It is considered that the Samaritans were a religious community descended from the Israeli tribes.
The term Samaritan arose from an Aramaic word that later passed into Greek and finally, before reaching our language, into Latin. Its first meaning, according to the dictionary of the Royal Spanish Academy ( RAE ), refers to the subject originating from Samaria .
This region is located in the West Bank , in an area disputed between Israel and Palestine . In ancient times, Samaria was a city of the Kingdom of Israel : in fact, between the 4th century and the 7th century BC it was its capital. Since 2012 , the ruins of the ancient city have been under the control of the Palestinian National Authority .
The Samaritans, therefore, are native to this region . The concept, in any case, is associated with the religious community that proclaims itself descendant from the Israeli tribes (arising, according to the Bible , from the twelve sons of Jacob ).
Origin of the religious community
Tradition indicates that the Samaritans descend from Ephraim and Manasseh , sons of Joseph (who, in turn, is the son of Jacob ). The Samaritans emerged after the exile that occurred when the Assyrians conquered the Israeli tribes: they did not leave and began to welcome foreigners who passed through there. The Samaritan group, in this way, had confrontations with the Jewish community.
The New Testament of Catholicism includes the Samaritans in parables that highlight the relevance of love for one's neighbor based on the differences that existed between the Samaritans and the Jews. Also mentioned are the Samaritans who converted and began to spread the word of Jesus . Nowadays, a person is usually described as a Samaritan when they are supportive .
Parables are narrations of a fictional event that leads the interlocutor to reflect on moral issues. One of the most important in the Bible is that of the Good Samaritan , a summary of which is presented below.
The parable of the Good Samaritan appears in the New Testament.
Parable of the Good Samaritan
A Jewish man was heading towards Jericho from Jerusalem and, while he was in the middle of his journey, a group of thugs assaulted him, stripped him of his clothes, whipped him and almost took his life. At the same time, a priest was passing through the area and saw the victim of the attack, almost dead; However, he decided to continue walking as if he had not noticed their presence. This is also how a Levite acted, ignoring the poor man's needs .
Later, a man from Samaria, a town that the Jews despised, passed by; Seeing the man in trouble, he did not hesitate to lend a hand. First, he gathered the necessary items to clean his wounds and bandage him; Next, he put him on his donkey and took him to a place where they spent the night. Before leaving, the Samaritan gave money to the owner of the place and asked him to take care of the Jewish man; Furthermore, he begged him not to spare any expenses if they exceeded the initial payment, as he would cover them the next time they met.
Story context
In the gospel of Luke (specifically in 10:25-25) it is said that an expert in Jewish laws approached Jesus and asked him which was the most important of the laws of Moses. To this, Jesus responded that it was one that taught to love the Lord with the heart, soul, mind and with all one's strength, and also to love one's neighbor as oneself .
Then, the legal expert asked how to know who his neighbor was, and Jesus decided to tell him the above story so that he would understand it for himself. At the end of the story, Jesus told the first one to take the example of the Good Samaritan.