1. ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord is our God, the Lord alone. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might.’ Deuteronomy 6:4-5 ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord is our God, the Lord alone. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might.’ Deuteronomy 6:4-5 ‘you shall love your neighbour as yourself.’ Leviticus 19:18 ‘you shall love your neighbour as yourself.’ Leviticus 19:18 ‘You shall not hate in your heart anyone of your kin; you shall reprove your neighbour, or you will incur guilt yourself. You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against any of your people, but you shall love your neighbour as yourself: I am the Lord.’ Leviticus 19:17-18 ‘You shall not hate in your heart anyone of your kin; you shall reprove your neighbour, or you will incur guilt yourself. You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against any of your people, but you shall love your neighbour as yourself: I am the Lord.’ Leviticus 19:17-18

2. Interpreting Parables

3. Literary Structure: Parallels Robbers A – ‘fell among robbers’ (30) B – ‘stripped him and beat him’ (30) C – ‘departed leaving him half dead’ (30) Samaritan A’ – ‘set him on his own beast and brought him to an inn and took care of him’ (34) B’ – ‘Bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine’ (34) C’ – ‘went to him’ (33)

4. Literary Structure: Plot Plot Oops! Ugh! Aha! Weee! Yeah! Parable  Man falls among thieves (30).  What they do to the man and those who pass by (30-32).  Samaritan comes (33).  Bandages wounds (34).  Leaves him at inn with promise of return (35).  Upsetting equilibrium.  Drawing listener in.  A surprise element, reversal.  Resolution and release.  Conclusion, pointing to future.

5. Interpretation: Perspectives Powerful Identify with priest and Levite. Decry robbers. Issue is purity. Samaritan is impure. Inn is a fearful place. Peasant Identify with robbers. Idolise robbers. Issue is status. Samaritan is foolish. Inn is a risky place. ‘Which of these three, do you think, was a neighbour to the man who fell in the hands of robbers?’

6. Interpretation: Perspectives Present What retelling of the parable would make sense for you, in your context?

8. Prime Directive Love God Love Neighbour Love Self energises restrains enables

9. Who will you be? ‘I will love the Lord my God with all my heart, and with all my soul, and with all my strength, and with all my mind; and my neighbour as myself.’