Good Samaritan or "Just too busy!"?
Darren Pries-Klassen
If you've read the parable of the Good Samaritan you will quickly gravitate towards the actions of the Samaritan who showed compassion for the man beaten, robbed and left lying at the side of the road while voicing disappointment in the Priest and the Levite who hurried by. How could anyone – especially someone with religious convictions – not stop to help a person in need? It turns out it's much more common than we might think.
Some years ago a study was done at Princeton Theological Seminary where a number of students were asked to give presentations to fellow students and faculty. Half of the students were given the topic of the Good Samaritan and the other half of the students were given a variety of biblical stories that did not deal with compassion and generosity. All the students were made to wait in one building before walking to a second building where they were to give their presentation. Prior to making their way to the second building some students were told they had plenty of time before presenting while others were told they needed to hurry or they would be late. What the students did not know is that on the path between the two buildings an actor was lying on the ground, coughing repeatedly and appearing in clear need of help. The theory was that those students given the topic of the Good Samaritan would be more likely to stop and help the individual in need than the other students with random topics, regardless of how much time they did or did not have before their presentation.
The results were startling. There was no correlation between the presentation topic and the likelihood of stopping to help. In other words, students who were about to present on the merits of helping people were just as likely to pass by the person in need as students presenting on unrelated topics. What did determine whether people would stop to help was the amount of time they were given. Of the students who were told they had plenty of time, 63% offered some form of help while only 10% of the students who were told they should rush to the second building offered assistance.
No matter how much we agree with the actions of the Good Samaritan, all of us are capable of acting like the Priest or Levite if we feel we don’t have the time. It's not enough that we believe in showing compassion and generosity to others in need. Of greater importance is a slower pace in life and a core conviction that stepping out of the busyness of life to make time to help people is always worthwhile.
At Mennonite Foundation of Canada we refer to this type of generosity as Joyful, Faithful, Giving. Compassion and generosity at the level of the Good Samaritan isn't worried about the cost nor does it worry about schedules. Good Samaritans help and show compassion because they know that spending time and giving resources for the well being of others is always a joy. So, what'll it be, Priest, Levite, or Good Samaritan?
Darren Pries-Klassen is the newly appointed Executive Eirector of Mennonite Foundation of Canada (MFC). For stewardship education and estate and charitable gift planning, contact your nearest MFC office or visit Mennofoundation.ca.