At the same time, it warns us about the attitude of those who think only of themselves and fail to shoulder the inevitable responsibilities of life as it is. (Fratelli Tutti, #67)

We can let these words sink into our minds and hearts as we witness the wars, atrocities, and tragedies unfolding around the world. We can ask: where is the Good Samaritan in Gaza? So too in Ukraine. There are so many places that need the kind of mercy that the Good Samaritan exemplifies.

Next, we can ask, where is Jesus, the true Good Samaritan? Identifying with the least of his brothers and sisters, Jesus is found weeping with those who mourn the tragic loss of their family members, especially children. Likewise, Jesus is found starving in those who have no food. Jesus agonizes with those whose homes and livelihoods have been destroyed. Jesus yearns for peace and hopes it will come at last.

Jesus is calling each of us to follow the path of the Good Samaritan in whatever way we can, not turning a blind eye or hurrying along the other side of the road, but being struck with compassion and doing what we can to help.

How have you responded to the suffering in Gaza, Ukraine, and throughout the world? What can you do to show greater compassion for victims of war, violence, and starvation?

Jesus, Prince of Peace, show Your tender love and care to those who are suffering and teach us to do the same. Amen.