Sometimes the greatest act of humility is not offering help — but receiving it.
by Sister Sally Ann Brickner
Sunday's Scripture passages have given me new insights about myself and neighborliness. In the first reading from the book of Deuteronomy Moses is giving his farewell address to those who journeyed with him for 40 years through the Sinai Desert to the Promised Land. “God’s guidance is very near; it is on their lips and in their hearts,” he tells them. In the Gospel, Jesus teaches the scholar of the law not ‘who his neighbor is’ but ‘how to be a neighbor.’
For over two months I have been hobbled by broken bones in my feet. The healing process seems to take forever! As I review what has transpired since my fall on April 16, I feel ashamed to admit that I refused to relinquish my independence. Many Sisters and staff sought to be neighborly, but I was extremely reluctant to allow them to help me. “Pride goes before a fall” (Proverbs 16: 18) but, in my case, it also followed it. Only under duress did I accept help for getting to appointments, pushing my wheelchair, carrying a tray of food, or cleaning my room.
The Parable of the Good Samaritan is about seeing AND being seen, about neighboring AND being neighbored. And I, so unwilling to be ‘neighbored’ these last several months by the helpful individuals around me, must ask myself whether I also refuse to be dependent on God who alone accomplishes whatever good is in or done through me. Do I allow God to ‘neighbor' me?
In Psalm 69: 14-15, King David turns to God who is his only hope in time of need:
"But as for me, this is my prayer to you, at the time you have set, O God. In your great mercy, O God, answer me with your unfailing help … "
Teach me how to be a compassionate neighbor and how to accept graciously the neighborliness of others.
What a graced insight! The traveler had to accept the help... and from the most unlikely source. How often have I refused help from The Source?