The Modern-Day Good Samaritan

So today I went to check my e-mail on yahoo.com and on the main page, Yahoo lists a bunch of headlining news in sports, finance, the whole nine yards. The one thing that caught my eye was an article about a Good Samaritan in New York who happens or should I say "happened" to be homeless. I'll give you a bit of a synopsis of what the article talked about:

A homeless Guatemalan immigrant was walking on the sidewalks of New York one night and in front of him was a couple. After a few moments, the couple started to talk more aggressively and out of no where became physically aggressive. The homeless man obviously saw what was taking place and decided to intervene. He tried to separate the two quarreling people but the man fighting with his girlfriend pulled out a sharp weapon and repeatedly stabbed the homeless man until he was reduced down to the ground in a pool of blood. The couple quickly parted ways leaving the poor Good Samaritan man there to die in his own blood.

Now, what shocked me was that the woman involved in the quarrel didn't even try to stop her boyfriend/murderer, but instead fled from the scene of the crime. The badly wounded man laid there even after a few pedestrians walked past him. Not one of them called the authorities. One man even poked at the body thinking it was just another drunk homeless guy laying on the streets of New York. One lady finally called 911 but when the police arrived at the scene, the man had already died. They don't know at what point the man passed, whether it was before or after the man poked at the man's dying body.

This is really a new despicable low for the human race.

When I read this story I felt hatred for the man who committed this senseless crime and for the men and women who stood idly by while a man died right in front of their eyes. It broke my heart to even imagine what that man was thinking before he intervened. Did he think he had nothing to lose if the man did or didn't retaliate? Or did he feel it was his duty as a citizen to rise up and act when he is a witness to something like this? He did the right thing, just as Jesus did for us when he sacrificed himself, to help the woman in distress. She is like us sinners who lived and breathed sin, and who didn't comprehend or even care that someone died for us. This story made me think if Jesus is still trying to show non-believers the truth and the reality of his death on the cross through real-life instances and examples. Maybe this story will bring lives to come to know Christ and to realize the true meaning of Christ's death and resurrection.

R.I.P. Hugo Alfredo Tale-Yax

Thanks for reading

Jonathan

Becoming like Christ

I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.
- Gandhi
I found this quote just now and I started thinking about it more closely. What he states is so true. People who call themselves Christian rarely act like Christ acted. Generally speaking, these Christians go to church only on holidays like Christmas, Easter, or any other type of celebration. If we call ourselves Christian, we should become Christ like. In everywhere in our life, we must be like him such as in our talk, behavior, and the way we act. It's hard to be like Jesus in this day and age but we have to pray and ask the Holy Spirit to give us strength and courage to be portray Christ in our life and not be ashamed. I urge you guys to pray that people see Jesus when they see you.