The third character challenge is the trait of KINDNESS which requires us to gather all appropriate information, listen with empathy, think rationally, express thoughts clearly, and act with understanding. Merely holding a sign that says “Be Kind” or retweeting a video with #BeKind falls short of the necessary action that kindness requires. We know we are commanded to demonstrate kindness because the story of kindness is famously told in the gospel of Luke. No matter whether a person has familiarity with a bible or not, most everyone knows the Parable of the Good Samaritan.
In this famous parable, a lawyer is questioning Jesus about a pathway for eternal life to which Jesus responds with two basic rules: love God and love your neighbor as yourself. The lawyer, in an attempt to justify who can rightly be determined to be his neighbor asks Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”
In reply Jesus said: “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. The next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.’
“Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?”
The lawyer replied, “The one who had mercy on him.”
Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.”
This is a simple parable but with a lot of layers. Each person mentioned in the story is mentioned for a particular reason. While each person represents a place of status or a member of a race, Jesus wanted to particularly focus on the relationship between the beaten Jew and the Samaritan, who were well known during biblical times to be enemies of one another. The Samaritan was not influenced by by society’s perception of how he should respond to the beaten man and did not hesitate to act. He exhibited not just kindness; but humanity as well.
Here is an honest question, would you help someone if you know they will never be able to return the favor? Or what about, would you help someone if no one was around to see it or hear it? I want to believe that many of us are actually altruistic in nature, but I also participate in enough social media communities to know that some people are only kind when the cameras are turned on and people are watching. I am also aware of the great hypocrisy in demanding kindness from others, when (and I know I use this phrase a lot) people haven’t cleaned their own houses first.
When Jesus says, “Go and do likewise,” he is expecting action. Kindness must not be demanded, it must be demonstrated.
Please don’t treat people bad.
#ucandewitt 